Email

The mail service on the Internet is based on a protocol called SMTP, for Simple Mail Transfer Protocol, that is part of the TCP/IP set. Mail works as a client-server system. There is a mail program running on the server, receiving and storing all email messages that arrive for your userid. You can then read those messages by using one of available email clients or email readers.

Text-based Mail Clients

• mail: "The Chevy Impala of email packages", widely available
• emacs, a text editor, also has a mail client
• elm: easy to use, but superseded by pine
• pine ("Pine Is Not Elm")

  Graphical Clients
  

• Eudora
• Netscape

  Which is better?

Using pine

• Login to your unix account.
• Startup the pine program by typing pine and pressing enter.
• The program will greet you. Follow any instructions, but do not stop at this time to read the tutorial.

• You will see a menu screen with several options, like this:

  	?   HELP		- Getting Help...
  	C   COMPOSE MESSAGE	- Compose and send...
  	I   FOLDER INDEX	- View messages ...
  	L   FOLDER LIST		- Select folder to view 
  	A   ADDRESS BOOK	- Update address book
  	S   SETUP		- Configure or update...
  	Q   QUIT		- Exit the Pine program
  	

  To execute any of these commands, simply press the corresponding letter. Right now, we want to send an email, so press the letter c for "compose message".

• Pine will prompt you for an email address. Get the address for the person sitting beside you, and fill out the To: field and press return. Then fill out the Subject field. Press return to move into the message area. Type in a short "hello! How are you?" One line will do. You can move around the screen using the arrow keys and the backspace key to delete characters.

• When you are done, look at the bottom of the screen. You will see a series of commands. To send the message, you need to press Ctrl-x, that is, hold down the Ctrl key and simultaneously press the x key. Pine will ask you if you really wish to send the message. Answer with a "y" for yes. The message will be transmitted - it may take a few seconds to get there, or it may take longer. If you don't receive the message during the class session, login later and reply to it (see below.)

• To read your mail, press "L" to see a list of your mail folders. Your new mail will be in the inbox, select that folder (you can move around the list of folders using the arrow keys) and press enter. You will see a list of the messages you have in your folder. Select the one you would like to see and press return to see it. Read the commands at the bottom of the screen to find out what your options are.

• Now, send a reply to the message received. Start by pressing r for "reply". By default, Pine will include the text of the message received in your reply. Add a greeting and your name, and send it off by pressing Ctrl-x, followed by a "y" for yes when Pine verifies if you really want to send it.

• We are now done with the very basic introduction to Pine, but please do this exercise after today's lab.