Ex. GOOG 1046
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`"Foi those of us who are
`clearly intellectually superi~r,
`Internet e-mail is quite
`simple. The rest of you,
`however, should consider
`this book."
`
`Ex. GOOG 1046
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`

`
`. ""eCOMPLETE
`
`I
`
`GUIDE TO
`
`Internet
`E·Mai~
`
`by Paul McFedries
`
`oue
`
`A Division of Macmillan Publishing
`A Prentice Hall Macmillan Company
`201 W. 103rd Street, Indianapolis; IN 46290
`
`-------- -· --~------
`
`Ex. GOOG 1046
`
`

`
`This book is dedicated to all those books whose dedications are
`fourteen words long.
`
`©1995 Que• Corporation
`All rights reserved. No part of this book shall be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
`system, or transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
`recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher. No patent
`liability is assumed with respect to the use of the information contained herein.
`Although every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, the
`publisher and author assume no responsibility for errors or omissions. Neither is
`any liability assumed for damages resulting from the use of the information
`contained herein. For information, address Que Corporation, 201 W. 103rd Street,
`Indianapolis, Indiana 46290.
`
`International Standard Book Number: 1-56761-596-1
`
`Ubrary of Congress Catalog Card Number: 94-73198
`
`97 96 95 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
`
`Interpretation of the printing code: the rightmost number of the first series of
`numbers is the year of the book's printing; the rightmost number of the second
`series of numbers is the number of the book's printing. For example, a printing
`code of 95-1 shows that the first printing of the book occurred in 1995.
`Printed in the United States of America
`
`ii
`
`- -
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`-=
`-·
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`Ex. GOOG 1046
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`Chapter 4.'
`
`You S~nd Me:
`Some Stuff
`About Sending
`E-Mail
`
`.>.- The etiquette of sending e-mail
`>- How to s~drmessages betw.een different e-mail syste.ins
`
`At its simplest, e-mail boils down to just two things: receiving messages and sending
`them. Receiving e-mail from others is no big deal: you get it, you read it, and then you
`either save it or toss it in whatever electronic version of a trash bin your mail software
`provides. Next!
`
`Sending e-mail out into the ether, though, is another story altogether. When
`composing your missives, there are etiquette guidelines you should follow; when filling
`out the To: line in the header, you may have to jump through an extra hoop or two if the
`message is headed for a non-Internet address (such as CompuServe or MCI Mail); and if
`you need to send non text data, such as a graphics file or a database, you have to set
`things up right or the recipient will receive a jumbled mess. This chapter tackles all of
`these sending subjects so your electronic postal duties will go as smoothly as possible.
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`Ex. GOOG 1046
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`Part 1 >- E-Mail Made Easy
`
`Minding Your E-Mail Manners
`One of the first things you notice when you drift around the Net is that it attracts more
`than its share of bohemians, nonconformists, and rugged individualists. Despite all these
`people surfing to the beat of a different drum, the Net resolutely refuses to degenerate
`into mere anarchy. Oh sure, you get the odd every-nerd-for-himself burly-burly, but
`civility reigns the vast majority of the time.
`
`Usually, most Netizens are just too busy With their researching and rubbernecking
`to cause trouble, but there's another mechanism that helps keep ·everyone in line: it's
`called netiquette (a portmanteau of network etiquette). Netiquette is a collection of sug(cid:173)
`gested behavioral norms designed to grease the wheels of Net social discourse. Scofflaws
`who defy the netiquette rules can expect to see a few reprimands in their e-mail In box.
`To help you stay on the good side of the Internet community, the next few sections tell
`you everything you need to know about the netiquette involved in sending e-mail.
`
`y
`
`The Thr«Z«Z s·s of Composing E-Mail
`
`Back in the long-gone days when I was a good corporate citizen, my boss used to call his
`secrets for successful presentations "the three B's)l: be goo~, be brief, begone. These
`simple prescriptions also form a small chunk of the basic netlquette landscape. Being
`good 1Jleans writing in dear, understandable prose that isn't marred by sloppy spelling or
`flagrant grammar violations. Also, if you use some facts or statistics, cite the appropriate
`references to placate the doubting Thomases who'll want to check things for themselves.
`
`Being bri:ef means getting right to the point without indulging in a rambling pre(cid:173)
`amble. Always assume ·your addressee is plowing through a stack of e-mail and has no
`time or patience for verbosity. State your business and then practice the third 11B":
`begone!
