Internet Foundations

1. Internet Foundations Chapter 3 Working with E-mail

2. Objectives • What is E-mail • E-mail Netiquette • The Anatomy of an E-mail message • Creating and Sending E-mail • Binary files and Attachments • Mailing list

3. E-mail • Is the most popular activity on the Internet • 75 % of Internet users use e-mail • Based on Text files • Does not require high speed connection

4. Advantages of E-mail • Simple application • Allows you to distribute information to many uses in a timely manner

5. E-mail Netiquette • Practicing good e-mail etiquette is all about respecting other • Guidelines: • Keep your messages short and to the point • Watch your grammar and spelling • Be careful with humor. Avoid Sarcasm • Use of uppercase words very sparingly. UPPERCASE TEXT YELLS • NEVER leave your subject: header blank • Include your e-mail address in the message body

6. On-line Conversations • Not the same as face-to-face or telephone conversations • Important to use “unspoken” communication • Emoticons • Combination of characters that represent emotion • Smilee • Most common emoticon • example: ;-) :-) :-o ;-( • Flames • Angry e-mail messages • Considered impolite

7. Characteristics of an E-mail Message • E-mail very similar to an office memo • Properties of an E-mail: • Fairly short • Addresses a single topic • Relies on plain text (no graphic or fancy font) • Informal writing style • Might a reply to previous message • Can be sent to one or many individuals • Can be passed along to other individuals • Timely • May come back to Haunt you

8. Parts of a Message • Emails contain two main parts • E-mail header • Addressing information • Who the message is from • Who message is being sent to • Time message was sent • Subject of message • Message body • What you want to say

9. Address Information • In order for your message to be delivered you must fill in the TO field • A valid address consist of • Userid • Host address • @ ---to separate userid and host address

10. Structure of a Typical Email

11. Specifying Multiple Recipients’

12. Anatomy of an E-mail Message • TO: • Who the message is intended for • Cc: • Carbon Copy • Additional recipients of message • Bcc: • Blind Carbon Copy • Additional recipients of message but, their address is not displays to other receivers of message • Subject: • Supplied by user, indicates purpose of message • Date: • Supplied by system, current date & time message was sent • From: • Supplied by system, address of sender of message • Attachments

13. Mail Shortcuts • Alias • Create one if you send a lot of mail to same user, abbreviation for users full email address • Distribution List • alias for multiple recipients, create one if you send the same information to the same group of people on a regular basis • Signature file • Identifies the send, information include could be, name, address, phone number, fax number or some quotation

14. E-mail Programs • Many different programs, no one single programs works on all computers • Use any e-mail program to send mail to different e-mail clients • Shareware • Run on your PC but receive mail thru mail server • Free or inexpensive • Dumb terminal • Passes all your keystrokes to another computer • Popular clients • Netscape messenger • Microsoft Outlook • Eudora

15. Typical Mail Window

16. Setting up E-mail • ISPs support various protocols • POP (Post Office Protocol) • SMTP ( Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) • Mail servers receive mail and stores it until it can be downloaded to your computer

17. E-mail Clients Basic Features • Send a message that you have written • Read any message sent to you • Reply to any message sent to you • Forward a message to a third party • Save or delete a message sent to you • Scan the subject: and from: fields for all you new mail • Print messages • Delete messages

18. Additional client features • Ability to sort mail • Ability to tag unread mail • Address aliases or nicknames • Reply option that will allow you to edit original message • Custom mail filter that sorts mail before you see it • Automatic signature inclusion

19. Viewing your Mail • Inbox • Folder where new mail arrives • Sent • Folder where mail you send in copied • Outbox • Folder where outgoing messages are held until email client sends them • Delete • Place where deleted items are kept

20. Sending a Message • Message do’s and don’ts • Keep your signature file short, use no more that four lines • Reread the complete message before your send mail to catch any errors and to make sure that you are saying what you mean, especially if the message will go to multiple users • Be sure to study your mail program’s documentation

21. New Mail Window

22. Replying and Forwarding E-mail • Types of replies: • Sender-only • Your message is sent only to the original author of the current message • Private • Group (reply-to-all) • Your message is sent to the original author, plus everyone included in the TO:, Cc:, and Bcc: fields • Public

23. Replying

24. Reply Do’s and Don’ts • Know which type of reply you want to use • If your dialog is lengthy , take the time to update the subject field • Be selective, try not to duplicate the original text if it is not necessary to the discussion

25. Forwarding

26. File types • ASCII text • Plain text files, normal type of file sent by most mail systems • RTF • Binary files • Word processing, or other files that include enhanced text or graphics • Attachments • A work around to sending binary files on ASCII text systems • MIME (Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions) • Standard format for e-mail attachments

27. E-mail & Viruses • Viruses • Program that destroy or damage computer files and storage devices • They attach themselves to files • Files that carry enhancements and graphics are likely to contain a virus • Executable files may also carry a virus • At present you cannot get a virus from a plain text email

28. Mailing List • Mailing List • Forum by which a group of people can use e-mail to share information with each other • Operate on the ASCII text format • Examples: Net Surfers Digest, Computer Report Digest • Types • Moderate • List subscribers do not post messages • Interactive • List subscribers post messages

29. Netspeak