Most webmail systems work like this: You pick the service you want to use (Hotmail, Gmail, Yahoo, and so on) and sign up for an account. As part of this process, you select an email address and password. Whenever you want to engage in a little postal activity, you log into your account on your chosen webmail site and do all of your mailing activities through your web browser window. (Using a Web Browser explains how web browsers work.)

Webmail is versatile, and it’s always there for you to check and send messages on Internet-connected devices like desktop computers, netbooks, mobile phones—even on certain types of hotel television sets. Webmail also keeps track of your email address book, so you’ve got your contact info right at hand. And, if you want to save any of your mail on your home computer, you can make copies from your web-based Inbox or even download it to a regular email program.

Webmail provides a stable, consistent address on the Internet. If you move to a new town and change ISPs, you have to get a new email address, but your webmail address stays the same no matter how you get online.

The downside to webmail is that many free services are advertiser-supported, so you and your correspondents get to look at little advertisements stuck at the bottom or along the sides of the messages. Another potential bummer: If the webmail site goes down, you can’t get your mail. Mail delivery from your ISP (Setting Up a Wired Network) can be hindered by a server crash as well, but there’s nothing like a Gmail outage to get a whole bunch of people going through email withdrawal at the same time. Google, however, has come up with a way to read Gmail even when you’re offline (Webmail Providers).

Some services also limit the number of messages you have in your account (well, they do own the servers) or the size of the file attachments you’re allowed to send. And if you don’t log in for a few months, you may find your account (and any mail in it) deleted because the service thought you wandered off for good.

And speaking of servers, some people felt uneasy about having all their personal mail sitting around on someone else’s webmail machines. The fact is, all email, not just webmail, bounces around along a series of different computers as it travels along the Internet. Unless you encrypt your messages with a program like PGP, a number of people could potentially read your mail.

There are several webmail providers out there, and most of them give you at least 5 GB of server space to store your mailbox. Five gigabytes is plenty for most people—room enough to store at least half a million email messages—although that will fill up faster if you regularly send off megabytes of photo or video attachments and never delete anything. Here’s a quick look at four of the big webmail services.

When you signed up for your Internet service provider (Setting Up a Wired Network) to get online, odds are the company gave you at least one email address. Unless the company has its own webmail service, you need to collect the mail sent to that address in a dedicated email program on your computer. These types of programs download your mail, display it for you, and let you send you own messages. Email programs, sometimes referred to as email clients, live on your computer and generally keep all your messages (or at least the message header information) on your hard drive, not on some unknown server.

Once you choose a program, you have to set up the software to work with your ISP’s mail server. You simply start your email program, select the New Account option, and then type all the information you got from your ISP when you signed up (like your user name, password, and the names of the mail servers) so your email program knows where to look for your mail.

Although they take longer to set up, email programs typically let you be much more creative in composing your messages. Compared to some online webmail sites, email programs usually make it much easier to do things like change the type style and color or drag and drop photos into your messages. (Services like Gmail, however, have caught up considerably with standalone email programs in the word processing department.)

But in some cases, you don’t even have to make the choice. If your webmail service allows it, you can download the messages from your web-based account with the same email client you use to snag your ISP mail.

Popular (and free) email programs

Email is such a standard now that just about every computer operating system includes some sort of email program. Here’s a quick look at the most popular ones.

• Outlook Express. You don’t have to go any further than your Windows XP Start menu to find Outlook Express right there waiting for you. It’s not the slickest email program ever invented, but it does all the basics: sending, receiving, sorting, and storing messages and file attachments. As old as it is, millions of people still use Outlook Express so you can find plenty of add-ons and other programs that work with it. For example, iTunes 8 even lets you export your OE contacts to your iPod.

Note

Outlook Express is a big target for virus writers and other evildoers who want to fool it into opening messages tainted with malicious code. Still, it’s free and adding an antivirus program (Keeping Viruses at Bay) to your Windows XP netbook is a good idea anyway.

—Evolution. Included with Ubuntu Linux, Evolution does much more than send and receive email. It also serves as a calendar, organizer, and electronic address book. Like Linux itself, Evolution is an open source program, so all of its programming code is right out there on the Web where anyone can see it, improve it, or fix it. Linux systems aren’t as vulnerable to the same viruses and worms that plague Windows machines, but junk mail is universal, so Evolution offers a serious spam filter to weed out the garbage.

— Thunderbird. If you don’t like the mail program that came with your netbook, you can pick out one of your own. Mozilla’s Thunderbird is available for both Windows XP and Ubuntu Linux and makes a nice, open-source alternative. Another good thing to come out of Thunderbird’s open-sourcefulness are the extensions (add-on programs) you can get to make it even more useful. You can find extensions for enhancing your address book, weeding out duplicate entries, or even smacking down more spam than what Thunderbird’s built-in filter already does. You can get Thunderbird extensions by going to Tools→Extensions→Get More Extensions when you have the program open in front of you. Windows people can download a copy at www.mozilla.com/thunderbird, while Linux netbookers can find it in the Ubuntu repository (Adding and Removing Programs).

