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Choosing An E-mail Service

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Communication January 2000 • Vol.6 Issue 1	Add To My Personal Library
Choosing An E-mail Service Your Options For Getting An Electronic Address

For those of us who have come to rely on the electronic equivalent of stamp-and-send envelopes, having e-mail available at our fingertips is almost an essential part of life. The e-mail options available, both free and for-cost, are more diverse and robust than ever before. Of course, having so many choices can also be confusing. POPs, Web-based e-mail, and ISPs . . . what's a user to do?

To analyze what kind of mail service best fits your needs, you'll need to know some terminology. So, if you're an e-mail junkie (or hope to be one), here are some things you need to know about the various services available.

POP.

The Post Office Protocol (POP) mail services (and their more up-to-date cousins, the POP3s) are simply services that store incoming messages on a server (a control computer on a network) until you collect and read them. Here's how they work: Someone sends an electronic message to your e-mail address. Just as the U.S. Postal Service uses your name, street address, and ZIP code to deliver your snail mail, so your electronic postmaster uses the different parts of your e-mail address to send your mail to the correct server.

You get an e-mail address when you initially sign up for a service (free or otherwise). The user, or account name, combined with the at @ symbol and the domain name (denoted by a three-letter code such as .edu), makes up your e-mail address. For example, if your user name was "Selah" and your Internet service provider's (ISP, an organization that lets users pay a fee to dial into its computers and connect to the Internet) name was "Computer land.com," your e-mail address would be selah@computerland .com, and your mail would be placed in the domain's (Computerland's) mail server.

You'll usually need a mail program, such as Microsoft Outlook, to collect mail from your Post Office Protocol (POP) account.

When you connect to the Internet and choose to pick up your mail (usually by clicking a Send/Receive button in your messaging software), the mail server sends your messages to your PC and simultaneously deletes them from the server. E-mail programs, such as Pegasus Mail (http://www.pegasus.usa.com) and Outlook (http://www.microsoft.com/office/outlook), facilitate this process.

Even if you aren't familiar with the terminology, chances are good you've used this type of system if you already have an ISP. In addition to the well-known, national providers, such as MindSpring (http://www.mindspring.net), EarthLink (http://www.earthlink.com), America Online (AOL,), and CompuServe (http://www.compuserve.com), there are countless local ISPs you can use. As part of your ISP's fee, you're allotted the electronic equivalent of your own PO box. People can send you e-mail at yourname@ISP.com address, and your ISP's server conveniently keeps the mail until you go online and retrieve it.

There are definite advantages to using an ISP's POP account. In contrast to the Web-based e-mail accounts we'll talk about later, POP mail accounts allow you to compose and read messages without being online. The only time you have to connect to your ISP's mail server is when you actually want to retrieve or send messages. Additionally, you can use sophisticated e-mail software that includes spiffy features such as spell checking, message filtering, and virus checking. And because your messages are stored on your computer's hard drive, you can keep as many of them as you have room for. So, if you already have an ISP, using its e-mail service probably makes the most sense.

The price you pay for free e-mail is viewing banner advertisements, such as this one found at Mail.com.

There are, however, some disadvantages to using a POP account. To get the most benefit from one of these services, you typically need messaging software, such as Outlook, loaded on your PC. Configuring an e-mail program can be a bit thorny if you're not a computer wiz. Traditionally, it has also been tricky (or downright impossible) to access your POP account when you were on the road. This is becoming less and less the case, however, as recent developments have made it possible to pick up your POP mail from (almost) anywhere through Web sites. (Later in this article, we'll direct you to several sites you can use for this purpose.) Finally, you'll incur some costs: Unless you get the e-mail program for free, you'll have the one-time cost of buying it, as well as the ongoing expense of paying for Internet access. If all you really want is e-mail, consider signing up for one of the free services discussed in this article instead.

Free Web-Based E-mail.

