Chapter 7. Email Applications
Email is a very popular way of communicating with others over
the Internet. An application that allows users to send, receive,
and read email is called an email client.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux includes several email applications, including graphical
email clients like Evolution and
Thunderbird, and text-based clients
like mutt. Each of the email client
applications is designed to suit specific types of users; so, you
can choose one with the features that best suits your particular
needs.
The purpose of this chapter is to demonstrate how to use some
of the popular email applications included in Red Hat Enterprise Linux. Since all
email clients perform the same basic tasks (send and receive
email), you should choose one that is convenient and easy to
use.
This chapter briefly discusses the following email
clients:
Before you launch an email client, you need information from
your Internet Service Provider (ISP) to configure the client
properly. The following is a list of important configuration
information:
- Your email address
The email address you use to send and receive mail. This
is usually in the form of
<yourname>@<example.com>.
In this example, <yourname> is your user name and
<example.com> is the domain name for your ISP.
- Server type for receiving email
In order to receive mail, you must know what type of
server the ISP is using, POP or
IMAP.
POP, short for Post Office
Protocol, is used to send email from a mail
server to your email client's inbox,
the place where incoming email is stored. Most ISP email
servers use the POP protocol, although some use the newer
IMAP protocol. POP mail is downloaded to your email client
directly and does not stay on the
server by default (although most email clients can be
configured to leave email on the server as well).
IMAP, short for Internet Message Access
Protocol, is a protocol for retrieving email
messages from your ISP's email server. IMAP differs from POP
in that email from IMAP servers are stored on the server and
not downloaded to the mail client.
- Address for receiving email
In order to receive mail, you must obtain the address of
the POP or IMAP server from your ISP. This address is
usually in the form of
mail.example.com.
- Server type for sending email (SMTP)
The Simple Mail Transfer Protocol
(SMTP) is a protocol for sending email messages between mail
servers. Most email systems use SMTP to send messages over
the Internet; the messages can then be retrieved with an
email client using either POP or IMAP. SMTP is also used to
send messages from a mail client to a mail server. This is
why you need to specify both the POP or IMAP server and the
SMTP server when configuring an email application.
If you have any questions regarding what information you need,
contact your ISP or network administrator. Unless properly
configured, you cannot make full use of the email clients
discussed in this chapter.
7.1. Evolution
Evolution is more than just an
email client. It provides all of the standard email client
features, including powerful mailbox management, user-defined
filters, and quick searches. Additionally, it features a flexible
calendar/scheduler which allows users to create and confirm
group meetings and special events online.
Evolution is a full-featured personal
and work group information management tool for Linux and
UNIX-based systems, and is the default email client for
Red Hat Enterprise Linux.
To launch Evolution from the
desktop panel, go to =>
=> ,
or click on the Email icon on your
Panel.
The first time you start
Evolution you are presented with the
Welcome Screen (Figure 7-1), which allows you to
configure your email connection. Follow the on-screen
instructions and fill in the information you collected from your
ISP or administrator in the text boxes provided. When you are
done, click Finish.
Evolution proceeds to the Main Screen
as shown in Figure 7-2.
To view what is in your inbox or to send an email, click on
the Mail button in the left toolbar, then
select the Inbox icon from the list of
folders.
To compose a new message, click on the down arrow beside the
New icon. Select Mail
Message from the drop-down list. You can also
press
[Shift]-[Ctrl]-[M].
Enter the address of the recipient in the
To field, the subject of the email in the
Subject field, and the text of your message
in the large pane below. You can spell check your email before
sending by going to =>
or by pressing
[Shift]-[Ctrl]-[L].
You can attach documents by clicking on the
Attach icon. A window opens that allows you
to navigate to the file you would like to attach. Click on the
name of the file to highlight it, then click on the
Open button. Finally, when you are
finished, click the Send button to send.
While Evolution does much more
than read and send email, this chapter focuses exclusively on
its email capabilities. To learn more about
Evolution's other features, refer to
the Help text.
