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Email 101 Book? (lemmy.ml)
submitted 5 months ago by to c/opensource@lemmy.ml
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I'm trying to move away from Google and replace my Gmail account. But reading about the different options, I'm realizing I don't really understand email at all - e.g. the difference between the client and the domain name, the different protocols, encryption.

Does anyone have articles or books to suggest as a "Basics of Email: 101"? Thank you!

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[–] [S] 1 point 5 months ago (3 children)

Thank you, yes I agree and I'm not interested in hosting my own mail server. I'm just realizing that I don't really understand the difference between a mail provider and a domain, and I've run into issues before with different mail protocol settings (like when I tried to connect a school outlook account to Thunderbird and couldn't get it to work because of (I think) IMAP settings).

It's something I use all the time, and I'd like to better understand how it works.

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  • [–] 2 points 5 months ago (1 child)

    A domain is a url, like oaksprout.com. A provider is a server/computer that the domain points at. Many services sell both together at an upcharge, but a domain itself usually costs like ~$15 a year

    If an IP address is a mailing address, imagine a domain as a way to pay the post office so people can just address it to oaksprout. You could have them forward your mail to your house, or you could send it to a PO box or business address, and change it whenever you want

    The provider is like the mailbox in this metaphor... It receives the mail and holds it for you

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  • [–] 1 point 5 months ago

    In your case Google would be the host/provider of your Gmail e-mail service and gmail.com is the domain name of the Gmail e-mail service.

    Having your own domain name would allow you to keep you e-mail address even when switching your e-mail host. Which means you would not have to bother with re-registering you new e-mail address for every service or newsletter again.

    yourname@yourdomain.com would always be yours no matter which e-mail provider you choose, IF they support a personal domain.

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