1. Variables

The variables that you will need. In order to send an email using the PHP mail function, you will need to set various variables, which will form things like the email address the email has come from, the email address it is to be sent to, and the subject. In addition to this, you will need to set something called headers, which we will use to tell the mail function that we are sending an email function.

• $headers  – This variable is explained further below.
• $email_to = “email@email.com”;
• $email_from = “FROM: noreply@christophereast.me.uk”;
• $subject = “test email”;
• $message = “Test emailTesting”;

2. Setting the Headers

Headers are the part of the email that tell it who it is from, and that the email is coded in HTML. Remember when you are sending an email in HTML, the message in the email must be coded in correct HTML4 otherwise errors may be displayed in some browsers. In-line CSS is recommended over separate CSS as it is then sent along with the email and doesn’t rely on other files to function. The following 2 sections of the header tell the mail function that you are sending an email with HTML content.

• $headers = ’MIME-Version: 1.0′ . “rn”;
• $headers .= ‘Content-type: text/html; charset=iso-8859-1′ . “rn”;

There are two things to remember when doing the above two lines of code. The first is that you need to include a full stop (.) before the equals sign on the second line, as this will append to the first line. The second is that instead of normal quotation marks, you only use a single quotation mark. This is because of the way PHP interprets code when it comes to the mail function.

3. Additional Headers

You can set some additional headers, which makes things a little bit easier to see in an email. These should be fairly self explainatory.

• $headers .= ‘To: Mary , Kelly ‘ . “rn”;
• $headers .= ‘From: Birthday Reminder ‘ . “rn”;
• $headers .= ‘Cc: birthdayarchive@example.com’ . “rn”;
• $headers .= ‘Bcc: birthdaycheck@example.com’ . “rn”;

The header section makes it easier for email clients to understand your emails, and make it easier for your emails to be checked for spam etc…

4. Putting It All Together

Once you’ve got it all, it’s time to put it all together. This final section allows you to actually get the emails sent, and provides you with the code you need to make it all work!

• mail($to, $subject, $message, $headers);

It really is as simple as that. So now you’ve got all the building blocks to a HTML email, you can go out and add it to your next website with no fuss whatsoever!

Windows Live Messenger Integration

Hotmail’s integration with Windows Live Messenger is probably the main reason I use Hotmail. I spend a lot of time each day on Windows Live Messenger. It’s how I communicate with pretty much everybody. I can leave it on while I’m doing other things. Because of Windows Live, I get a notification every time I get an email. If I’m gaming, I can pause, check my mail and then get back to what I was doing. It’s an extremely efficient use of my time.

Storage

I have been known to get quite a lot of spam in my inbox. It isn’t actual “spam” as most people would define it, but more those automated emails you get when someone sends you a message on Facebook or Bebo, or when you get an email from a website you’ve registered to. Quite often I can find out what I need to know from just the subject line, so I don’t actually open the email. As such, I now have almost 5000 unread messages. Despite this, thanks to Hotmail, I am nowhere near reaching my storage limit.

Non-Hotmail Accounts on Hotmail

The email account that I use most now is not a Hotmail account. It is an email account linked to my website. As such, it can be a major pain checking my emails. I used to have to login to my website, then my email account, then finally get to check my emails. No longer though! Now I get a notification from Windows Live when I receive an email in my main account, because I’ve linked it to Hotmail. It saves time for me. Not only do I only now check my mail when I actually have mail, but it is also much quicker too.

Image via Wikipedia

So what else can it offer us?

Drag and Drop

You can drag and drop emails into your calendar and task area. That allows you to make a time to work on that email without having to retype it. You can even ask others to help you by sending a calendar request or adding them to the task.

Journal

Ever spent ages trying to chase something but couldn’t find it? The Journal tracks all your emails, documents and calls made to a particular person or group. It helps log how long you spent working on a particular document as well, great for time based billing.

Notes

Need to write down something quickly but not lose it. Notes is your friend here. In fact, it is so useful, Microsoft even create a whole new program to help keep you organised for projects – Onenote.

Tasks

Track the jobs you need to do and share them with others that can help and monitor their progress. Simply hit the task button (or View Tasks) then create a new task. Set a date to finish by, a priority and even a reminder. Then you can start working through your day, doing the most urgent things first and marking them off as you finish. A great motivator. Remember though, don’t make one task too big, break it down into smaller tasks and it is easier to manage.

You have just finished an important document. You are about to email it as an attachment.

Stop.

What word processing program have you used? And how has the document been saved?

Although most useful w/p progs offer options as to what form the document should be saved, most have, as their default, an esoteric version which can only be read if the person to whom you are writing has the same program.

