mail-client, mail-provider, private mail-server

[LoTeK]

hey guys, what email provider do you use?
So far I'm using hotmail, which is of course evil, unethic, bad and unreal so I'm looking for something different. Is there any "linux-oriented" provider? the best would be a gentoo.org address, but I guess this is only for developers...

I'm thinking about building my own email-server because of the learning experience, the privacy / control, but I haven't much time at the moment and moreover a poor internet-connection. Do someone of you have an email-server at home? is it a rough ride to set one up?

what email client do you use? @bonekracker: is there something like a "dwm-client" in the sense of a "one-C-file?" So far I've heard only about mutt, which is 3700 KB large.
_________________
"I want to see gamma rays! I want to hear X-rays! Do you see the absurdity of what I am? I can't even express these things properly because I have to conceptualize complex ideas in this stupid limiting spoken language!"

[aidanjt]

[wildhorse]

Some routers and DSL modems come with an SMTP server. I use a Raspberry Pi with Gentoo for that.
Most mail messages are small. Any data transfer rate will be sufficient. In fact a modem would be good enough. Unless you are planning to distribute porn movies via mail.

Not sure what a "KB" is (kelvin * byte).

[LoTeK]

[LoTeK]

[wildhorse]

[LoTeK]

[Dr.Willy]

hosteurope.de: 6€/year.

As a mailclient I'm using isync and mutt. It kindof sucks but still is better than anything I've found.

[LoTeK]

when I try:

[Dr.Willy]

http://packages.gentoo.org/package/mail-mta/msmtp

[LoTeK]

before reading your post I've followed:
http://wiki.gentoo.org/wiki/Postfix

now I don't get any error, but I also don't receive any mail. I've checked with nmap that my port 25 is open...
btw, this wiki article is pretty new and the author uses telnet, but I thought telnet is deprecated?!
_________________
"I want to see gamma rays! I want to hear X-rays! Do you see the absurdity of what I am? I can't even express these things properly because I have to conceptualize complex ideas in this stupid limiting spoken language!"

[wildhorse]

You can use the web site http://mxtoolbox.com/ to test your SMTP server.

[jonnevers]

after running my own mail server ( via gentoo + postfix + dovecot + roundcubemail ) for well over ten years.

i use gmail.

imho, running one's own mail server is tedious and without much fruit. but of course ymmv.

[LoTeK]

[BoneKracker]

If you really want the full, Unixy learning experience, you should set up sendmail.
_________________
Oldthinkers unbellyfeel INGSOC.
-- Headline of a document on Winston Smith's terminal in his cubicle at the Ministry of Truth, seen briefly in the background in one scene of the movie rendition of Nineteen Eighty-Four.

[gabrielg]

After using ISP provided email addresses (which are transient as you have to change them every time you change ISP's, even worse than phone numbers these days), and hotmail, yahoo mail and gmail (in that order, and keeping all those accounts), I have my own server at home with OpenBSD (as I have it running on the router), sendmail (just because it's hard core, and not that hard to learn anyway), mutt (client), dovecot (to make it available through IMAP so I can see it with my phone) and cyrus-sasl (for authentication).
There is some documentation out there as to how to set all this up.

Positive points:
- My mail server actually works, as opposed to gmail and friends, which work whenever nobody is breaking anything. Of ccourse, I "control" when to break stuff.
- I use encryption, and I'm fairly confident that nobody else rather than me is reading my emails (as opposed to gmail, which gives your information to government agencies without a second thought, until recently, or maybe that's just PR).
- My rules to place emails in folders are way more advanced than those at any other provider because I don't need a friendly UI.
- I don't have to deal with the latest and greatest google's authentication silliness by which I have to "inform them" where I travel else they won't give me access to gmail with my custom IMAP client.

Negative points:
- Your mail server will be as good as your ISP. Mine has been crappy lately, which is a shame. I didn't do this yet, but you could implement redundancy at a trusty friend's server. I particularly don't care, especially as SMTP requires you to keep trying to deliver your emails for about 4-5 days, and ISP's are generally not that bad.
- Your hardware might break, but that's something that you can mitigate. RasPis are a great idea, as you can have many and set up a good cluster. I haven't done this though

I have, however, friends and colleagues who have done the opposite (namely migrating to gmail) mainly for practicality. I personally prefer my privacy and the occasional exercise for the brain.

[pjp]

[BoneKracker]

He deserves it for blah blab blab can't be bothered to rtfm blab blab blab...
_________________
Oldthinkers unbellyfeel INGSOC.
-- Headline of a document on Winston Smith's terminal in his cubicle at the Ministry of Truth, seen briefly in the background in one scene of the movie rendition of Nineteen Eighty-Four.

[LoTeK]

[gabrielg]

[PaulBredbury]

[BoneKracker]

I use Gmail as transfer agent, esmtp as submission agent (smtp and local), and procmail as local delivery agent and for header rewriting.

LoTek doesn't have the patience to figure mail out. I predict he dabbles for a week, asks more rtfm questions, and throws his hands up in frustration.
_________________
Oldthinkers unbellyfeel INGSOC.
-- Headline of a document on Winston Smith's terminal in his cubicle at the Ministry of Truth, seen briefly in the background in one scene of the movie rendition of Nineteen Eighty-Four.

[LoTeK]

Indeed I dabbled alot lately, soon I will be on your level... No, after the time of frustration I will raise like a phoenix..
_________________
"I want to see gamma rays! I want to hear X-rays! Do you see the absurdity of what I am? I can't even express these things properly because I have to conceptualize complex ideas in this stupid limiting spoken language!"

[BoneKracker]

My level is not something to aim for.
_________________
Oldthinkers unbellyfeel INGSOC.
-- Headline of a document on Winston Smith's terminal in his cubicle at the Ministry of Truth, seen briefly in the background in one scene of the movie rendition of Nineteen Eighty-Four.