Definition of an Email

An email is simply the exchange of digital letters across the World Wide Web. These days to send an email does not require the person receiving the email to be online however when the first email started to come around it required both users to be online at the same time for the email to be sent and received. This is like instant messaging that is used most frequently every day.

There are two types of protocol used by email providers:

 Imap4 and Pop 3.

The difference between these two protocols is the way the email is opened on the computer or mobile device.

 Pop3- All the messages and there attachments have to be downloaded to the computer or mobile device for the mail to be read.

Imap4I- A whole message will be downloaded when the email is opened to display the content.

There are many advantages to using emails rather than using more traditional methods such as writing a letter and sending it to wherever it needs sending too.

One advantage is that it only takes seconds to send to the person you want to send the email too. Another advantage is that you don’t need to pay to post it anywhere. Animation could be used in the email which includes different font’s colours and pictures whereas in letters it is usually just pure writing. You could get a reply to your email within minutes whereas in letter it would take days or even weeks.

Sometimes by sending a letter it may not arrive to the person the letter is sent too.

However there are also disadvantages to emails. One disadvantage is that you could get a virus on your computer which could result in the computer being permanently damaged and no longer able to be used. Another disadvantage is that you can often get spam, cookies spyware, and phishing and identity theft.

Spam is unwanted emails usually something to do with advertisement.

A cookie is a small file which stores your information related to the sites you visit on the internet.

Spyware is a computer program that is installed by someone without permission usually through a virus.  Its purpose is to collect data from the person’s computer the program is installed on.

Phishing is a link on an email which takes you to a website that looks genuine but is actually fake.

Identity theft is when someone’s personal information (such as bank account information) is stolen and used for criminal purposes.

Another disadvantage of sending emails is that sometimes you could send it to the wrong person and the email could contain personal information.

 This is a picture I took of my emails from my IPhone to show what they look like.

This is a picture of a letter I got from the internet.