On occasion you may be told to send the document in pdf or rtf or even txt.  This is because the recipient is accustomed to receiving items in unreadable formats and has implemented protocols.

On other occasions you will not be given a format so might simply send your document in the default.

If you are lucky you will receive an email informing you that your document can not be read. If you are not, your work goes into the great cyber cess pool.

Let me be coarse; you have spent a week working on this project. You have saved it as docx because that is the default in your w/p program.

The recipient, which uses other w/p programs can not open the document. As there are a number of other candidates who have saved their work in .rtf, the recipient opens those.

Your work is discarded as if it were written in Sanskrit.

Philosophically, understand that those who develop proprietary software do so to ‘force’ everyone to buy their
software.

As the wiser use open source software or the ‘universal’ languages so that no matter what Operating System or Word Processing program is used, the document can be seen, those who use proprietary progs will find themselves unread.

Your wisest move is that if you are not instructed as to what ‘language’ to use, opt for Rich Text Format; rtf or
Text, txt.

This insures that your project can be read.

Attachments are always tricky.  Many clever fonts or graphics might not appear as you created them.

Most people are concerned about picking up malware via email and so have implemented many protocols.  Often, a large document with graphics might be seen as threat and will not automatically open.

As the person who might be receiving the email is computer stupid, s/he will not have a clue as to how to open that document so shrug and skip.

One can’t really fault this; as most malware is downloaded on business machines by a computer stupid clerk who really believes s/he ‘won’ that prize.

Wise IT managers implement a great number of protocols for protection. Hence your magnificent presentation stays as an unopened attachment to an email.

Your best move is to do your project as simply as possible. If you know html and wish to have a fabulous presentation, create a website and send the URL.

If the important aspect of your presentation are numbers and words, and you need it to be read; save in .rtf.

Always remember, when it comes to Cyberculture the burden of lucidity is always on the sender/creator.

It may not be filled with emoticons or colorful graphics and groups of acronyms. Instead, a handwritten letter exudes a sentimentality that is clearly lacking even with the fastest modes of communication. Among the fortunate few who continue to experience this emotional and intrinsic pleasure in today’s technological driven era is Ms. S, who, for as long as she can remember, has been writing to and receiving letters from her oldest school friend in Chennai, India, on a regular basis.

“She is 33 years old and quite tech savvy. She also has access to the Internet. Yet, my friend and I prefer to write to each other,” she says. “I am very close to her and have been writing to her ever since I came to the United Arab Emirates.”

The letters are often four to five pages long; sometimes it could be just a page, but at least once a week, she sits down to write her thoughts to her.

“I look upon letter writing as a kind of conversation – it is like telling a story through letters, sharing pieces of your life in a personalized style,” says Ms. S. “Recently, when my friend had twins, I got to know of this glad tiding immediately. But when my friend’s letter arrived, it brought in more joy as through her words, I could ‘see’ what the babies were doing, how they were playing, sleeping, what they enjoyed doing the most and so on.”

Writing a letter by hand takes time and effort, she agrees. “It’s not as quick as typing and requires more discipline and concentration as I have to put down my thoughts properly and also remember to write neatly and legibly,” she says. “My handwriting is not very easy to read and may seem like alien messages from Venus, but my friend’s is almost like printed calligraphy.”

What she likes best about the letters, says Ms. S, is that “when I hold the letter in my hands, I like the feeling that I am holding the same paper that she held. Despite the physical distance between us, it is almost like touching the person you love very much. My friend wears a distinctive perfume and when I open her letters, I can almost smell that scent. And there are times when she puts in some rose petals too, for an extra special touch.”

Ms. S converses with her mother and other family members mostly by e-mail “because that is their mode of choice,” he says. “The real ‘love affair’ is not between my husband and me; rather it is between my friend and me!”

However, when a message needs to be conveyed immediately, she agrees that it is e-mail that she depends on to get in touch with her. “But that lacks the personal touch, for you instantly get into business mode with e-mail,” she says. “There was another friend of mine from my school days whom I stayed in touch even when I was getting married. But after she moved to the USA, our correspondence was chiefly by e-mail and gradually, we lost touch with each other.”

Ms. S that had they continued with handwritten letters, perhaps they might have still maintained their friendship to this day. The best thing about a handwritten letter, she says, “is that each one of them is very special. Unlike e-mails, they do not get deleted and can be enjoyed again and again, even years after you have received them.

“I’ve got all the letters that my friend has written to me and years later, I know I can show them to my children’s children and they too would be able to ‘touch’ her through these treasured letters, “she says.

