Electronic mail (e-mail) is and probably always will be the most common use of the Internet. It allows Internet users to send and receive messages from around the world. Requests for database searches and the result posted to an account can also be done by e-mail.
Emails are delivered extremely fast when compared to traditional post. Emails can be sent 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Webmail means emails can be sent and received from any computer, anywhere in the world, that has an internet connection . Emails can be sent to one person or several people.
Informal Emails - exampleFriendly emails are emails that you send to your friends and family. Social emails are emails you send in order to invite your friends and acquaintences for a party/events taht you are having.
Top 10 uses of the Internet
- Electronic mail. At least 85% of the inhabitants of cyberspace send and receive e-mail.
- Research.
- Downloading files.
- Discussion groups.
- Interactive games.
- Education and self-improvement.
- Friendship and dating.
- Electronic newspapers and magazines.
The Disadvantages of Email for Internal Communications
- Email could potentially cause information overload.
- Email lacks a personal touch.
- Email can be disruptive.
- Email cannot be ignored for a long time.
- Email can cause misunderstandings.
- Email messages can contain viruses.
- Email should be kept short and brief.
A process sends an email to a user and another process receives the email, by either sending a response to the sender, or writing it to a log in the console. This process contains Send Mail and Receive Mail activities.
Features of email
- automatic reply to messages.
- auto-forward and redirection of messages.
- facility to send copies of a message to many people.
- automatic filing and retrieval of messages.
- addresses can be stored in an address book and retrieved instantly.
- notification if a message cannot be delivered.
With IM, the other party receives your message almost immediately after you press the send button. From a technical perspective, real-time communications implies that there's a direct, open connection between the two or more parties who are talking.
Webpages use HTTP, email uses SMTP for sending and POP3/IMAP/Exchange for remote retrieval/manipulation of a store of messages. All these are different. HTTP is a request-response protocol, meaning the client issues a single request, and the server provides a response, and that's it.
Even though they have different names, Webmail and Email are basically the same things. However, they do have two important differences: how they are accessed and how to recover lost emails. As discussed above, Webmail is accessed through web browsers only, whereas Email Clients are accessed through desktop programs.
Email ServersMessages are exchanged between servers using the SMTP protocol with various MTAs (Mail Transfer Agents) such as Sendmail, Postfix, qmail, or Exim. Messages can be stored on the server for the user to access, they can be downloaded and stored in the email client for offline use, or stored both places.
IMAP synchronization will delete the server copies too. If your account connects using POP, then deleting server copies when you download messages is the default behaviour, unless you specifically change it by setting the checkbox "Leave a copy on server".
How to Process Emails Effectively: 5 Email Management Tips
- Get to know your email platform thoroughly.
- Schedule email-time every day, and stick with the routine.
- Close or block the email after your scheduled time.
- Declutter the inbox every day.
- Keep them sorted.
- Final thoughts.
E-mail is defined as the transmission of messages on the Internet. It is one of the most commonly used features over communications networks that may contain text, files, images, or other attachments. Email messages are conveyed through email servers; it uses multiple protocols within the TCP/IP suite.
There are three common protocols used to deliver email over the Internet: the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP), the Post Office Protocol (POP), and the Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP).
Email protocol is a method by which a communication channel is established between two computers and email is transferred between them. When an email is transferred, a mail server and two computers are involved. One computer sends the mail and the other one receives it.
IMAP is one of the most common protocols for receiving email. IMAP syncs messages across all devices. POP3 is another protocol for receiving email on a single device. Using POP3 means that your email will be accessible offline and deleted from the server.
Popular Network Protocols
- Overview.
- Introduction to the Network Protocol.
- Ethernet.
- Internet Protocol (IP)
- Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP)
- Address Resolution Protocol (ARP)
- Transmission Control Protocol (TCP)
- User Datagram Protocol (UDP)
FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol which used for the transfer of computer files between a client and server on a computer network. Hence, it is not an email protocol.
TCP/IP is the basis for almost all of the communication we will discuss in this book. Because it is the most widely used network protocol, we will focus on it. Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP, RFC 2616) is the server/client–based protocol used to transfer web pages across a network.
If you get your email from a web site, it's IMAP. If you download it to a mail client without using a web browser, it's probably POP3. If you were using Microsoft Exchange, you'd know it: it's ancient. (Replaced by Outlook.)
For non-Gmail clients, Gmail supports the standard IMAP, POP, and SMTP protocols. The Gmail IMAP, POP, and SMTP servers have been extended to support authorization via the industry-standard OAuth 2.0 protocol.
IMAP and POP3 are the two most commonly used Internet mail protocols for retrieving emails. Both protocols are supported by all modern email clients and web servers. While the POP3 protocol assumes that your email is being accessed only from one application, IMAP allows simultaneous access by multiple clients.
