How Do I set-up Hughes Net email account in the Apple Mail Application?

Is Hughes your internet service provider? Did they give you instructions about the settings you need to enter You do have an email account set up, right? As soon as you enter your email address and password, Mail should be trying to connect to their server automatically. If not, you can enter the proper pop (or IMAP) and smtp server addresses along with the required port numbers.

Have you checked with them that you've entered the right information? I went to their website but could not find any information on how to set up an email client - did they give you the info on the phone?

Well, without knowing what settings they require, it's difficult to help. Here are screenshots of my account (personal info blacked out)

You need to get your email address and user name from them plus the password you've chosen with them as well as their incoming mail server name (for me: pop.centurylink.net)

If you then click on the Outgoing server and choose "edit server", you get this:

You need their outgoing server name (for me: smtp.centurylink.net)

If you then click on Advanced, you get this:

You need the following info for this (for the outgoing server): the port(s) number(s), whether or not to use SSL and whether password is needed or not.

Unless someone here has Hughesnet and can share the info needed, you do need to get it from them - just ask for the info, no need to mention that you have a Mac. As long as you tell them exactly what info you need, you should then be able to enter it using above pics as reference.

SO what setting infromation did your ISP give you?

is it imap, pop or exchange?

Have you consideres using a free provider like gmail, yahoo, hotmail, or mobileme? the reason I ask is in the future you might want to change your ISP. At that time, if your using Hughes email, you'll ether have to keep paying them or loose your email address. I've been online for maybe 21+ years, in that time i've changed ISP over 8 times; the only account that has been consitent in that time is my yahoo and hotmail email accounts.

I have several web based accounts including Yahoo - what bothers me the most is that it is not encrypted ( no 's' at the end of http) and my inbox has been hacked into several times.

Great to hear it's now working - did you use the screenshots while talking to the Hughes rep?

The screenshots are the images I used in one of my posts above (on March 1) to show what the Account setup windows in Mail look like.

Now if you want to do a screenshot = take a picture of whatever you are looking at on your computer screen - simply hold down these keys: Command and Shift and (number) 4. You'll notice that your cursor now looks different > clicking the mouse while dragging it around will result in a "camera shot" of whatever you just dragged it on. That is how I posted those pics (screenshots) in my post.