ChatterBank3 mins ago
ISP AND FREE EMAIL
8 Answers
What is the difference between using the email service which is supplied by your ISP and one of the many free email providers. eg Orange, GMail , Hotmail Yahoo etc. etc . I use three to give to friends and family and companies where I don't care what junk mail they send and to banks and utilities etc. They all vary in their capabilities and ease of use. Are there other fundamantal differences ?
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The main difference for me is the fact that an ISP email is valid only for as long as you are with that ISP. Therefore, I use Googlemail and it works whichever ISP I'm with at the time, and I don't have to spend ages updating my accounts on loads of websites. I haven't found any email facility ISPs offer that is worth using over Gmail (among others).
There was a time, and it might still be the case with some, that retail websites wouldn't accept hotmail addresses as your main contact, i.e. and ISP email address was seen as more valid to them.
There was a time, and it might still be the case with some, that retail websites wouldn't accept hotmail addresses as your main contact, i.e. and ISP email address was seen as more valid to them.
Your ISP's email service won't append advertising to either incoming or outgoing mail. Further it will support 'POP3' and or 'IMAP', allowing you to use a proper email client (such as Outlook, Outlook Express, Windows Live Mail or Thunderbird), which most free web-based services don't do.
However you'll lose your ISP-based email address if you change your ISP, so many people recommend not using your ISP's service. To counterbalance that, you need to remember that most free services will close your account if you don't log in for a few weeks.
Some free services append random advertising to email, whereas others (e.g. Google's GMail) electronically scan all of your mail in order to select the most relevant types of advertising. Not everyone likes that approach:
https://www.privacyri...rg/ar/GmailLetter.htm
Some free web-based providers place greater limits on the amount of storage which you're permitted to use on their servers than most ISPs do. Further, there might be tighter restrictions upon the size of the attachments which you're allowed to append to emails.
My own preference is to use free services which support POP3 (so that I can use Outlook Express or similar). Until recently I would have suggested Gawab but they've experienced quite a few problems this year, so I now opt for GMX
http://gmx.co.uk
Others prefer Gmail.
Some web-based services have a poor reputation for 'losing' accounts. In particular, Yahoo tends to lock people out of their accounts (for no reason) quite often, with no support ever forthcoming to solve the problems. Hotmail isn't perfectly reliable either.
Chris
However you'll lose your ISP-based email address if you change your ISP, so many people recommend not using your ISP's service. To counterbalance that, you need to remember that most free services will close your account if you don't log in for a few weeks.
Some free services append random advertising to email, whereas others (e.g. Google's GMail) electronically scan all of your mail in order to select the most relevant types of advertising. Not everyone likes that approach:
https://www.privacyri...rg/ar/GmailLetter.htm
Some free web-based providers place greater limits on the amount of storage which you're permitted to use on their servers than most ISPs do. Further, there might be tighter restrictions upon the size of the attachments which you're allowed to append to emails.
My own preference is to use free services which support POP3 (so that I can use Outlook Express or similar). Until recently I would have suggested Gawab but they've experienced quite a few problems this year, so I now opt for GMX
http://gmx.co.uk
Others prefer Gmail.
Some web-based services have a poor reputation for 'losing' accounts. In particular, Yahoo tends to lock people out of their accounts (for no reason) quite often, with no support ever forthcoming to solve the problems. Hotmail isn't perfectly reliable either.
Chris
I have been using GMail (GoogleMail) since its inception and love that I can access it easily from any internet connected pc and smartphone.
Very little spam gets in to my inbox.
It collects my 'proper' mail for my ISP addresses too.
I will have that email address for as long as GMail exists even though I may change my ISP every year.
Very little spam gets in to my inbox.
It collects my 'proper' mail for my ISP addresses too.
I will have that email address for as long as GMail exists even though I may change my ISP every year.
Thanks for the information ! Where does Windows Mail fit in with your definitions. ? My Windows Mail seemed to come with my new PC which coincided with getting PlusNet as a ISP so I'm not sure it's Plus Net's email or whether it came free with Vista and the new PC.
I don't get any advertisements with Windows Mail .
