COM 125 Week 2: E-mail

Technology is so advanced today that it is hard to comprehend how dependent humans are on it. It has managed to penetrate into our lives and simplify our daily chores, saving more time for us to tend to other things. The computer followed by the Internet was a major breakthrough in the development of technology and communication. As a part of this revolution in high-tech communications, electronic mail or E- mail has gained popularity and gathered an incredible number of “practitioners” since its emergence in the 1980’s. From smoke signals to posts, exchanging messages have long since been practiced by humans. Message sharing has also existed in one form or another since the early days of computers. However, Electronic mail, developed along with the evolution of the Internet, has become a powerful technology that is the most widely used application on the Internet today (Living Internet, 2007).

E-mail, is a method of communicating whereby an individual uses a computer or other electronic device to compose and send a message to another individual. Messages may be sent through computer systems linked by a network, through modems using telephone lines, or, in some cases, through wireless transmissions (Answers, 2007). Although in many companies e-mail is linked only within that company’s system, users of it are able to send mail to anyone in the world. Exchanging messages through e- mail has become a norm in society today. It would be accurate to say that everyone you and I know have if not one, but two or three e- mail addresses. People may argue that e-mail is a virtual thing and therefore does not have the “warmth” of a posted letter. However, an e-mail can be sent free of charge and the receiver would get the mail in a matter of minutes if not seconds. Postage or walking to the post office would not be required. One needs only to have access to a computer with an Internet connection. Google mail, Yahoo! and Hotmail are some of the more popular sites that offer free mail services. E-mail not only comes free but it also comes with a number of complex services. An address book to store contacts, the ability to send pictures and attachments, the forwarding, replying and deleting of messages and the automatic sorting out of junk mail are some of these features.

Just as it is easier to send an e-mail message than to mail a letter or, in many cases, to attempt to phone someone, the amount of time allowed for a response has also decreased. While a letter may take two to three days to travel to its destination, an e-mail message is transmitted almost instantaneously. Few would expect an answer to a letter within a week of sending it. Seldom would a person sending an e-mail message expect to wait two to three days for a response (Encyclopedia of Business, 2007).

Like most things that are “too good to be true”, e- mail also has its weaknesses. It is not as secure as traditional mail although there are many laws protecting its unauthorized tampering. In some cases where privacy is invaded for purposes of commercial advantage, malicious destruction, or private commercial gain—it establishes fines of up to $250,000 and prison sentences of up to one year. As with traditional mail, law enforcement agencies can seize e-mail as evidence in criminal investigations and civil lawsuits (Legal Encyclopedia, 2007).

E-mail with all its users would be a major reason for most people who are not that “IT-literate” to use computers and the Internet. You are not required to know the complex programming of a computer to be able to use it. From organizations to personal usage, this technology has proven to bring new heights to the concept of “the global village”. As mentioned earlier, it may have its limitations of satisfying the human mind. But, one thing that is certain is that with such development in such a short period of time, we can definitely expect more limitless advances in the field of high-tech communication in the years to come.

References

E-mail: Science and Technology Encyclopedia (2005).
Retrieved January 27, 2007 from
http://www.answers.com/topic/e-mail

E-mail History: Living Internet
Retrieved January 27, 2007 from
http://www.livinginternet.com/e/ei.htm

E-mail: Legal Encyclopedia (1998).
Retrieved January 27, 2007 from
http://www.answers.com/topic/e-mail

E-mail: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (2007, January, 25).
Retrieved on January 27, 2007 from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E_mail

E-mail: Encyclopedia of Business (2001)
Retrieved January 27, 2007 from
http://www.answers.com/topic/e-mail

History of the Internet (2006, August 20). In Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Retrieved January 27, 2007 from
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=History_of_the_World_Wide_Web&oldid=73974490