Free Web-based e-mail is different than a POP account provided through your ISP. You can employ a Web-based e-mail service as your primary mailbox or simply use a Web site to pick up mail from your POP server.

Web-based e-mail helps you send and collect mail, using a Web browser to do so. Because you're not using your local ISP or personal computer, you can send and receive your mail from anywhere that has a PC with an Internet connection.

Here's how Web-based e-mail works: You use a browser to display the e-mail provider's site (such as Yahoo! at http://www.yahoo.com). You then log in with a user name and password that you select the first time you use the service. (NOTE: When you sign up for an e-mail account, you may need to provide personal information such as your address and telephone number.)

There are several advantages to using Web-based e-mail. Because you use a browser instead of messaging software to send mail, getting your mail through this system costs less money up front. Furthermore, setting up these accounts is a snap compared to configuring a true e-mail program.

One of the most popular free e-mail services is Yahoo! Mail.

So why doesn't everyone simply use Web-based e-mail? There are some limitations. First, the computer you use will probably need a current browser, such as Netscape Navigator 4.x or Internet Explorer 4.x or 5.x, to access the mail. Second, you might find a Web-based service confining because these services may not include as many tools as a full-featured e-mail program. (To vie for your business, however, some of the Web-based services are now offering higher-end features, such as spell checking, personal address books, and distribution lists.) And while the e-mail provider stores your messages for you so you don't have to clutter up your hard drive with them, the amount of space reserved for you to keep your messages may cramp your style. Finally, because spammers misuse some of the free e-mail services, some ISPs will automatically block any mail sent by these services. If this is the case, you might find your mail isn't being delivered no matter how many times you send it. For personal messages, such as writing Aunt Agnes, this might be OK, but you probably don't want to stake the life of your business on it.

Web-based e-mail services also vary tremendously in their features, download time, and ease-of-use. Even though some services are sterling, others severely limit the amount of time you have to compose your messages, and they may even disconnect you without much warning. The services also fluctuate wildly in their reliability. Though most are good, solid Web-based services, others are plagued with error messages, slow mail delivery, and frustrating disconnections.

So, what do the services have to gain by providing you with free e-mail? Typically, you will see a number of banner ads (prominent advertisements that usually serve as links to the sponsors' sites) splashed across the screen as you collect your mail. These ads, of course, are really paying for the service. These services not only display banner ads while you're retrieving your mail but they sometimes add an advertising message at the end of each message you send. Some of larger sites offer free mail as a way to entice you back to their sites on a regular basis or to encourage you to sign up for their premium mail service. In addition, some services actually pack your mailbox with advertisements, based on the member profile you fill out when you sign up for the free mail. But if you have a relatively high tolerance for commercials, you may find Web-based e-mail handy, especially when you're on the road.

Use Web-based e-mail services, such as Mail2Web, to check your regular e-mail account from anywhere in the world.

Where can you find Web-based e-mail? With the exponential growth of the Internet, you won't have much trouble; at last count, there were at least 600 services you could use for free e-mail, with more being added daily. In fact, the problem might well be deciding which one(s) to use and how to keep track of all those user names and passwords.

Microsoft's Hotmail (http://www.hotmail.com) is one of the largest Web-based, free e-mail services, though perhaps not the most complaint-free site. The service also uses cookies, which are files stored on your hard drive to keep track of your Web use or your identity. Another well-known service, Net@ddress (http://www.usa.net) sports an uncluttered design and free e-mail for life.

Another widely used, free Web-based service (with minimal advertising) is Yahoo! Mail. Signing up for this service is a snap. Simply click Yahoo! Mail on Yahoo!'s home page (http://www.yahoo.com), then click Sign Me Up. After accepting the service's agreement, fill in your user name (such as joejoe@yahoo.com) and password. You'll also need to fill out the rest of the form. Make sure to clear the boxes for the advertising material if you don't want your mailbox stuffed with pitches for products and services.