`DON'T SHOOT!
`When writing with your high-end word processor, you probably use italics (or, more
`rarely, underlining) to· emphasize important words or phrases. But because e-mail just
`uses plain vanilla text (that is, no fancy formatting options allowed), you may think that,
`in cyberspace, no one can hear you scream. That's not true, ~owever. In fact, many e-mail
`scribes add emphasis to their epistles by using UPPERCASE LEITERS. This works, but
`please use uppercase sparingly. AN ENI'IRE MESSAGE WRITIEN IN CAPITAL LEITERS
`FEELS LIKE YOU'RE SHOUTING, WHICH IS OKAY FOR USED-CAR SALESMEN ON
`LATE-NIGHT TV, BUT IS INAPPROPRIATE IN THE MORE SEDATE WORLD OF E-MAIL
`CORRESPONDENCE.
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`Chapter 4
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`ft:. You Send Me: Some Stuff About Sending E-Mail
`
`.. Tl].~~e:are oPler.~ays to add emphasis to. your .e~~ail prose.·For ex-.
`<af4P,!e1 ·y~ni can *br.acket* a word wit;h ·a~t¢r.i~ks. To find out rp.ore.:
`~!~~~l ,::fl.l?,oP, f;th~.se .and. qthe~: e:mail co~v¢P:o.n~, .~ee CP,aJ?t~r. 5, ''Lea.riling
`C
`· ~:the ~irig~~;~:-Mail)~go* a.nd f\cronyms."•
`
`on the other hand, you occasionally see e-mail messages written entirely in lower(cid:173)
`case letters from lazy susans, toms, dicks, and harrys who can't muster the energy to
`reach out for the·shift key. this, too, is taboo because it makes the text quite difficult to
`read. Just use the normal capitalization practices (uppercase for the beginning of sen(cid:173)
`tences, proper names, and so on), and everyone'll be happy.
`Avoid Tabs and Othvr Wvirdo Charactvrs
`The Internet mail system works fine most of the time, but it's a temperamental, finicky
`beast. As long as things are just so, the mail should get through and your recipient will be
`able to read your well-crafted thoughts. But if you throw any kind of monkey wrench
`into the works, well, who knows what can happen. One of these monkey wrenches
`involves usiJlg characters that aren't part of the alphanumeric array on your keyboard.
`(By that, I mean the letters, numbers, and symbols such as$,?, and%.) Tossing in Tabs
`or any of the so-called control characters (characters created by holding down the Ctrl key
`and pressing a letter or number), can throw your e-mail software for a loop.
`
`Take Your Subject LinCls Seriously
`As I mentioned in Chapter 3, busy e-mail readers often use the contents of the' Subject
`line to make a snap judgment about whether or not to bother reading a message. (This
`is especially true if the redpient doesn't know you from Adam.) The majority of mail
`mavens hate Subject lines that are either ridiculously vague (such as "Info required" or
`"Please help!") or absurdly general (such as "An e-mail message" or "Mail"), and they'll
`just press their mail software's 11 delete button" without giving the message a second
`thought. (In fact, there's a kind of illicit thrill involved in deleting an wuead message, so
`don't give the person any excuse to exercise this indulgence.) Give your Subject line some
`thought and make it descriptive enough so the reader can tell at a glance what your
`djspatCh is about.
`
`Expczrimcznt with Yourself
`When you're just starting out with e-mail, you'll likely want to try a test drive or two to
`work out the kinks. Unless you can enlist a friend or colleague as a willing guinea pig,
`don't send out messages to just anybody because, believe me, they have better things to
`
`27
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`Port 1 >- E-Mail Made Easy
`
`do than read a bunch of /{Testing 1..2 .. 3 .. " messages. The best w~y to perform e-mail
`shakedowns is to send the tests to your own mail address. If things seem to be working
`fine, I hereby volunteer to be the recipient of your first 11Ieal" message. Send a note to
`paulmcf@hookup.net and let me know how the weather is in your neck of the woods.
`·MorC2 Snippczts of Svnding Svnsitivity
`The following, in no particular order, are a few more netiquette gems that'll help make
`sure you always put your best sending foot forward.
`
`Don't Ouotq MC2 ·on Thot. (Onlczss I Soy So!)
