Module 2 - Emailing, Mailing Lists, Discussions

Email Tutorial Questions

Which of the following elements must be included in an email address?

Both are correct. E-mail addresses always include the username (or account) as well as the domain name of the computer(s) that provide mail services.

To check for new e-mail, you must

You must provide your password at some point to check e-mail. Your e-mail address is not needed for this task. The POP mail server address is only entered when you configure your e-mail program.

If you don't know what kind of computer or software your recipient has, send a document attachment as a:

A plain text (ASCII) file can be read by anyone, regardless of what type of computer (PC or Macintosh) or software they have.

You can transfer messages to another mailbox by

Both are correct. Use the program's menu to move and file messages as you read them, or set up a filter to place certain messages into a special mailbox automatically.

"Flames" are:

Flames are remarks that provoke arguments or anger. They can be avoided by taking a careful look at your message before it is sent.


Module 2 Tasks

1. What information about a user's email, the origin of a message, and the path it took, can you glean from an email message?

Surface Metadata will tell you who the email is to, who it is from, what the subject is, who the other addressees are (as long as they are visible), the urgency with which it is sent, and the time sent. Once the email has been received by you, it will also tell you if it has been read and if it has been replied to or forwarded. If the email is simply forwarded to you from other people, you will sometimes be able to see who else has received the email, depending on whether the last sender removed all the “forwarding addresses” inside the email.

Extra information can be retrieved from the metaheader. In Outlook 2003, right click on an email, click on “options” and the internet header data is shown as such:

Received: (qmail 81706 invoked from network); 23 Feb 2009 00:23:35 +1030
Received: from smx2.mail.adnap.net.au (219.90.133.168)
by hurricane.mail.adnap.net.au with SMTP; 23 Feb 2009 00:23:35 +1030
Received: from blu0-omc2-s6.blu0.hotmail.com ([65.55.111.81])
by smx2.mail.adnap.net.au with esmtp (Exim 4.63)
(envelope-from )
id 1LbEly-0002bg-Rb
for XXXXXXX@XXXX.com.au; Mon, 23 Feb 2009 00:23:35 +1030
Received: from BLU137-W51 ([65.55.111.71]) by blu0-omc2-s6.blu0.hotmail.com with Microsoft SMTPSVC(6.0.3790.3959);
Sun, 22 Feb 2009 05:53:32 -0800
Message-ID:
Content-Type: multipart/alternative;
boundary="_4d8f2996-a1bc-4872-bd64-ee11ba54e5e4_"
X-Originating-IP: [219.90.227.18]
From: Judi Z
To:
Subject: just testing this
Date: Mon, 23 Feb 2009 00:23:32 +1030
Importance: Normal
MIME-Version: 1.0
X-OriginalArrivalTime: 22 Feb 2009 13:53:32.0799 (UTC) FILETIME=[F315C0F0:01C994F4]
X-XXXX-Whitelist-Server: Yes

This shows further information regarding where the email has come from and where it has come through before being directed into your inbox.

By following the instructions in Outlook Tips you can have the whole message displayed in the internet header box instead of just the header.

According to what I can find around, yahoo doesn’t allow you to see the metaheaders, and hotmail has changed its format so you can no longer see the metaheaders in there either.

2. In what cases would you find it useful to use the 'cc', 'bcc' and 'reply all’ functions of email?

The first two terms initially came from the days when typists typed up all correspondence on manual typewriters – the days before electric typewriters (though it was still done then) and photocopiers. CC is “carbon copy”, BCC is “blind carbon copy”, a carbon copy that no-one else gets to know was sent. This was done using pieces of paper in between the carbons, to ensure that the original letter was the only one that had all the addresses or names on it. Now CC is used to include other people in who are not the major addressees but who the information would be useful to. BCC is used to include people who would find the information useful but who are to be kept “invisible” and Reply All is to answer every person who is included in the original address.

Reply All can be a very dangerous function to use, because sometimes the replies to the email aren’t meant to be seen by everyone. Sometimes the reply is only meant to be seen by the last person who forwarded the email, not everyone else on their list. By using “reply all”, everyone on the addressee list of the email will get a copy.

Much damage has been done through some very large companies, where information has been passed around, and instead of using “reply” the last person to receive the email has hit “reply all” and sent inappropriate comments through to people who weren’t meant to get them.

3. In what ways can you ensure that an attachment you send will be easily opened by the receiver?

By using a plain text (ASCII) file or by verifying with the recipient that they have a program that will read the attachment file that you are sending them.

4. What sorts of filters or rules do you have set up, and for what purpose?

I don’t have any filters or rules set up in either my home Outlook account, or my work one. I don’t have any in my home account, because that is my very private account, and very few places have that address. I have never received any spam or junkmail in there, and have no need for filters or rules.
I don’t have any filters or rules in my work Outlook account, because we aren’t allowed to. Every time we turn our computers off, the accounts revert to a specific layout and formula, so I would be having to reset rules and filters every day.

5. How have you organised the folder structure of your email and why?

I have no folders in my home Outlook account because I have very few emails go into that account, and all the emails that go in are dealt with immediately.
I have folders in my work account so I can keep track of various work topics as they come in. I have the folders set up under “Inbox”, and if a topic has been completed and the emails are no longer needed, I delete the folder. Besides the signature block, this is about the only “personalisation” that will be accepted by Outlook in my work environment. If the emails are needed for further information, I save them to our records management system.

Email Lists

What are the pros and cons of email lists versus discussion boards?

A mailing list is a list of e-mail addresses of people interested in the same topic. This is usually a “one way” discussion with information coming from a specific site and being sent onto addressees who have registered an interest in receiving the emails. Brochures and newsletters usually fall into this category. People sign up to receive specific brochures and newsletters because they are interested in the topic or goods, and while they receive the information regularly there is limited ability to be able to reply to them.

A discussion board usually consists of a number of posts made by people either on the same subject or following a particular theme. Within the discussion board posts are often broken up into “threads” which mean that particular subjects within the theme are more easily traced.

Mailing lists
Pros
• Regular updating of requested information
• The information is held on your personal computer – don’t have to be online to access it
Cons
• Can quickly fill your email inbox
• Limited ability to be able to reply to information received
• Must “unsubscribe” to stop the emails coming
Discussion boards
Pros
• Information on a particular subject is all in one area
• New threads can be started by participants discussing linked subjects or adding further information
• Opinions can be left by anyone who is registered at any time
• The information is not held on your personal computer – able to access it from any computer
Cons
• Have to access another site to get the information
• Have to be registered at the site to be able to participate in the discussion & often to read the info
• If participants don’t adhere to threads, the information can become very unwieldy
• Some participants take comments personally, or make personal comments at other participants, thereby hijacking threads and making it awkward for others to read the information

Are there certain kinds of communication or purposes more suited to one than the other?
I would suggest that information that needs to be disseminated but doesn’t need to have the ability to reply would be more suited to email lists. This would include information like newsletters, offers and brochures.

Discussion boards are more suited to a number of people sharing ideas. They give the opportunity to not only put forward your own views or information you have researched, but also to see views or information from others, and to discuss the various differences or similarities.