I don't get any advertisements with Windows Mail .
Let's start at the beginning!
When email was first invented it was a completely separate part of internet activity to the worldwide web. Emails were sent and received using programs (called 'email clients'), such as Outlook and Outlook Express and not via web browsers (such as Internet Explorer).
Many (most?) people still regard the use of dedicated email clients as the 'proper' way to send and receive email. That's the way which almost every office in the land does it, and many individuals continue to do the same. However there are now newer email clients to use, including Windows Mail. (i.e. Windows Mail is a PROGRAM on your computer, NOT an email service. You still need an email provider, such as the one provided by your ISP, for it to connect to).
Later however, web-based email services started to be developed. They have the advantage of allowing users to send and receive emails from any internet-connected computer. (That's because they use web pages to display their content, rather than needing an email client which has to be configured to an individual user's settings). 'Webmail' is simply shorthand for such web-based email services.
As I stated in my original post, a few free webmail services will also permit users to use traditional email clients (such as Outlook Express or Windows Mail) but the majority don't.
To the best of my knowledge, all ISPs now offer both ways of accessing your mail. Plusnet, for example, allows you to configure Windows Mail to send and receive your emails by the 'traditional' method, by following the instructions here:
http://www.plus.net/s...dows_mail_setup.shtml
Alternatively you can use their web-based service, by logging in here:
https://webmail.plus.net/src/login.php
If you decide to use BOTH methods of sending and receiving your mail it should be noted that (when using the default settings in Windows Mail) downloading emails to the Inbox of Windows Mail removes them from Plusnet's server (so they will no longer appear when you go to the web-based service). You need to change the default settings in Windows Mail if you want mail to remain on Plusnet's server. (instructions upon request!).
Any clearer?
Chris
When email was first invented it was a completely separate part of internet activity to the worldwide web. Emails were sent and received using programs (called 'email clients'), such as Outlook and Outlook Express and not via web browsers (such as Internet Explorer).
Many (most?) people still regard the use of dedicated email clients as the 'proper' way to send and receive email. That's the way which almost every office in the land does it, and many individuals continue to do the same. However there are now newer email clients to use, including Windows Mail. (i.e. Windows Mail is a PROGRAM on your computer, NOT an email service. You still need an email provider, such as the one provided by your ISP, for it to connect to).
Later however, web-based email services started to be developed. They have the advantage of allowing users to send and receive emails from any internet-connected computer. (That's because they use web pages to display their content, rather than needing an email client which has to be configured to an individual user's settings). 'Webmail' is simply shorthand for such web-based email services.
As I stated in my original post, a few free webmail services will also permit users to use traditional email clients (such as Outlook Express or Windows Mail) but the majority don't.
To the best of my knowledge, all ISPs now offer both ways of accessing your mail. Plusnet, for example, allows you to configure Windows Mail to send and receive your emails by the 'traditional' method, by following the instructions here:
http://www.plus.net/s...dows_mail_setup.shtml
Alternatively you can use their web-based service, by logging in here:
https://webmail.plus.net/src/login.php
If you decide to use BOTH methods of sending and receiving your mail it should be noted that (when using the default settings in Windows Mail) downloading emails to the Inbox of Windows Mail removes them from Plusnet's server (so they will no longer appear when you go to the web-based service). You need to change the default settings in Windows Mail if you want mail to remain on Plusnet's server. (instructions upon request!).
Any clearer?
Chris
Sorry for the delay in replying.
As far as your ISP is concerned, composing an email on a web-based site is no different to posting a message here on the Answerbank. You're simply connecting to a particular web-site and sending data to it. (Similarly, reading your email on a web-based system is no different to reading my answers here). Your ISP doesn't make any money out of it directly; your monthly broadband subscription pays their costs and makes their profit.
Chris
As far as your ISP is concerned, composing an email on a web-based site is no different to posting a message here on the Answerbank. You're simply connecting to a particular web-site and sending data to it. (Similarly, reading your email on a web-based system is no different to reading my answers here). Your ISP doesn't make any money out of it directly; your monthly broadband subscription pays their costs and makes their profit.
Chris
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