One thing that plagues many people about Gmail is the interface. Many people don’t care for the default interface and try to find ways to improve it, such as through Firefox addons. One of the best ways to spruce up your Gmail experience is by visiting the website, Userstyles.org. Upon installing the Firefox addon, Stylish, you can then use the styles that are contained on the website.

Globex Designs has created a brand new Gmail interface that can be used with the Stylish Firefox addon. So what does the style look like? Check it out!

This is a huge improvement over the default interface.

Another thing that makes Gmail so popular is the sheer amount of space it offers, with the amount being upped daily. So why not take advantage of this space? With GSpace, you can. GSpace is another firefox extension which uploads files to your Gmail account for safekeeping. Any file extension that gmail allows and is within the upload limit can be stored within. This makes online file storage virtually obsolete except for larger files. GSpace organizes the emails by the file name, and you can optionally label the emails for quick referencing. It’s like having an online file cabinet that goes anywhere, for free.

1. Don’t shout

   Typing with ALL CAPS in e-mail is the electronic equivalent of shouting and is considered bad manners.

2. Be brief

   Keep your e-mail as brief as possible. Your message will be clear-and more welcome-if you say what you mean in the fewest possible words. Lengthy messages that flow through screen after screen are less likely to be read by busy people.

3. Write clear headlines

   The subject line of an e-mail form is intended to let the recipient know at a glance what the e-mail is about. Subject lines such as “a question” or “hi” are unhelpful and can be downright annoying to those who prefer to sort and prioritize e-mails before opening them. A descriptive subject line is a big help to the reader.

4. Cool off

   Never give in to the temptation to fire off an angry or sarcastic message. A tap of the “send” button makes this easy to do, but making amends afterward may be more difficult. Use your “save draft” file to hold messages until you are calm enough to reread before sending.

5. Forward selectively

   A joke that’s new and hilarious to you might not be to someone who’s already seen it or to someone who’s so busy that extra e-mail is a nuisance. Don’t get in the habit of routinely forwarding jokes and various other e-mails to everyone on your address list; send them only to those you’re certain will appreciate receiving them.

6. Reply sparingly

   Not every e-mail requires a reply and some need only a word or two. If you want to let the sender know you received something, a brief “Got it, thanks” is perfectly fine.

7. Use good judgment

   If you’re writing messages at work, be careful. Company e-mail can be retrieved and read and should not be considered private.

1. Personal Diary

   Dear diary… you can set up filters and a new Gmail account so you can keep a record of your day-to-day activites. Create a new account and set up a filter so emails coming to that email address will be labelled “Diary” or “Journal” etc. and go straight to the archives. You’ll be surprised at how quickly those emails can build up!

2. A Baby Book

   Rafe Needleman of the site Webware posted his “parent hack” – he sends important details of his child’s development to a dedicated Gmail account. He sets up a filter so it goes directly to the archives. He also forwards email from that account to another PC-based email account, which is backed up using Carbonite, making the chances of losing his precious baby’s memories almost zilch.

3. A Virtual Drive

   Backup, portability… whatever: you can use Gmail as a virtual drive using Gmail Drive. Because there’s such a ridiculous amount of storage on Gmail, why not put this to better use by storing your files on it? Gmail Drive integrates into your computer (meaning that you can save onto it the same way you save into My Documents, etc.), so it’s easy to use.

4. Email Blacklists

   Receiving too much spam from one email address? Is a company sending you too many “newsletters”? Is a friend bombarding you with chain letters? You can add all of these email addresses to your blacklist by setting up a filter sending all of their emails that you receive straight to the spam folder or trash – it’s up to you. If you’re a steadfast user of another mail program, try using Gmail as your “watchguard”. It has a better spam filter than other web-based emails and you can also filter out any unwanted email using Gmail’s filtering feature.