`If you receive private e-mail correspondence from someone, it's considered impo~te to
`quote them in another message without their permission. You're probably also violating
`copyright law, because the author of an e-mail message has a copyright on any and all
`messages they send. There's even an acronym that covers this point with admirable
`succinctness: YOYOW-you own your own words. (See Chapter 5, "Learning the Lingo:
`E-Mail Jargon and Acronyms," for more acronym fun.)
`
`Include Original Tczxt Whczn Replying
`When replying to a_ message, include quotes from the original message for context. Few
`things are more frustrating in e-mail than to receive a reply that just says "Great idea, let's
`do it!" or "That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard." Which great idea or dumb thing are
`they talking about? To make sure the other person knows what you're responding to,
`include the appropriate lines from the originai message in your reply. You'll need to use
`some judgment here, though. Quoting the entire message is wasteful (especially if the
`message was a long one), anq should be avoided at all costs. Just include enough of the
`original to put your response into context.
`
`r
`
`•
`
`~'f
`
`!.<' o("-'.::
`..3
`
`,..;':\' ....
`' '
`
`'~- -
`
`~
`
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`# -
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`
`~
`~~--~--~~---.~-~-~.~,~--~-~-~-. ~,1~·-~.,~rr.~"~,~-~~-~. ~-·~~~~~~·.0~-.~~~~~ ..•.. ~-~~n.~,~~~~-m.,.~~~~---..t.~ .. -~--~
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`:.J'!;
`i,.\.
`.•
`...
`'\.
`• ;:• ~1 When-ydl:c:Want tq resp~d to a message, make sure you use your N.
`~~~-·~-,·...;.~_.::·. m~ sofiwar~~s Reply.feature. This featwe pro~des you with-three
`advantages: 1) It automatically addresses the reply to the origi~·
`·
`senger; 2) It adds "Re:" to the Subject line so the origi_nal sender
`·
`: .:bt?ws wlH-~.h ~me.~sage is bJ:!ing ~~ponded t<?f 3) It gives you the optiqn -<?f including~
`'· -~o~e or all of ~e ·pr!ginal me~~~e }n the reply. I'll talk more about the Reply
`.' · · r
`~--,.,'ff~~e w~en w~~o_ok, ~~·~I?e~c~-~Jill _P,Iogram~ i!l,.P~ 2..
`~
`·
`
`.J.I.
`
`, 1
`
`\-!
`
`. .
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`
`Ch<Jptczr 4 ~ You Send Me: Some Stuff About Sending E~Mail
`
`R~Zstrid MClssag~Z Width to 65 Charact~zrs
`
`Many people read their mail using terminals that display text across the screen in 80
`columns. To keep your messages looking their best, limit your line lengths to no more
`than 80 characters. In fact, you should probably restrict your lines to 65 characters· or so
`because many systems break up lines that are any longer. Another good reason to use
`shorter lines is that, when you include part of the original message in your reply, the
`quoted material from the original is indicated, usually, with a greater than sign (>) to the
`left of the line. If, as sometimes happens, people start quoting these quotes, the >scan
`start adding up. So restricting your lines to 65 columns~ give everyone plenty of room.
`
`Don't <iet Carri~Zd Away with Yoor Signature
`As I mentioned in Chapter 3, keep your signahues down to~ dull roar. Believe me, nobody
`is interested in seeing your r~sume or your curriculum vitae at the end of every message
`you send. The accepted maximum length for a signature is four lines.
`
`Forgive Small Mistakes
`If you see a message with spelling mistakes, incorrect grammar, or minor factual blunders,
`resist the mge to "flame" the perpetrator. (In e-mail lingo, a flame is a nasty, caustic
`message designed to put Internet scofflaws in their place. I'll talk more about them in
`ChapterS.) For one thing, the international flavor of e-mail just about guarantees a large
`percentage of participants for whom English isn't their primary language. For another, I
`hope you have better things to do than to nitpick every little slip of the keyboard that
`comes your way.
`
`Can I Get There . from Here2? Sending Mail
`Betwe2en Syste2ms·
`Let's say you're schmoozing at some highfalutin cocktail party and you meet someone
`who could send a lot of business your way. Dreams of new powerboats dance in your
`head as they say, "Here's my card. E-mail me and we'll do lunch." You look at the card
`and-groan!-they have an MCI Mail address! Now what? Or suppose you're a
`CompuServe user and your best buddy has just gotten an Internet e-mail account.
