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One of the most powerful aspects of the Internet is the ability to interact with people around the world via your computer. The basic ways to do this are through e-mail, newsgroups, mailing lists or discussion groups,chat groups, or by publishing the information you want to communicate. This section will provide a brief introduction to e-mail and instructions for how to use AT&T Worldnet Service. You can read through from the beginning or jump directly to the section of interest by clicking on the title of your choice below. Be sure to also read the introduction to netiquette, the informal set of rules for polite behavior on the Internet.
Overview
E-mail is somewhat like a cross between having a conversation and writing a letter. It is quick and informal like a conversation but, like a letter, doesn't offer the non-verbal cues that are so important in communication. In some ways, e-mail is different from either a letter or a conversation. For example, with e-mail you often don't know the person to whom you are writing or anything about them. Many people add emoticons or smileys to their e-mail to clarify their meaning.
An e-mail message is made up of the header, the body, and the signature. The header tells you to whom the message was written, who received copies, the date and the subject. It also tells you the author's name and return address. For convenience, many mail readers let you process your mail by looking only at the header. So, when you write a message, make sure the subject allows your recipient to identify the topic at a glance.
The body of an e-mail message may be any length, although it is certainly easier to read if you keep it short. E-mail messages tend to be written in a much less formal style than letters. Most messages are text but they can also contain graphics and/or attachments. The message is closed with a signature which can be a single line with the sender's name or a more elaborate, multi-line version.
Your E-mail Address
Your e-mail address is something like:
your.id@worldnet.att.net or
your.id@att.net
The first part (in this example, your.id) is called your e-mail ID If you want someone to send you mail, you generally will need to specify your entire e-mail address, not just the ID If two Worldnet members want to send each other mail, they only need to use the e-mail ID
If you want to find someone's e-mail address so that you can write to them, there are several on-line directories for different services such as the AT&T Worldnet Service Member Directory. A simpler way to find out their address is the very low-tech but efficient method of calling them. Or, if they send mail to you, you can get their address from the return address of the message.
Using E-mail With AT&T Worldnet Service
Complete instructions for using E-Mail with AT&T Worldnet Service, no matter which version of our software you are using, can be found at either the AT&T Worldnet E-mail Features page, or E-Mail Clients.