1. E-mails that tell you to say a short prayer and then pass on the mail to X number of people. “Do not break the chain. This has been going around the world for a hundred years.”, it says. Come on! I’ve probably received this kind of mail about fifty times in my entire four-year work experience. They must have been serious about the “going around the world”-thing! If not, then how come these mails always find me?!
2. E-mails that say, “Look at the picture for sixty seconds, pass it on to fifty people, and tada! You’ll get promoted or have a chance to work in a more progressive country!” Does anyone really buy this kind of stuff? I mean, yeah, at one point, I did try staring at it for a minute, maybe even more than that, and passed it on to a number of friends, but I did not get promoted at 11:59 am the following day like it said so! Aaaargh!
3. Chain mails. I’m sure you’ve gotten one. The mail that says “Mr. Famous Personality got his letter and ignored it and he lost his job and his wife.” Or “Mr. Nobody resent the mail to twenty of his friends and he won a million dollars in a lottery the following day!” Again, come on! What if I got busy and wasn’t able to pass on the mail twenty-four hours after I’ve opened it? Will I really lose my job, too? Sigh.
4. Warning mails. “Do not use public toilets. There are poisonous spiders hiding in the toilet waiting for your cute butt so it can bite you and then you’re dead the next day.” Are they really serious? What if I badly need to pee? I do have a social life, honey. I’m not at home every minute of the day. It only follows that, as much as I would like to listen to you, I need to use the public toilet.
5. Mails that are supposed to be generating donations for a worthy cause. I’m not sure about this one. I do get lots of this and admittedly forward it to as many friends as possible just in case Yahoo really would donate a centavo for every mail I send. But, is this really serious? Can anybody tell me if this really works? Coz if it does, I’ll just go on with the forwarding, and if not, I can go back to doing my job.
6. Magic mails. These are the e-mails that say, “Read and scroll down and say a wish. Once you’ve passed it on to an x number of people (again!), the phone will ring and your crush will tell you he likes you!” Uhm, does reading the mail, scrolling down and forwarding it makes me a Prom Queen after 25 minutes? (the number of minutes still depend on your age, by the way!)

Yes, I know that when you send me an e-mail telling me not to drink Coke because it can clean the toilet bowl in minutes, you were just being concerned. I get that. I also happen to know that whenever you send me forward-or-else-lose-your-job-mails, you were just protecting your own interests. But can you do me a favor? Next time, try to ignore these mails. Think about this: If all of us would stop entertaining these kind of mails and supporting it by means of forwarding it to our friends, maybe these same mails would stop “going-around-the-world-for-a-hundred-years”.

Can’t do it? Then please, delete me from your mailing list.

So, here’s the solution towards this problem. When an online registration requires you to include your email address simply gives them a temporary email address. What is temporary email address anyway and where to get them I hear you ask? Disposable email service is free and requires no registration and it will effectively stop spam from reaching your primary email account.

If you never heard of them, there are 2 things you need to know and you always need to keep in mind. First off, by using this service, anyone can get access to the email address you created as long as they are using the same username as yours. Only a few of them require you to have a password. So you need to be a little bit creative such that the username you created will not be easily replicated or guessed by other people. Lastly never use this service for your personal or sensitive business because nobody can tell for sure who is running this service. Chances of your information being stolen are quite high.

Anyway, here’s the list of the websites that provide disposable email services; so I hope it can be of great help to you in fighting spam in your emails.

1. 1. MailMoat

   MailMoat.com is built around the idea of an endless supply of disposable (and self-destructing!) e-mail addresses that you can give to anyone you don’t trust. E-mails they send to the alias that you gave them are automatically forwarded to your existing e-mail account (no need to separately check a dozen e-mail accounts if you give out a dozen aliases!). Each alias automatically dies after a date or number of forwarded messages that you set, or you can kill it at will. Live or dead, the alias is not traceable to either you or your real e-mail address.

2. Sneak Mail

   It gives you the power over your inbox from commercial forces, and catch them spamming.

3. Guerrilla Mail

   This website provides you with disposable e-mail addresses which expire after 15 Minutes. You can read and reply to e-mails that are sent to the temporary e-mail address within the given time frame.

4. Temporary Inbox

   A temporary inbox is a disposable email address, which doesn’t require registration and can be used to avoid spam. Use this email address in forums, lotteries, erotic sites or wherever. The spammers will never find out your private email address.

5. Block Filter

   Use this temporary e-mail address to sign-up to websites that requires e-mail verification and its perfect for forums, e-book sale pages, or email required download pages. But bear in mind, they delete the e-mails every 2 hours!

6. Mailnator

   Mailinator is a disposable email service for people who want to protect their online identity. It is a tool that allows users to create an on-the-spot email identity that provides anonymity and fights web inertia in one easy step.

7. 10 Minute Mail

   Any e-mails sent to that address will show up automatically on the web page. You can read them, click on links, and even reply to them. The e-mail address will expire after 10 minutes.

8. Fake Mail Generator

   The Fake Mail Generator is an absolutely free disposable email system. By simply visiting this site the above address has already been saved to your clipboard. Paste (Ctrl-V) it into any form on a website that requires email verification, and when the email is received it will pop up instantly in this box.

9. Spam Gourmet

   There is nothing to install on your computer, and once you’re set up, it’s likely you won’t ever have to come back here. This is what makes it one of the most convenient and effective anti-spam tools available.

10. My Trash Mail

    No registration or password needed. Your account is created on the fly. Your email is stored between 12 hours to 30 days in its server.