Apple Betas Web-based Email Service for iTools

cpk0 writes "As more and more 'free' web-based email services fall, and stop offering all their services for free (e.g. Yahoo! won't offer pop-forwarding for free anymore), Apple once again proves its cool-factor by beta-testing a webmail page for use with their iTools e-mail account members. You will find a beta login page, with a link to a feedback page. Now's the time to tell Apple what you guys want to see in this new feature."

Comments

Passwords for sale

[ptbrown]

Web mail is great as an alternative. I won't use it as the only option, but it's nice when I'm on the road to be able to quickly check my messages without mucking about in someone else's client configuration.

But is it too much to ask for email providers -- not just web-based but POP3 and IMAP as well -- to use secure connections? All those passwords being sent in the clear are a packet sniffers dream.

Re:Passwords for sale

[repoleved]

Hear hear,

but if you use linux or *bsd, then you can set up your own, truly private, email service, and make it as secure as you want with

1. open source operating system
2. apache
3. ssl module
4. php module
5. squirrel mail
6. a free dns server (and there are plenty of these)
7. an always on internet connection such as adsl

or a friend with all of the above... ;-)

case

Re:Passwords for sale

[rbrito]

I agree completely. I have fear of using my POP3 account anytime I use my notebook, wandering through networks (where I have to) whose (local) security I know nothing about.

And what makes the matters worse is that setting up a secured version of POP3/IMAP is exceedingly easy with the use of SSL wrappers like stunnel or sslwrap.

So, this once again convinces me that the problem with security is not technological, but educational and/or philosophical.

Sweet

[Schemer]

I've been able to get to my mac.com mail using IMP for a while now, but its nice to see an Apple supported webmail thats part of the iTools site.

In fact, I wouldnt be suprised if Apple based their wemail stuff on IMP, since it was one of the iTools engineers who pointed me to it at last years Mackworld NY in the first place :)

Re:Sweet

[ahknight]

Look at the URL. It's WO, not PHP. I doubt Steve would let anyone use anything other than WO on the site... ;)

OmniWeb and WebEmail

[norwoodites]

If you try to use WebEmail for iTools in OmniWeb be sure you change the identity of OmniWeb so it identifies itself as IE or Netscape, otherwise you get a message saying your browser is not supported.

Re:OmniWeb and WebEmail

[glenmark]

Odd. I had no difficulty whatsoever trying it out from OmniWeb without changing the identity...

Cool Factor?

[Ratso Baggins]

If

• Apple once again proves its cool-factor by beta-testing a webmail page for use with their iTools e-mail account members

Then I guess MS is down right legondary for providing hotmail for free to everyone, no matter what your race, creed or OS choice...

Re:Cool Factor?

[ScumBiker]

You realize, of course, that M$ bought hotmail? That it still runs on FreeBSD, except for a few front-end Win2K machines so it looks like they're eating their own dogfood? And it sure as hell isn't out of the goodness of their heart, they sell add space on it. So, what part about hotmail is benevolent?

Re:Cool Factor?

[Niherlas]

Let's consider that quickly-slammed cool factor. Apple's Webmail has the following features (available without paying an additional fee):

• 5MB of data storage (vs 2MB for Hotmail)
  
• No frigging ads
  
• Can be accessed via any IMAP/POP client
  
• No frigging ads
  
• Can set a "vacation" autorepy message
  
• No frigging ads
  
• Will allow you to forward your email elsewhere
  
• Did I mention no frigging ads?
  

Granted, Apple's hand may have been "forced" by websites such as imapple.net that were using IMP and SquirrelMail to provide access to mac.com email accounts, but Apple's implementation is fast, clean, and imposes minimally on the users.

Although you have to use a Mac with at least OS9 to sign up for iTools, you can access the mac.com email via web or POP/IMAP client from any platform, and the iTools disk space and HomePage storage (20MB) is acessible via any platform that supports WebDAV.

That's much better support of open standards and ease-of-access than Hotmail, Yahoo!, GeoCities, you name it.

Re:Free

[PythonOrRuby]

Actually, as I recall, only the initial signup has to be done via a Mac. Since Apple actually bases their services on industry standards, like LDAP, IMAP, and WebDAV, you can then access those services(not sure about webmail though, yet) from any computer. Some have even reported that iDisk(WebDAV) access is noticeably faster, though less slick, from NT-based machines.

bouncing

[geethree]

For a beta project, I'd say that the mac.com webmail product is pretty darn good.

One thing I'd like to see is the ability to 'bounce' a message the way I can do from mail.app

Bouncing is a great way to fight back on the occasional spam that gets thru.

--geethree

WebObjects

[Space Coyote]

Looking at the URL for this thing, I see that this was done with WebObjects. I bet I'm not the only one who'd love to see the code for this thing, considering WO's reputation for being an effecient tool for rapid development in much the same way as Cocoa is for desktop apps.

Nice to see Apple eating their own dogfood once again, especially when there are so many off-the-shelf systems they could have used instead.