Introduction

The email server at Mount Holyoke College is also the computer that many people log into -- mhc.mtholyoke.edu. On that computer most people run the email program called "pine". Pine is a mail agent that takes care of sending and reading email. It allows one to store and manipulate mail folders on the server. We also provide POP and IMAP services for on-campus use of email clients on personal computers that have direct Internet access. While there are written instructions about some of these clients (see below), for the most part if you elect to use one, you are on your own. The most familiar ones are "Eudora", "Netscape", and "Microsoft Internet Explorer". There is also a "pine" for Windows and Windows 95 computers.

POP

The "post office protocol" (POP) has been around quite a while. It is a relatively simple protocol and does not have a lot of features. Most email clients are able to use POP. The major disadvantage to this protocol is that it moves all email to the local machine thereby precluding its use from multiple locations. Be very careful if you experiment with a POP email client.

IMAP

The "Interactive Mail Access Protocol" (IMAP) is designed to function in a client/server environment where there is true interaction between the desktop client and the server. It allows for the manipulation of folders on the server and mail can remain stored on the server. This allows the use of email from numerous locations and with numerous email clients.

Choosing

1. POP clients move all mail directly to the desktop computer, a disadvantage for a mobile user who might check mail using pine from home, or with an email client at the office desk, or from a lab location. An IMAP client, or using pine from a shell login to the main computer, allows storage of email folders on the server.

   On the other hand, POP client programs have been around longer than IMAP clients and are feature-rich, so if you read email from one location, something like Eudora may be perfect. The (currently) less powerful IMAP clients offer more control over where your email is stored and are better for the mobile user.

2. The most significant advantage with email to the desktop is the simplification of dealing with attachments. Attachments are used for sending images, wordprocessing documents, or any other computer file via email. With pine used from a shell login to mhc.mtholyoke.edu, documents must be moved back and forth between the mhc computer and the desktop computer since that is where the attachment or extraction of an attachment in pine is done.

   While this process is made relatively easy by mapping a network drive (Windows 95) to your home directory so that you can work directly on the network with programs such as Word, it is an additional step. In addition, some email messages have URLs embedded in them which an email reader such as Netscape can directly access.

3. While the ability to easily send and receive attachments is a great advantage, the receipt of an attachment can be a major disadvantage. Normal, text-only email cannot transmit any virus. An attachment, however, can be an image, a word processing document, or a program.

   When you receive such a thing, you need to treat it the same way you would obtaining a file on diskette -- it may contain a virus. With the proliferation of Microsoft Word macro viruses, you may wish to be hesitant about opening a Word document sent to you as an attachment.

Recommendations for desktop email

For those who will use email from only a single location, other alternatives that you may use without support are (1) a purchased copy of Eudora, or (2) Netscape or Microsoft Internet Explorer as POP clients. If you experiment with these, make sure you check the appropriate box to prevent all your mail from being downloaded from the server since there is no way of reversing this if you do it.

General setup

• Email server:
  mail.mtholyoke.edu
• SMTP server:
  smtp.mtholyoke.edu

Installation and setup for IMAP on Netscape Communicator for Windows 95.

Detailed IMAP/POP information from Terry Gray, University of Washington.