Do you want more choices? Try Bigfoot (http://www.bigfoot.com), which includes useful features such as forwarding or distributing e-mail to other addresses, filters, and spam blockers. (Spam is unsolicited bulk e-mail.) Coolmail.com (http://www.coolmail.com) provides a toll-free number you can call to listen to your e-mail. Finally, Mail.com (http://www.mail.com) lets you set up a free e-mail address using domain names such as mail.com, consultant.com, or post.com.

Accessing Your POP Account Via The Web.

In addition to pure Web-based e-mail, you can use the Web to check existing POP accounts.

You can use services, such as Mailand News.com (http://www.MailandNews.com), to either set up a pure Web-based account or to read mail from an existing POP account. Mail2Web (http://www.mail2web.com) is easy to use when you want to check your POP mail. On this site's home page, fill in your server's name, your user name, and password. Then, press ENTER to see your new messages. You can reply or forward the message just as you can when you use your native POP account�you can even attach files. Furthermore, the mail remains on your POP's server so you can download it to your own computer when you're safely home again.

If you don't have access to the Internet, but you still want a free e-mail account, try Juno.

MsgTo.com (http://www.msgto.com) is another Web-based e-mail service. Only in beta as of this writing, this service is most noted for its approach to stopping spam. Finally, some ISPs, such as MindSpring, let you access your regular POP mail account through their own Web-based mail center. This prevents you from having to use a different Web-based mail service to check the contents of your regular POP account.

E-mail Sans The Internet.

If you have a computer and modem but don't want to pay to get on the Web, you might do best to sign up for a free e-mail account that doesn't use the Internet. The most classic free e-mail service is Juno, which now has three main flavors. If you want to use the tried-and-true, basic free e-mail system, you don't need an Internet connection�just a computer, modem, and phone. You will be able to send and receive e-mail without any fees, but you can't attach documents, such as photographs or reports, to your messages. Juno Gold is Juno's higher-end e-mail service. Requiring a $2.95 monthly fee, this service allows you to send attachments. Again, you don't have to have total Internet access to use this service. Finally, you can sign up for Juno Web ($19.95 per month), which gives you Internet access, as well as complete e-mail service�just like services such as AOL.

To use the free service, first get your hands on Juno's free software that allows you to dial Juno's access number. Keep in mind that advertisements support this service; the ads splash across the screen and can slow down sending or receiving your e-mail. Additionally, if you're in a remote or rural area, you might have to pay long-distance phone charges to access your e-mail. If you're a real e-mail addict, these long-distance charges may add up to enough to get a local ISP instead.

To sign up for free Juno, click Learn About Juno's Free E-mail Service on Juno's home page (http://www.juno.com). On the page that displays, click the Get JUNO button at the bottom of the page. If you want to download the software from the Internet, click Download Now. In the File Download dialog box, make sure the Save This Program To A Disk option is chosen, then click OK. Juno recommends you save the file to the Desktop so it's easier to find after the download is complete. To do this, click the Save In drop-down list arrow and choose Desktop. Choose Save, then get yourself a cup of coffee (or even fix lunch) while the program downloads. (It takes a few minutes for it to be copied to your hard drive.) Instead of downloading the software, you can also request a CD-ROM on Juno's Web site. If you don't have the access to the Web at all, you can call Juno at (800) 654-5866.

After the program is downloaded, install the program by double-clicking the Junoinst.exe icon on your Desktop (or locate and double-click the file in the folder where you saved it). Follow the Install Shield Wizard's instructions to create a shortcut icon for Juno, then work through the dialog boxes for Juno Signup. Like most installation programs, you simply answer questions or make choices on each page, then click Next. Like all e-mail programs, you determine a user name and password for your account. A word of warning: Make sure you read every dialog box carefully so you don't accidentally sign up for Juno Web.

Take your pick of e-mail addresses or sign up for a several of them. Just make sure you can remember all your user names and passwords.

by Linda Bird

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