By Beth Lim

Table of Contents Goals: Definition of The format of an The history of an How works Pros and cons of Think Twice before hitting “Send”

Definition of A method of exchanging digital messages Short for Electronic Mail Based on a store- and- forward basis

History of Morse Code telegraph IBM radiotype, nicknamed a “high- speed substitute for the world of tomorrow”. Teleprinters were also used in Germany during World War s- Telex Network and a similar but compatible American TWX which remained important until the late 1980s AUTODIN network, providing message service between 1,350 terminals handling 30 million messages a month ARPANET computer network made a large contribution to the development of . In 1971, Ray Tomlinson initiated the use of sign to separate the names of the user and their machine. ARPANET significantly increased the popularity of , and it became the killer app of ARPANET. This again???

How Works The below explains what happens when Alice sends a message to Bob: 1.The message is sent to Alice’s MUA through SMTP, also called submission protocol. 2.The MUA sends it to the MSA through DNS. 3.The DNS server for the fully qualified domain name then responds with MX records (a mail exchange record explaining how the should be routed) listing the Mail Exchange Servers for that domain. 4.The server using SMTP then sends the message to the domain name. 5.The final MDA (Mail delivery agent) delivers it to the mailbox of Bob. 6.Bob presses the get mail button in his MUA, which picks up the message using POP3 or IMAP4.

Pros of using Much of the business world relies on It is free Allows asynchrony Allows participants to control their schedule independently Almost instant in delivery

Cons of using Flaming Bankruptcy Loss of context Information overload Inconsistenc y (duplication of information) Liability Attachment size limitation Spamming- Bombing Viruses e.g. worms Phishing- spoofing Privacy concerns Despite these disadvantages, has become the most widely used medium of communication within the business world. A study found that 83% of U.S. knowledge workers felt that played a crucial role in their lives.

Think Twice before Hitting “Send” Have something to say. While your daily musings are permissible on Twitter, your audience will be less forgiving. Make it digestible. doesn’t limit your word count, but you need to apply some editing of your own. Be regular. Set a schedule of s you know you can keep to. Be personal. Tailor your tone to the audience.

Sources Wikipedia Yahoo answers Smashing magazine