Harness E-mail

When we converse, we expect other people to observe certain rules of behavior. The same is true for e-mail. Here are some pointers to help you communicate more effectively.

It can take a day to send a letter across the city and weeks to go around the world. To save time and money, you can't beat electronic mail. It's fast, easy and cheaper than the the postal service.

E-mail messages are similar to letters, with two main parts: The header contains the name and e-mail address of the recipient, the name and e-mail address of anyone who is being copied, and the subject of the message. The body contains the message itself.

E-mail addresses typically have two main parts: the user name and the domain name. Knowing the correct address is crucial if you want your message to arrive at its destination.

Here's a challenge for you: how do you find someone's e-mail address? As you might suspect, there are a number of ways to go about this. Learn how best to track them down.

E-mail is by far the most popular service on the Internet. Sending messages is a snap. Just follow these simple steps.

Most people sign their letters in written correspondence. With electronic messages, you can add a signature too, although it can be anything from a clever quote to some additional information about you.

When you talk to someone face-to-face, your body language, the tone of your voice, your inflections and facial expressions impart great meaning to what you say. Personalize your written communication by using a smiley or emoticon.

With the advent of an Internet protocol called MIME, Multipurpose Internet Mail Extension, and other types of encoding schemes, you can send formatted documents, photos, sound and video files as attachments to your e-mail messages.

Here's how to e-mail documents, spreadsheets, photos or any other type of file.

Once you receive an attachment, how do you open it? The answer depends on the type of file and how your computer is configured.

Suppose you've received an e-mail that you want to forward, but you only want to send some of the text. Here's how to do it.

Once e-mail becomes an essential part of your life, you'll want to check it often. With a Web-based e-mail account, you can do it from any computer connected to the Net (and many mobile devices) from anywhere on earth.

Each day billions of e-mail messages zap across the Internet. If it seems that most of them make their way to your Inbox, you're not alone. "Overwhelming" is how many people feel about this electronic communication.

What most annoys Internet users? The answer is a four letter word: spam. Unfortunately, spam is here to stay. That doesn't mean you have to be an innocent victim. Here's how to fight back.

Once you start using the Internet, you'll notice people talking about joining e-mail discussion lists. Subscribing to these lists deliver timely messages right to your Inbox.

Every day, tens of millions of people use electronic mail to conduct business and to communicate with friends and family. But if you think your e-mail is private, guess again.