`How on earth are the two of you supposed to shoot the digital breeze?
`
`These kinds of scenarios are increasingly common because, while there are ten~ of
`millions of people exchanging electronic mail on the Net, there are tens of millions more
`who use other systems, such as MCI Mail, AT&T Mail, CompuServe, and America Online.
`
`29
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`Part 1 )> ~-Mail Made Easy
`
`Are all these systems just countries unto themselves where fraternization is strictly
`taboo? Well, they u~ed to be, but things have changed. Now, most e-mail sy~tems have
`opened ~ei! borders (by installing things called, appropriately enough, gateways) to allow
`e-mail travelers safe passage. The next few sections show you how to exchange mail with
`the citizens of various other e-mail nations.
`
`Exchanging Mail with fimczrica Online
`America Online (AOL) is a commercial online service that boasts an increasing array of
`Internet services, including an e-mail gateway. I'll.talk more about AOL's well-designed
`e-mail system in Chapter 15, "Mail Bonding with America Online," but let's see how
`intemauts and America Onliners can exchange e-mail epistles.
`·
`
`Every AOL subscriber has a unique screen name that identifies him or her to the
`AOL system. The e-mail address takes the general form screenname@aol.com, where
`screenname is their screen name in lowercase letters and without spaces. For example, if you
`wanted to send e-mail from the Internet to an AOL user with a screen name of Will Tell,
`you'd use the following address:
`
`willtell@aol.com
`
`Sending mail from AOL to the Internet is the soul of simplicity. When composing a
`message, just enter the person's Internet e-mail address in the To box. For example, AOL
`types can send e-mail to me by entering the following address:
`
`paulmcf@hookup.net
`
`Exchang.ing Mail with AT&T Mail
`AT&T Mail is a corrunerdal e-mail service that assigns each of its subscribers a unique
`user name. The e-mail address of an AT&T Mail subscriber uses the general format
`usemame@attm.ail.com, where usemame is the person's user name (duh). For example,
`fo send e-mail from the Internet to an AT&T Mail subscriber with the user name jsprat,
`you'd use this address:
`
`jsprat@attmail.com
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`Choptczr 4
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`)> You Send Me: Some Stuff About Sending E-Mail
`
`Sending messages from AT&T Mail to the Internet is a little more complicated. The
`general form is intcrnet!domainluser, where domain is the domain name from the
`Internet address {that is, the part to the right of the@ sign) and user iS the user name
`from the Internet address (the part to the left of the@ sign). For example, to send mail
`to my Internet address (paulmcf@hookup.net), you'd use the following address:
`
`intemet!hookup.net!paulmcf
`
`Exchanging Mail with CompuServe
`Co~puServe is one of the largest and oldest of the big-time online services. It's slowly
`adding more and more Internet services, but it has had a gateway for Internet e-mail since
`1989. (See Chapter 16, "E-Mail Correspondence the CompuServe Way," to get the goods
`on the CompuServe e-mail system.) Each CompuServe subscriber is assigned a unique
`user id number that's actually two numbers separated by a comma (such as 12345,6789).
`
`The e-mail address of a CompuServe user is simple. It takes the generic format
`idnumber@compuserve.com, where idnumber is the subscriber's user id number with the
`comma replaced by a period. For example, if the person's CompuServe user id is
`12345,6789, then hiS e-mail address would look like this:
`
`12345.6789@compuserve.com
`
`Missives sent from CompuServe to the Internet use e-mail addresses that take the
`form INTERNET:user@domain, where user@domain is the person's regular Internet
`e-mail address. So any CompuServe user who wants to drop me (paulmcf@hookup.net)
`a line would st:nd his note to the following address:
`
`INTERNET:paulmcf@hookup.net
`
`Exchanging Mail with Delphi
`Of all the major commercial online services, Delphi was the first to provide full Internet
`access, so it should come as no surprise that it also sports an e-mail gateway to the Net.
`(I talk about the Delphi mail SJ'stem in Chapter 18, "Delphi's Mail Delivery.")
