Hello
I'm wondering what technology they have used to built web based email
services like Yahoo Mail, or Hotmail. I know you can do this using ASP
technology, but I am still unsure. If you can shed light on this, that
will be great.
Thanks in advance for your comments.
Kappa
On comp.mail.misc, in
<1114900835.534835.189750@l41g2000cwc.googlegroups.com>, "Kappa"
wrote:
> Hello
>
> I'm wondering what technology they have used to built web based
> email services like Yahoo Mail, or Hotmail. I know you can do
> this using ASP technology, but I am still unsure. If you can
> shed light on this, that will be great.
>
> Thanks in advance for your comments.
>
> Kappa
>
The _technology_ used is called the computer and the
internet.
The software used is a webpage that solicits input from
the user (uploaded files, with uploading in HTTP being
called PUT) called a "web form"
The information sent to the webserver in the uploaded
files is processed by a script (simple program) that
uses it to create a file in the format defined by the
SMTP protocol (electronic mail) for an email, which is
sent to an MTA (Mail Transfer Agent or SMTP server) to
be sent out over the internet.
The most basic of the scripts used are written in
a syntax called CGI (Common Gateway Interface).
When you check your mail, a CGI (or java or php)
script takes the information you give it and contacts
a POP or IMAP (mail storage) server and downloads
any new mail you have to the webserver and inserts
the information in a webpage created by the script
which you then download (GET) to your computer to be
displayed by your browser.
That's the basics. It pays to keep in mind that no
one "goes" to a website. Your browser, a program,
contacts the computer with the webserver, a program,
and downloads files (datastreams in chunks) from it,
which are displayed on your browser, and you send
files (some of them only a few characters long) to the
webserver to tell it what you want.
It's really an inefficient and indirect way of sending
and receiving mail, with the web server being completely
unnecessary. I don't use it myself.
Hope the above is clear,
AC
--
alanconnor AT earthlink DOT net
Use your real return address or I'll never know you
even tried to mail me. http://tinyurl.com/2t5kp
~
On 2005-04-30 in
>
> I'm wondering what technology they have used to built web based email
> services like Yahoo Mail, or Hotmail. I know you can do this using ASP
> technology, but I am still unsure. If you can shed light on this, that
> will be great.
Nowadays it's very popular to use
Asynchronous JavaScript+CSS+DOM+XMLHttpRequest
which is also known as AJAX.
I have links to lots of info about AJAX here:
Hope this helps,
Nancy
--
Infinite Ink:
IMAP Service Providers:
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Beavis writes:
> When you check your mail, a CGI (or java or php)
> script takes the information you give it and contacts
> a POP or IMAP (mail storage) server and downloads
> any new mail you have to the webserver and inserts
> the information in a webpage created by the script
> which you then download (GET) to your computer to be
> displayed by your browser.
As always, whatever answer Beavis comes up with, the correct answer lies 180
degrees to the opposite.
Beavis, you poor, tortured soul: I have a running webmail server right here,
complete with source code. When "you check your mail" the CGI (which is
neither java, nor php) "takes the information", and then what it does with
it does not involve any cockamamie POP or IMAP server, and it does not
download anything from anywhere.
Please stop pretending that you know how complex software works, sonny.
You're just embarrassing yourself.
> Hope the above is clear,
Well, as clear as a Beavis could possibly get, I suppose.
And next time, Beavis, I'll bitch-slap you _really_ hard.
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> I'm wondering what technology they have used to built web based email
> services like Yahoo Mail, or Hotmail. I know you can do this using ASP
> technology, but I am still unsure. If you can shed light on this, that
> will be great.
I haven't followed the evolution of technologies too closely. Back in the
old days it was just a bunch of CGI scripts I think. There are some free
webmail packages such as SquirrelMail that use PHP for server side
scripting and automation and most services. I'm sure everything these days
uses something like PHP for the server side processing.
gmail.com is quite unique in that it seems to intelligently make use of
Javascript to have more local processing, and is therefore more nimble than
a system that relies exclusively on dynamic page generation on the server.
--
Jem Berkes
Software design for Windows and Linux/Unix-like systems
http://www.sysdesign.ca/
Thanks everybody who made an attempt to answer my question.
Actually I know a little about CGI scripts, and that these are neither
Java code, nor PHP code. As I was browsing through some ASP tutorial
where they created a mail application. They didn't call ASP a language,
rather called it a technology. And also, I always try to check out the
end of a URL. When it ends in .asp or .jsp it gives me an idea that is
built using either Microsoft ASP (or by most recent Microsoft product
i.e. ASP.NET where extension is .aspx) or JavaServer Pages/Servlets.
LycosMail UK is using JSP by the way. But in the case of Yahoo Mail, to
be specific, I can't see any file extension. With Yahoo Mail being so
popular and effcient I wonder what technique are they following to run
such an efficient web based email system. Anyway, thanks a lot once
again for your suggestions.
Kappa
On comp.mail.misc, in
<1114995547.588606.106840@f14g2000cwb.googlegroups.com>, "Kappa"
wrote:
> Thanks everybody who made an attempt to answer my question.
>
> Actually I know a little about CGI scripts, and that these are
> neither Java code, nor PHP code. As I was browsing through
> some ASP tutorial where they created a mail application. They
> didn't call ASP a language, rather called it a technology.
Anyone can _call_ anything anything they want. Doesn't mean
it is an accurate label.
If it doesn't involve new and innovative hardware, it isn't
a new technology.
> And
> also, I always try to check out the end of a URL. When it ends
> in .asp or .jsp it gives me an idea that is built using either
> Microsoft ASP (or by most recent Microsoft product i.e. ASP.NET
> where extension is .aspx) or JavaServer Pages/Servlets.
> LycosMail UK is using JSP by the way. But in the case of Yahoo
> Mail, to be specific, I can't see any file extension. With
> Yahoo Mail being so popular and effcient I wonder what
> technique are they following to run such an efficient web
> based email system.
The lack of an extension means nothing. Only Windows requires
them. The Internet is run mostly on Unix-family OSs.
Yahoo is doing the same thing as everyone else. Doesn't
matter whether they are using java or cgi or php or
whatever. These are just scripting languages. Different
flavors.
It's just another HTTP interface to SMTP and POP/IMAP
servers.
With the HTTP interface they are using eye-candy
and unnecessary steps to make you think that they
have something new and wonderful. But the essential
applications involved have been around since the
'70s.
You could access both of them (SMTP and POP/IMAP
servers) directly using much simpler utilities. That's
what myself and millions of other people do. It's
faster and much more secure. (I believe that some
of the big email providers are now offering this
as an option, and acting as if it is some kind of
_innovation_. ROTFLMAO!)
Don't let the bullshit of the technocrats throw you.
> Anyway, thanks a lot once again for your
> suggestions.
Any time, Kappa,
AC
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Beavis writes:
> Anyone can _call_ anything anything they want. Doesn't mean
> it is an accurate label.
Ugh, right, Beavis.
> If it doesn't involve new and innovative hardware, it isn't
> a new technology.
So that means that Challenge-Response isn't actually the greatest thing
since sliced bread? I mean, it doesn't involve any "new and innovative
hardware", after allâ=A6
> Don't let the bullshit of the technocrats throw you.
Right, we'll leave all the bullshit up to you.
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