The word configure is flung around by computer geeks quite a bit, but it’s nothing to be afraid of. It just means “to set up.” If you can put together a tricycle or follow a recipe to make brownies, you can configure an email program. During the process, you have to supply a few basic pieces of information so that the mail program knows where to look for your mail and how to handle the messages you send to other people.

Since Outlook Express comes with Windows XP, it’s a good one to use as an example. To get rolling, go to your Windows Start menu. If Outlook Express is not listed up top there, choose Start→All Programs→Outlook Express.

Ubuntu Linux machines come with the Evolution mail software, which is very similar to set up: Choose Applications→Internet→Evolution. You’re asked to fill out the same basic pieces of information about your email account as with Outlook Express or any other email program, so have your user name, password, and account settings information from your ISP close by. And Mozilla Thunderbird for Windows and Linux uses similar setup steps as well.

If you’ve never opened Outlook Express before, the Internet Connection Wizard comes roaring in to help. After you answer each of the questions the wizard asks, click the Next button.

When you’re done, the wizard deposits you on the Outlook Express mail screen, which shows your mailboxes and folders. If you want to test it out, click Create to make a new message, address it to your email address, type Hello World, and click Send/Receive to fire it off. Click the same button again to see if your message appears in your new mailbox. If it doesn’t, go back and recheck your settings in Tools→Accounts→Mail→Properties and make sure you correctly typed in all server addresses from the ISP.

Outlook Express, Evolution, and Thunderbird all give you a chance during setup to encrypt your incoming and outgoing messages to add an extra layer of security. You do so by turning on SSL encryption (short for Secure Sockets Layer) in the Security area of your mail account settings. In most programs, you just need to turn on a checkbox telling the mail program to use the same user name and password settings for outgoing mail as incoming mail.

You can turn on SSL during the account setup process—or after you’ve filled in your settings and made sure your email account is working. To get back into your mail settings for any reason after you’ve initially configured the account, choose Tools→Accounts→Mail→Properties in Outlook Express or Edit→Preferences→Mail Accounts→Edit in Evolution.

In the Outgoing Mail Server settings in Outlook Express, for example, you just need to turn on the “My server requires authentication” checkbox. Click the Settings button and select “Use the same settings as my incoming mail server.”

In Evolution’s Receiving Email and Sending Email settings, select SSL Encryption from the Use Secure Connection pop-up menu and choose Password for the Authentication Type. (Turn on the Remember Password checkbox unless you really like typing it all the time.)

In Thunderbird for Windows, you can find the SSL settings at Tools→Account Settings→Server Settings; for Linux, choose Edit→Account→Settings→Server Settings. Under Security Settings, select SSL and turn on the “Use secure authentication” checkbox.

Depending on your ISP, you may have to specify port numbers to use with SSL authentication. Check with your ISP’s technical support or online account setup guide for the information. Most of the time, IMAP connections use port 993, while POP accounts use port 995.

Each time your mail program collects your mail, it deposits the fresh batch of new messages into your mail program’s Inbox. Until you delete or move the message, it stays in your Inbox. To help you tell the old from the new, most mail programs highlight the new mail’s subject lines with bold text or place dots next to the unread messages.

Most mail programs offer you a couple ways to view a message: inside a preview pane or open in its very own window.

Outlook Express, Evolution, Thunderbird, and other mail programs divide their main windows into multiple sections called panes, and the preview pane is the horizontal section below the Inbox list. When you click a message’s subject line in the Inbox, the body of the message appears in the preview pane. If you want more room to see the message preview and less of your Inbox, drag the divider bar up or down.

When you open a message in its own window, it’s easier to see all the header information, which is the top part of the message with all the To:, From:, Subject:, and other address stuff. The part of the message with the text is typically called the body.

If you have a stack of mail to plow through, you can blast through them in preview mode by tapping the up and down arrows on the keyboard to display each one’s contents in the preview pane.

Once you’ve gone to all the trouble to set up and configure your email account, odds are you’re going to want to tell everyone you know. If you’ve never done it before, here’s how to make and send a message.

After you send your message, a copy of it resides in your Sent mailbox, where you can refer to it if needed.

Email programs don’t just have an Inbox, but also have a few different folders depending on if the message is coming or going and what type of message it is. Outlook Express, for example, has five folders in the vertical pane in the mail program’s main window, as do most other email programs. To see what’s inside any of these folders, click an icon in the vertical pane to reveal its contents in the main pane. These folders include:

You’ll also see any other mail folders that you created in the list. Just as you can make new folders on your computer to store specific or related files, most mail programs let you create and name mail folders so you can store and organize messages. Check your mail program’s menus for a “New” or “New Mailbox” option.

Once you make a special folder, you can store messages in it. These messages can be all on a certain topic or from certain people. Most mail programs let you make a filter that automatically routes messages from specified senders or with particular words in the subject line into your special new mailbox.

A filter, also called a rule, is a standing command you set up to reroute mail to a designated place, like your Quarterly Report folder, your Love Notes folder, or if it’s junk mail—right into the Deleted Items or Junk folder. To set up filters or rules, go to your mail program’s preferences area and look for a New Rule or New Filter option. Type the criteria for your filter (someone’s email address, for example, or certain words in the message Subject line), tell the mail program which folder you want to use for these types of messages, and click OK.