`
`Each Delphi subscriber has a unique user name. To send mall to Delphi from the
`Internet, use the general format username@delphi.com, where username is the user
`name of the Delphi s~bscpber you're Wiiting_ to. For ~xample, to send a message to a
`Delphi subscriber with the user name ucowboy, you'd use the following address:
`
`ucowboy@delphi.com
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`Part 1 > E-Mail Made Easy
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`Sending mail from Delphi to the Net is only slightly more complicated. The format
`to use for the address is intcrnet11user@domain", where user@domain is the person's
`Internet e-mail address. Note that there are no spaces in this address and that you have to
`include both quotation marks. For example, here's the address a Delphi user would enter
`at the To: prompt to send me (paulmcf@hooku,p.net) a dispatch:
`
`intemet''paulmcf@hookup.net''
`
`ExchangJng Mail with GEnie
`General Electric's GEnie online service also has an Internet e-mail gateway. GEnie sub(cid:173)
`scribers have a unique user name, so Internet types send mail to GEnie users with the
`following generic address: username@genie.geis.com. For example, to send e-mail to a
`· GEnie·subscriber with a user name of m.hari3, you'd use the following address:
`
`m.harl3@genie.geis.com
`
`Sending mail from GEnie to the Internet is fairly straightforward. For the address,
`you just use the person's Internet e-mail address, and you attach @INET# at the end, like
`so: user@domain®INET#. For example, GEnie users who want to send' messages to yours
`truly (paulmcf@hookup.net), would send their notes to the following locale:
`
`paulmcf@hookup.net@INET#
`
`Exchangi.ng Mail with MCI Mail
`MCI Mail is another popular commercial e-mail service that has offered a gateway to the
`Internet for a number of years. When you sign up with MCI Mail, you get not one, but
`three separate means of identification: .an MCI id number that looks like a seven-digit
`telephone number (such as 123-4567), an MCI id name (such as mpeeved), and a full .
`user name (such as Millicent Peeved).
`To send Internet mail to an MCI Mail user, you can address the message using any
`of these generic formats:
`
`idnumber@mcimail.com
`
`idname@mcimatl.com
`
`full_name@mcimail.com
`
`Notice that the space in the user's full name gets replaced by an underscore (_). Also, if
`you're using the MCI id number, you remove the dash. So, in the examples I used above,
`you could use any of the following addresses:
`
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`~~ .............................................. ------------
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`thoptczr 4 > You Send Me: Some Stu(f About Sending E-Mail
`
`1234567@mdmail.com
`
`mpeeved@mcimail.com
`
`Millicent_Peeved@mcimail.com
`
`To send correspondence to an Internet e-mail address, MCI Mail users need to
`follow a three-step procedure:
`
`1. Start a new message as you norma.Uy would (by typing create at the Command:
`prompt and pressing Enter). When MCI Mail displays the To: prompt, type the
`name of the person or company you're sending the message to, followed by (EMS),
`followed by Enter. For example, to send mail to me, enter Paul McFedries (EMS)
`and press Enter.
`
`2. At the EMS: prompt, type Internet and press Enter.
`3. At the MBX: prompt, type the Internet e-mail address and press Enter. To send
`mail to me, for e?'ample, type paulmcf@hookup.net and press Enter.
`
`Exchanging Mail with Prodigy
`Prodigy is another of the commerctal online services that provides an Internet e-mail
`gateway. Note, however, that to exchange e-letters with the Net, you have to fork out an
`extra $14.95 for the E-Mail Connection program. (Check out Chapter 17, "Perusing the
`E-Mail Connection for Prodigy," to learn how to download this software from Prodigy, as
`well as how to work with Prodigy's e-mail system.)
`
`When sending mail to a Prodigy user from the Net, y.ou use an address of the form
`userid@prodigy.com, where userid is the unique identification Prodigy assigns to its
`users. For example, if the Prodigy person you want to contact has the user id abcdOla,
`then you'd mail your correspondence to the following address:
`
`abcdOla@prodigy.com
`
`Sending mail from Prodigy to the Internet is a breeze. When composing the message
`in E-Mail Connection, just use the person's Internet e-mail address. For example, Prodigy
`types can send e-mail to me by entering the following address:
`
`paulmcf@hookup.net
`
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`Part 1 >- E-Mail Made Easy
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`•
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`.
`· Tite ~even ·Sy-st~ihs we ... !boRed~ at in' this secti~n represent only. the nicl'st~
`popular of tl1e . .<Jozens of e-mail .systems available worldwti:le.lf.you'd
`like instructions about exchanging mail wi~ a~~ we didn't cover,.~.
