Introduction to Internet Email
Chip Rosenthal
<chip@unicom.com>
for the Riverside Drive Internet Training Center
Class Notes
Class Introduction
- Objective: Learn to use Internet email effectively.
- Prerequisites: Use of web browser.
- Expected Results
- Send and receive email messages.
- Use features such as addressbooks and folders.
- Understand and follow email netiquette.
How it Works
- To send somebody email, you need to know their email
address.
- Example: chip@unicom.com
- Left Hand Side - the mailbox name
- Right Hand Side - where the mailbox resides
- To receive email, you need a mailbox on a mail
sever.
- Mail is delivered into your mailbox on the server.
- Your computer runs a mail program to retrieve
messages from the server.
- With web-based email, messages stay on the server.
The Email Message
- An Example Message:
To: chip@unicom.com (Chip Rosenthal)
From: mary@yahoo.com (Mary Miller)
Subject: dinner tonight
Date: Sat, 30 Oct 1999 08:04:37 -0600 (CDT)
Cc: stanley@hotmail.com, livingston@excite.com
Bcc: ........
|
I'll see you at 7 tonight. Don't forget to bring the
paper plates and Tabasco sauce.
|
|
- An email message contains headers and message body.
- The email headers tell you about the message.
- The email body is the message content.
- Common Headers:
- Subject
- From
- To, Cc (carbon copy), Bcc (blind CC)
- Date
- The mail program will prompt you through headers.
- The mail program usually shows only interesting headers.
- Additional headers record mail handling and provide other features.
Mail Commands
- Read Mail Message
- Send New Mail Message
- Reply to Mail Message
- Group Reply to Mail Message
- Forward Mail Message
Mail Features
- Address Book - to remember email addresses and lists of addresses.
- Mail Folders - to file away received email messages.
- Sent Mail Folder - save a copy of the email you send.
- Trash Folder - to retrieve recently deleted messages.
- Drafts Folder - put aside messages being composed, to finish later.
- Signatures - a tagline to attach to all messages sent.
- Attachments - include files, documents, or other information.
Appendix A: Netiquette Reference
Guidelines for Good Email
- Practice good netiquette.
- Choose a good Subject.
- Break lines at about 72 characters to avoid ugly wraparound.
- If you use a signature file, keep it to
four lines or less.
- When replying, trim quoted text.
- When replying, watch where the message is going.
- Before sending attachments, verify recipient wants and can use them.
- Email is a text medium, avoid rich text (HTML) formats.
- DO NOT SHOUT. Mixed case is easier to read.
- You *can* use symbols to emphasize words.
- Don't be a jerk. :-) Use smileys when appropriate.
- Before flaming, take a break and have a
nice cup of tea.
- Chain letters are illegal. Craig Shergold isn't dying.
- Virus warnings and scare messages usually are a hoax.
- Program and document attachments, however, may carry viruses.
- Don't spam unsolicited ads. It's like
advertising by collect phone call.
- Email has no guarantees of security or reliability.
Appendix B: Additional Resources
Tutorials and Information
E-Mail Client Program Software Sites
Free Web-Based Email
Specialty Services
- Considerations
- What does it cost? Sometimes "free" has a price.
- What do they do with email addresses? Is there a privacy statement?
- Does the recipient really want this?
- Blue Mountain Arts
- Send electronic greeting cards.
- http://www.bluemountainarts.com/
- InfoBeat
- Delivers customized reports tailored to your interests.
- http://www.infobeat.com/
- Mr. Smith Emails ...
- Send email to people in government or the media.
- http://www.mrsmith.com/
Chip Rosenthal
<chip@unicom.com>
These notes are based on original notes and research done by
Kelvin Hicks and Paul Barron.
Back to the Paperware Archive.
Up to Unicom Systems home page.
Let us know
your comments, corrections, additions, suggestions.
$Id: email-intro.html,v 1.12 2001/11/10 17:14:50 chip Exp $