Need help with mail

[Tracy Keirns]

Hi everyone,

I've been a member of this list for a long time but have been lurking 
in the background.  Now I am having some trouble with OS X and Mail 
that I hope you can help me with.

1.  When I first turn on my computer and log on I can get my mail and 
get on the internet.  If I log off and let the computer stay on, the 
next time I check my mail it is REALLY slow and often times out.  The 
more times I try to get my mail the worse it gets.  My ISP is not 
really Mac friendly when it comes to tech support.  They told me that 
Mail is probably leaving a port open and I need to restart each time I 
want to get my e-mail. After I restart I can get my mail, but it 
downloads the same messages I have already received and deleted.   Any 
thoughts on what I can do?  Restarting every time is not my idea of a 
great way to be doing things here.

2.  This problem started about 2 weeks ago.  The only things that I 
have changed are that I got call waiting and one of the Emerson 
switchboards so that I could get calls while I was on the internet.  
Anyone have any experience with using this setup?  Is this the cause of 
my problem?

3.  Another thing that is weird is that when I have internet connect 
open it shows that I connect just fine every time I log in, but half 
the time I can not get on any web pages at all.  The time connected 
does not always show that I am connected, but internet connect shows 
that I am.

4.  Overall my computer performance has also slowed down.  It takes 
longer to open applications, I've had to force quit Explorer a few 
times because it won't close, and things just don't seem right.  OS X 
10.2.1.

Thanks in advance for any help or advice.

Tracy