`head for U,.senet and look in the comp.mail.misc newsgroup for the
`'
`·
`~Updated Inter-Network M~l Guide/' by Scott Yanoff.lf you don't see the
`article, you can get it via anon~o~s FfP from rtfm.mit.ed~. Change to the /pub/
`,us~et-by-group/comp.mail.misc directory and get the file Updated~Iriter:
`Network_Mail_ Guide:.
`
`•
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`.. •
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`.
`
`t
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`I
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`·•.
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`.,._
`
`Sending Sounds. Graphics. and Other tlontext Files
`Looked at in the simplest possible terms (my favorite way of dealing with anythlng ~h!it
`has to do with computers), the files you work with come in two flavors: text and nontext.
`Text files are those that contain only the letters, numbers, and symbols you can peck out
`on your keyboard (and a few other characters that we don't need to worry about). Non(cid:173)
`text files include graphic images, sounds, and things you create with your applications,
`such as spreadsheets and databases. For reasons that are, thankfully, completely unimpor(cid:173)
`tant to us, you'll often hear nerdy types referring to nontext files as· binary files.
`ru I've mentioned before, the Internet e-mail system only knows how to deal with
`text, so you'd think that sending nontext files would be strictly verboten. Well, you'd be
`partially right. It turns out that you can send non text files if you convert them into text
`before you send them, Here's .the general procedure:
`
`1. Using one of the programs discussed below, convert the nontext file into a text file.
`
`2. In your e-mail software, compose a new message and then "attach" the new text file
`to the message. (How you attach a file to a message depends on the mail program
`you're using. I'll tell you how it's done in the appropriate chapters in Part 2.)
`
`3. Send the message.
`
`4. When the recipient gets the message, they save it to a separate file.
`
`5. The recipient converts this file back into its original nontext form.
`
`There are actually a fistful of ways to perform steps 1 and S, but the next few
`sections take you through the three most popular.
`The OtiiX Solution: Ouencode and Oudecodcz
`The UNIX uuencode program will convert a nontext file into a jumble of text characters.
`(Uuencode stands for "UNlX-to-UNlX encode" and it's pronounced "you-you-encode.")
`
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`· Chaptczr 4 >- You Send Me: Some St11f( About Sending E-Mail
`
`To put uucncode through its paces, you enter a command in the following general
`format and then press Enter:
`
`uuencodc NonTextFileName EncotledFileName.uuc
`
`Here, NonTextFileNmne is the name of the non text file you want to convert and
`EncodedFileName.uue is the name you want to· give to the encoded file. Notice the .uue
`extension at the end of the encoded file name; this reminds you (and the recipient) that
`the file has been uuencoded. For example, suppose you want to encode a graphics file
`named RAPTOR.GIF. Here's the <;ommand you enter:
`
`uuencode raptor.gif raptor.uue
`
`When you compose your mail message, you attach the file RAPTOltUUE and fire
`it off. The redpient saves the message to a file (they can use any name for the file, but
`adding a .uue extension is probably a good idea) and then uses the uudecode program
`to convert the file back to its original, nontext glory:
`
`uudecode EncodedFileName. uue
`
`Uudecode examines EncodedFileName.uue and creates a new, nontext file that
`has the name of the original non text file. For example, if the redpient saved the above
`message as RAPTOR.UUE, they'd decode it with the following command:
`
`uudecode raptor.uue
`
`Uudecode would automatically create a new file named RAPTOR.GIF.
`
`If you use an MS-DOS-compatible PC or Mactntosh, you can still get in on the
`uuencode/uudecode action:
`>- For DOS, you can use the Uuencode for PC and Uudecode for PC programs. To get
`them, anonymous ITP to oak.oakland.edu and look in the /pub/msdos/decode
`directory for a file named uuexe???.zip. (The ??? stands for the current version
`of the programs. As I write this, the current version is 5.32, so the file is called
`uuexe532.zip.) Also, the DOS version of Pegasus Mail has a uuencode feature.
`>- For Windows, if you use either the Internet In A Box or the AIR NFS Internet suites,
`you get a Windows program ca11ed UUCODE that will both encode and decode files.