To attach a file to your open message-in-progress—like a photo, document, or video clip—just look for an Attach button in your mail program’s toolbar or an Attach File link on the webmail page. Paperclips are usually the chosen icon marking an Attach File command. Once you click the button or link, locate the file you want to send on your hard drive and then click Attach. You see the attached file’s icon on your message. Finish your message and send it off.

You can tell if someone has sent you a file attachment before you even open the message when there’s a telltale paperclip icon next to the message’s name in the Inbox. When you double-click to open the message, the attachment appears under the message text or in the Attachments: field at the bottom of the message window.

Some mail programs let you double-click the attachment and open it right from the message, while others require you to save the attachment to your hard drive and open it later. You can free the file from its email envelope in either of two ways:

Outlook Express and Windows XP may block your attempt at seeing, opening, or saving an attachment. Due to the swarm of worms and viruses aimed at Outlook Express, Windows XP stops about 70 different file types that could potentially carry a virus at the gate to your Inbox by graying out the file name or displaying a warning banner to stop you from downloading the attachment. (Microsoft is not alone in its paranoia: Gmail also blocks attachments with an .exe file extension on the grounds that it could be a virus.)

Of course, a lot of people are probably sending you attachments that are perfectly fine, and it can be frustrating when Outlook Express butts in between you and that file you really need to open. If you have an antivirus program installed on your computer, you can safely tell Outlook Express to back off. Choose Tools→Options→Security and on the Security tab, turn off the option called “Do not allow attachments to be saved or opened that could potentially be a virus.” Click OK. Restart Outlook Express if it still stubbornly refuses to let you see the attachment.

You can do lots of things with an email message besides read it: reply to it, forward it, print it, save it, file it, or send it straight to the trash if it turned out to be spam. Here’s a rundown of the basic ways to do all of these in most mail programs:

Before long, your netbook will be humming with email flying in and out of it. If you need to take a break from all that work, a little Web browsing can be very relaxing…

The Web is so vast, finding the information you seek would be impossible if it weren’t for a handy group of sites called search engines. Most search engines work exactly the same: You type in keywords—search terms relating to the subject you want to read about (like West Highland terrier breeders or sugar cream pie recipe). Once you hit Enter, the search engine consults its vast index of the Web and presents you with a list of pages that contain your keywords.

Many browsers now include a shortcut Search box at the toolbar’s top-right corner. This search box may be set to use a particular search engine, like Yahoo or Google. You can choose a different one by clicking the small triangle next to the box and selecting from the pop-up menu.

Popular search engines include:

Getting around the Web is easy, given the number of different ways you have to jump from page to page. Here are the most common ways to surf the electronic waves:

Bookmarks are an important part of the web browsing experience. The next section sells you how to make them.

Whatever you call them, bookmarks and favorites are incredible time savers. When you come upon a site you want to see again, bookmarking it gives you an easy link back to it—and the luxury of not having to type the address.

To make a bookmark for the page you’re currently browsing, go to the Bookmarks or Favorites menu in the menu bar and choose the command that reads something like, “Add Bookmark” or “Bookmark this link” or “Add page to Favorites.” In most browsers, you can also right-click the page to get a shortcut menu with a bookmarking option, and some include buttons with plus signs or stars you can click to bookmark the page.

When you opt to save a bookmark, you get the option to edit its name and even save it to the Links/Bookmarks bar. If you decline to put it in the Links bar (it’s not that great a page, but you just might want to go back there and buy some beef summer sausage gift packs for the holidays), the link lands in the browser’s Bookmarks or Favorites menu.

RSS

In addition to saving bookmarks, you can also subscribe to RSS feeds from icons in the browser’s address bar. RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication, and it’s a way a website can tell you that it’s changed so you don’t have to keep checking back to see if there’s anything new.

When you subscribe to a feed, you get notified when the page is updated, usually by a little number next to the page’s bookmark in the Links bar or Bookmarks menu indicating the number of updates. RSS is great for keeping up with blogs and news sites that change frequently.

To subscribe to a feed, just click the orange icon with the curvy white radio waves on the right side of the address bar. Now the website notifies you when it has something new to show.

To read your feeds in Internet Explorer, click the Favorites button on the toolbar and then the Feeds button or tab; click a feed name to see the newest updates. If you choose to subscribe to your feeds with Firefox’s Live Bookmarks feature, you’ll see a submenu with all the latest news when you select the bookmark.

If you find yourself truly hungry for feeds, consider Google Reader—a free service that lets you easily subscribe to, browse, and share news items and RSS feeds. Once you create your Google Reader account at www.google.com/reader, your favorite feeds also show up when you log in from your mobile phone or other wireless gadget.

Tip

Want to have your browser automatically start up and land on your favorite news site, sports team home page, or blog? In Internet Explorer, choose Tools→Internet Options→General and in the box for Home Page, type or paste in your favorite site’s address and click OK. In Firefox for Windows, choose Tools→Options→General to get there, or Edit→Preferences→Main for Firefoxon Linux.