Lesson #153
Personal – Notifications and Messages function
Receive automatic notifications from the system, and send and receive messages from other RB users using the same system in a format similar to an email system.
In Notifications and Messages, you can:
- Receive automatic notices and alerts from the system.
- Exchange messages with others within your RB system.
- Send messages to pre-determined groups of RB users.
- Delete old/unneeded messages to manage your message list.
Notifications and Messages works like email but is not an email system; you can only exchange messages with other RB users in your company.
Access messages
When a message arrives for you, RB displays an alert dialog box in the notification area of your browser, which will take you directly to the Notifications and Messages function. You can also check messages anytime by selecting the function in your personal menu.
The default view in the Notifications and Messages window is your Inbox with messages listed from most recently received first.
- Priority messages are marked with a red flag. RB automatically flags rush Turn In notifications and also displays their Subject line in red.
- Unread messages are marked so you can see at a glance which messages you haven’t read yet. And the total number of unread messages are displayed onscreen too.
- Listings include the sender’s name, the subject line, and date and time sent.
- Reminder messages have the followup date and time listed so you can see at a glance which messages are reminders.
From this main screen, you can access any message listed. You can also send a new message to any RB user or message group in your company. And you can view messages you have sent and messages you have moved to the trash but not removed from the system yet.
Reading & acting on messages
When you select a message from the list to read, you can click on any hyperlinks in the message, such as a job number or entity name, to view more information/act on it. You can also reply to the message or forward it to other RB users, either individually or to an entire message group at once.
When you reply to a message, RB automatically fills in the recipient. You can change the recipient and/or add other RB users and groups from the attached list. You can also add carbon-copy (Cc) and blind carbon-copy (Bcc) recipients from the same list.
Like most email systems, the subject line defaults to Re: [subject] of the original message in replies and Fw: [subject] of the original message in forwarded messages, and is editable. Also the message defaults to include the original message.You can edit and format the information as you would an email.
If you want to compose a message now, but send at a later time, you can schedule a delivery date and time. You can flag messages so your recipient sees in their Notifications and Messages listing which messages are important before reading them. You can also request a receipt to have the recipient automatically acknowledge receiving your message.
When you send a message, your message is saved to your Sent Message directory where it is stored for a set amount of days determined in System Preferences.
If you do not need to save a message after viewing it, you can delete it. You can also select multiple messages in your Notifications and Messages inbox to delete at the same time. Deleted messages are moved to your Trash directory, where they are stored for the same set amount of days as your sent messages.
TL;DR: Receive reminders and other messages from the system and other RB users. Act on messages by clicking hyperlinks within messages. Send messages to other users in your company.
RB concepts in this lesson
Entity: Individual, business, place, or discrete part of your company, such as revenue centers or branch offices. More >
Groups: Categories of RB users that define who can access which functions in RB, what they can do within accessible functions, and what kinds of notifications and messages group members receive.
Users: You and your staff who directly access RB. Contacts and resources are different entities — not users in RB — and access RB9 through RB Connect or RB Connect Mobile.