`Also, the commercial version of Eudora (see Chapter 11, 11Getting Graphical with
`Eudora") ancl the Windows version of Pegasus Mail (see Chapter 12) have built-in
`uuencoding.
`>- For the Mac, you can get the Uulite program by anonymous m at
`plaza.aamet.edu.au in the directory /micros/mac/info-mac/cmp. The file to
`download is uu-lite-??.hqx, where the?? is the current version (1.5 is the latest,
`so the file is uu-lite-15.hqx).
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`Port 1 > E-Mail Made Easy
`
`The Mac Solotion: BinHC2x
`The standard format for converting text to nontext in the Mac world is called BinHex.
`(which, rather obtusely, stands for ''binary-to-hexadecimal"). If you use the Eudora mall
`software, I'll show you how to use it t9 BinHex files in Chapter 11, "Getting Graphical
`with Eudora."
`
`If you don't have Eudora, you can still do the BinHex thing. Anonymous FTP to
`boo~box.micro.umn.edu and head for the directory /pub/binhex/Mac. The ~le you
`need is called BinHex. To convert a file with BinHex, double-dick on the program icon
`to run the program. Then select the File menu's Application-> Upload command (or
`press Cominand-U). In the standard file dialog box that appears, select the file you want
`to convert and then click on the Open button. In the dialog box that appears, enter a
`name for the text file, select a folder, and then click on Save.
`
`To convert a text file back into the original file, run BinHex and select the File
`menu's Download-> Application command (or press Command-D). Select the text
`·
`format file ~d click the Open button.
`
`The above site also has a DOS version of Bin Hex called PC BinHex.. Look in the
`directory /pub/binhex/MSDOS and grab the file binhex.exe. To convert. a file, start
`PC BinHex, press F2, select the file from the dialog box, and press Enter. PC BinHex
`creates a new, encoded file with the extension hqx. For example, if the original file is
`NONTEXT.DOC, the binhexed file will be named NONTEXT.HQX. To restore the file to
`its original non text for~at, start PC BinHex, press F3, select the file in the dialog box, and
`press E~ter.
`
`You can do the BinHex thing in Windows if you use either Eudora (check out
`Chapter 11 for details) or Pegasus Mail (covered in Chapter 12).
`ThC2 (Almost) OnivC2rsqJ Solation: MIME
`All this encoding and decoding of files is a royal pain-in-the-you-know-what, not only for
`you but also for your poor, beleaguered recipient. Wouldn't life be great if we could just
`attach the file we want to send to a message and then have the software worry about the
`conversion to text and back again?
`·
`
`Well, my friends, I'm here today to tell you that there's good news: the automatic
`conversion of non text files to e-mail-~iendly text is a reality. A few of the Net's big-time
`brainiacs got together and created ·a new standard for sending non text stuff through the
`mail: MIME (which stands for Multimedia Internet Mail Extensions, which is, if nothing
`
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`(hapt(lr 4 ~ Y~u Send Me: Some Stuff About Sending E-Mail
`--------------------------
`
`else, an impressive mouthful). If both you and your recipient have mail software that
`supports the MIME standard, then the whole process becomes a veritable walk in the
`park. You just attach the nontext file and send the message. When the recipient reads
`the message, MIME automatically extracts the file, converts it back to its former self,
`and stores it in a new file. Easy with a· capital E.
`
`The kicker, of course, is that you and your correspondent both need a mail program
`that can handle this MIME stuff. Fortunately, MIME is such a good idea that most popu(cid:173)
`lar mail software supports it. In particular, MIME is built into Pine, Elm, Eudora, Pegasus
`Mail, and the commercial version of Chameleon Mail (all of which are covered in Part 2).
`
`Thcz Least Yoa ft(l'ld to Know
`This chapter gave you some pointers on sending e--mail messages. Here's a summary of
`the most important factoids:
`
`~ E--mail etiquette includes things like keeping your dispatches short and
`to the point, avoiding UPPERCASE SHOUTING, creating meaningful
`SubJect lines, and quoting from the original message in your replies.
`
`· ~ Most of the world's e-mail systems have gateways that allow them to
`exchange e-mail with the Internet community.
`
`~ To send nontext files through the e-mail system, you need to convert
`them into text and then have the recipient convert them back.
`
`~ Common conversion solutions include uuencode and uudecode,
`BinHex, and MIME.
`
`37
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