Chapter 2

I was skeptical there was a lot of depth regarding emails, but I was immediately hit with acronyms I’ve never heard of such as POP, SMTP, IMAP, and MIME. I appreciated the comparison of a mail server software and a mailroom. While I used to find creative email addresses endearing, I exclusively use a more generic email address these days. My teenage self would be disappointed that I threw my “hilarious” hotmail.com email address in the garbage.

I knew about the basics of sending an email. I did, however, learn that you can combine multiple contacts into a group. I appreciated the example of a less informative subject line “Just checking” the book used, I feel like I’ve gotten that exact email. I love and hate the term “Netiquette.” I’ve noticed that I’ll get a formal email, send a response, and when I receive a second email from that person the “Netiquette” goes out the window. In my opinion, an email is more formal than something like a text message.

I remember when email providers were stingy with how much data you could store with old emails, but since I started using Gmail, I haven’t had to delete anything. I think I still have emails from 2007. Personally, I haven’t felt the need to organize my emails outside of the automatic spam folders. I almost exclusively use the search function to dig up old emails. I also don’t use contacts, but I have noticed that Gmail automatically fills in a commonly used email address when I type in that person’s name.

I have countless memories of my friend’s falling victim to email viruses. The most common one was a “keylogger” where they’d trick you into downloading a file that’d track your keystrokes and store your login information. Antivirus programs have gotten significantly better, and it seems less common to fall for these. I was unaware that laws have been passed to combat unsolicited messages. The “CAN-SPAM Act” might be the funniest law name I’ve ever heard of. It’s unfortunate that it’s had limited success.

Another basic thing I learned about email, and specifically Gmail, was how to create a label. While I don’t use contacts, this feature would have been useful for me when I was coordinating a trip to Minneapolis with my friends. A few years ago, I started using google drive and google docs frequently due to how convenient it is to share information.

All that being said, I think I still much prefer a text message or phone call over email.