Lesson 8

Hooking up
via E-mail
How Does E-mail Work?

Electronic mail, commonly called e-mail, is the most

common application on the internet. E-mail is any
messages directed from one individual to another and
sent from one individual to another and sent from one
computer to another.
username@gmail.com username@yahoo.com
 Snail mail

Snail mail or postal mail system, which requires

postman to manually deliver messages to your
doorstep.
Post man
 Mail server

In e-mail, the postman is replaced by a computer

that serves as the mail server. Mail servers may
contain hundreds of registered e-mail accounts.
Using Webmail

Webmail is short for Web-based e-mail system. It was termed “Web-

based” because it uses the HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) to fetch
messages from a mail server. An internet browser is used to display, read,
send, and manipulate e-mail messages. The most obvious advantages of
webmail is that it is accessible by just using an Internet browser without
any e-mail software.

Web mails can be compared using the following criteria:

 Mail Storage Capacity

This determines the maximum capacity of the

webmail account.
 Special Features

These are enhanced tools or features that

differentiate one webmail service from another.
 Accessibility

Some webmails can be accessed using Post Office

Protocol version 3 (POP3) or Internet Message
Access Protocol (IMAP) which can be displayed in
client windows application such as MS Outlook.
 Security

How does your webmail provider keep your e-mails

secure?
 Cost

Some webmails are commercial. Yahoo! Mail and

Gmail are two of the most commonly used free e-
mail services. However for a certain annual fee, the
mail storage capacity can be increased.
 Outlook Express

Outlook is a basic Internet mail program that is part of Internet

Explorer and Windows. Outlook Express is a stand-alone Internet mail
program.
 E-mail etiquette

E-mail etiquette means “the prescribed ways of

using e-mail in cyberspace.”
 Netiquette

Netiquette are the prescribed ways of using not only

e-mail but all other internet technologies,
applications, and resources.
 Bcc

Use “Bcc” if you want to protect the privacy of your

other recipients. “Cc” makes all the names of your
recipients visible to all.
 Spider software

Spider software are used to search e-mail addresses

on the Internet.