Messages (SMS/MMS) and Conversations

• Access and Active Channels
• Starting a New Conversation  ---
  
  • Entering Contacts 
  • Selecting an SMS Line
  • Spell Checking and SMS Signature 
  • Images and Emojis
• Conversation Content and Filtering---
• Text and Image Options 
• Conversation Options ---
  
  • Blocking/Unblocking Numbers

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Access and Active Channels

Select on the top-left corner to access your Messages Screen. The screen is divided into two areas – the left one listing existing SMS/MMS conversations (a conversation is a sequence of messages between you and another party) and the right one for seeing a conversation's content and options or to start a new conversation. 

If you already have older conversations in your account but cannot see them or cannot receive new messages ("No messages found" is displayed in the left area) check the SMS Text Channels – MANAGE PHONE NUMBERS option in the TeleConsole's settings and ensure that at least one of your SMS channels is active!

If your SMS channels are active and you still don't see messages, this may also happen if you have selected to show only Unread Conversations when you don't have any unread conversations. Simply select to show All Conversations to fix this.
 

Starting a New Conversation

To compose a new SMS/MMS message select  . The message will be sent from your default SMS number (selected in Messages Settings), but you can change it as explained next.

Entering Contacts

Enter a contact's name or number in the To: field at the top. Matching results, for both company and personal contacts, will be suggested. Select the desired one(s). If you selected one by mistake click next to it to remove it.

If you messaged any contact recently his details will appear at the top of the contacts list under a RECENTLY SENT list and you can easily message him by clicking  . To remove an item from the list, hover over it and select . Note that this list is specific to the messages screen. The keypad and faxes screens have their own separate "Recent Contacts" list!

If a contact has more than one phone number all will be shown.  

You obviously need to select a number that can receive SMS messages (a real mobile number or VoIP number that is compatible with SMS, such as Telebroad's business SMS) otherwise the message will not be delivered. 

An undelivered message will be marked with    in the conversation content window. When clicked it will show an error message "Destination phone number cannot receive SMS messages" at the bottom of the screen.

Selecting an SMS Line

If you have more than one SMS line you can click the From: field and select the line you want to send the message from. The default number appearing here is selected in the Default SMS Number option of the TeleConsole's settings.

Spell Checking and SMS Signature

Enter your message in the Type a message field and select to send it. As you type, you can right-click misspelled words, which are underlined in red, to get spelling suggestions. Select Add to dictionary to make the spell checker ignore the selected word (for names or technical terms for example.)

If you have added an SMS signature in the TeleConsole settings it will appear just under your message.

Once delivered to the recipient, the signature appears together with your message, like this –

Images and Emojis

Attach up to four images to your message by clicking (only image files can be attached. You cannot attach any other files.)

Drag and drop the image you want to attach to the drag-and-drop box or click the box to open a file navigation window and select the relevant file.

The file you attach shows up as a thumbnail and you can remove it by selecting . Add additional images by selecting the Add file button. Select any of the thumbnails to see a larger preview of the image. 

Note that adding images to your message convert it to an MMS message. This doesn't really matter to you, but may result in additional fees to the recipient!

You can insert emojis in the text by clicking  . To display different emojis select a category at the top of the emojis window or type a search term in the search field ("fruit" in the example shown here.)  

Conversation Content and Filtering

Click    (next to Start Conversation) to filter the type of conversations to show. Select All Conversations (both read and unread conversations) or just Unread Conversations. Unread conversations appear in bold. 

Click any conversation to show its content. You can continue the conversation with a text message or an image just as when you do when starting a new conversation.

You can change the outgoing SMS line you are using (If you have more than one SMS line) at any time from the drop-down menu at the top. Doing so, however, may split the conversation between the different lines at the recipient's end!

  If you change the line it will also affect the content of conversations and only messages delivered to the selected line will be shown at any given time! Select a different line if a conversation appears to be missing some messages.

Text and Image Options

If you click any text message in the conversation you get the options to Copy text (which you can paste in any text field in the TeleConsole or other program) or Delete. Deleting will only affect the selected message and not the entire conversation! 

If you click an image in the conversation you get the option to Download the image to your local or network drive or Delete it from the conversation.

Conversation Options
 
On the top-right corner of a conversation you have the following options:

• Select to place a call to the person whom you are conversing with. The keypad  screen will open with the other party's number automatically inserted in the call recipient's field.
  
  
• Select    for contact options for the other party.
  
  
  • If the other party already exists in your contacts his details will open in the contacts screen.
    
    
  • If the other party does not  exist in your contacts, you will get two options – Create new contact or Add to existing. See more about creating new contacts here.
    
    
    
    
• Click to display additional options –
  
  
  • Select   to download a CSV file of the text of the conversation (images are not included but can be downloaded separately. See above.)
    
    The downloaded CSV file has the following format and fields. 
    
    
    
    
  • Select   to automatically reject SPAM messages or from anyone you don't want to receive SMS/MMS messages from. The number will be added to the Blocked Numbers List that is accessible in the Messages Settings.
    
    Blocking is applied per channel and to completely block a number you need to block it across all of your SMS channels.
    
    
    Blocked conversations are marked with icon.
    
    
    
    If a number is already blocked you will see the option toor you can remove it from the Blocked Numbers list in the Messages Settings.
    
    
    
    Any numbers blocked or unblocker on a Desktop TeleConsole client (Windows/Mac OS) will also be blocked or unblocked in the Android, iOS, or other desktop version of the TeleConsole. The TeleConsole's web version does not support the blocking.
    
    Messages from blocked contacts will be automatically rejected, however calls from these contacts will still be accepted! Blocking calls is not available from the TeleConsole, but you can do so with Filtered Forwarding which is accessed and set up in the Admin Portal. This is usually handled by your phone system or IT administrator.
    
    
  • Select   to mark the conversation as unread – displaying it in bold and tagging it as an unread conversation. This is useful for reminding yourself to address it again at a later point.
    
    To mark a conversation as read, you simply have to select it. Under your profile menu you also have the option to mark all messages as read.
    
    
  • Select   to delete the entire conversation. Click DELETE when prompted to approve the deletion.