Re: Avoid POP3

[Camaleón <noelamac@gmail.com>]

On Wed, 18 May 2011 10:32:01 -0400, Miles Fidelman wrote:

> Camaleón wrote:
>> That's okay, but not for me (so I noted), at least not "technically
>> speaking" in this context where pop3, due to its own nature, inherits
>> by default a "download/fetch/get/retrieve and delete" action ;-)
>>    
>>    
> Nope.

Yep.

> The protocol is very specific - listing headers, downloading/reading
> messages, marking messages for deletion, and actually deleting messages
> (when a QUIT is issued) are very distinct operations that have to be
> executed via different protocol transactions.  There is no inherent
> combined download/fetch/get/retrieve/delete action.
> 
> There may be default actions set up in a client, but those are client
> and configuration specific.

Do you *really* think that pop3 is *widely* used to do not get and delete 
the messages from the server? I don't think so, and moreover, I would not 
recommend to keep the messages on it because it can cause a big mess on 
the client side, better use imap.

> There may be defaults and customizations on the server-side, but those
> are external to the protocol (if a server deletes messages after they're
> downloaded, that's completely outside the scope of POP3).

Pop3 was not designed to keep the messages on the server, having such 
option is not the norm but the exception (many e-mail server do not have 
it enabled) and as I said, it does not work very well... 

P.S. Recommeded lecture: 

- RFC1939, chapter "8. Scaling and Operational Considerations"
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post_Office_Protocol#Extensions

Greetings,

-- 
Camaleón