nelson%bolyard.wpd.sgi.com@sgi.com (Nelson Bolyard) (11/21/90)
In Volume 10, issue 821, I asked about AT&T's ACCESS program. Our Moderator tacked the following onto my posting: >[Moderator's Note: You do *not* need those programs to use ATT Mail! I >use one of my terminals and the printer attached to it and get along >just fine. Some time ago, they tried to tell me I needed a PC to use >the mail. Whether or not the program you describe, at the price >offered is worthwhile or not is a judgment you need to make. PAT] In Volume 10, Issue 832 ehopper@ehpcb.wlk.com (Ed Hopper) wrote: >Messages created with ACCESS or sent via UUCP from a UNIX box do not >have message creation charges associated with them. Messages entered >online do have such charges. Unfortunately, messages edited offline >and sent up via XModem from Procomm, etc. also have "creation" >charges. So while one may not absolutely NEED their "ACCESS" program to be able to communicate, it seems that without ACCESS (or UUCP), the costs of sending e-mail are increased by about 50%, due to their "online message creation" charges. When these "creation" charges are figured in, MCI Mail suddenly seems much more cost-effective. By eliminating the 40 cent creation charges, the $150 ACCESS program would pay for itself after 375 messages. Today, an AT&T Mail Customer Assistance Center techincal representative dropped this bombshell on me: He is NOT PERMITTED to tell me ANYTHING about how to use their Internet mail gateway because it's not "official" yet. He didn't think it was working yet. When confronted with the news that there are people who use it regularly to communciate with the internet, his response was that I should reply to a message from one of those people and ask them how they do it. Astounding! If you want to know how to use AT&T Mail, you're better off asking their customers, not their Customer Assistance reps? So with no alternative left, I ask Pat and any other AT&T Mail users in telecom land, the following questions: 1. How do you, as an AT&T Mail user, address mail to someone on the Internet. How would you address mail to me, nelson@sgi.com, for example? 2. How do I (an Internet mail user) address mail to you, an AT&T Mail user? I invite you to send me some e-mail from your AT&T Mail account. I should be able to figure out the reply address from the mail I receive. Nelson Bolyard MTS Secure IRIX Silicon Graphics, Inc. nelson@sgi.COM {decwrl,sun}!sgi!whizzer!nelson 415-335-1919 Disclaimer: Views expressed herein do not represent the views of my employer. [Moderator's Note: In answer to both your questions, I won't tell you. I was given permission to use the gateway to ATT Mail during the beta test stage under the condition that I not discuss it in detail in the Digest. I am permitted to add names to the list from ATT Mail however, and the folks who have received mail know how it is done. Furthermore, there is a help file on ATT Mail which discusses the topic. I hope the people who gave me permission to use it will soon okay a formal discussion of it including examples, etc. PAT]
hansen@pegasus.att.com (Tony L Hansen) (12/01/90)
From: nelson%bolyard.wpd.sgi.com@sgi.com (Nelson Bolyard) < Today, an AT&T Mail Customer Assistance Center techincal representative < dropped this bombshell on me: He is NOT PERMITTED to tell me ANYTHING < about how to use their Internet mail gateway because it's not < "official" yet. He didn't think it was working yet. When confronted < with the news that there are people who use it regularly to communciate < with the internet, his response was that I should reply to a message < from one of those people and ask them how they do it. Astounding! If < you want to know how to use AT&T Mail, you're better off asking their < customers, not their Customer Assistance reps? Nelson, Let me get this straight: You're offended because AT&T Mail has a test connection to the Internet, but won't tell you how to use it? Note that test connections are probably subject to unreasonable amounts of down time or potentially lost or mangled mail. (I'm not saying that the AT&T Mail test connection does or does not have these problems.) They're called "tests" for a reason; tests don't always work perfectly 100% of the time. Obviously some other people are willing to take the risks; does that mean that AT&T Mail should advertise where to take the risks? AT&T Mail has a certain reputation regarding guaranteed delivery or acknowledgement of non-delivery. In light of this reputation, non-disclosure of less-than-perfect services by the Customer Assistance is definitely in line with their goals. Tony Hansen att!pegasus!hansen, attmail!tony hansen@pegasus.att.com [Moderator's Note: Apparently the testing is now finished. I got a note from my contact at att.com saying that a copy of the documentation would be sent to me for publication in the Digest. As of yet that documentation has not arrived (either here or my box at attmail), but assuming it will come eventually, I'm publishing the next two messages to explain the process. PAT]
rhyre@cinoss1.att.com (Ralph W. Hyre) (12/01/90)
I believe: internet!<machine>!user, ie internet!eecs.nwu.edu!telecom While ONLINE, try 'Help internet' or 'help network', or something like that. ATTMail is busy advertising their X.400 interconnections with other services, I can't imagine why Internet paths would be 'secret.' [It has never been related to me as such, and I am not especially privledged.] Good luck. Ralph W. Hyre, Jr. Internet: rhyre@attmail.com Snail Mail: 45150-0085 [ZIP code] UUCP: att!cinoss1!cinpmx!rhyre Phone: +1 513 629 7288
tnixon@uunet.uu.net (Toby Nixon) (12/02/90)
In article <14874@accuvax.nwu.edu>, nelson%bolyard.wpd.sgi.com@sgi.com (Nelson Bolyard) writes: > So with no alternative left, I ask Pat and any other AT&T Mail users in > telecom land, the following questions: Pat said he's sworn to secrecy because he's an official beta-tester of the gateway. Well, I simply stumbled onto it, am not an official beta tester, am not sworn to secrecy, and hopefully he'll post this message to the group. > 1. How do you, as an AT&T Mail user, address mail to someone on the > Internet. How would you address mail to me, nelson@sgi.com, for > example? I would address AT&T Mail to you as "internet!sgi.com!nelson". Maybe I'll try it and see if it works! Might be necessary to throw a smart mailer in there, like "internet!uunet!sgi.com!nelson". I can send to myself at Hayes as "internet!uunet!hayes!tnixon". > 2. How do I (an Internet mail user) address mail to you, an AT&T > Mail user? I invite you to send me some e-mail from your AT&T Mail > account. I should be able to figure out the reply address from the > mail I receive. You can send mail to me at AT&T Mail as "tnixon@attmail.com" or "uunet!attmail.com!tnixon". Toby Nixon, Principal Engineer | Voice +1-404-449-8791 Telex 151243420 Hayes Microcomputer Products Inc. | Fax +1-404-447-0178 CIS 70271,404 P.O. Box 105203 | UUCP uunet!hayes!tnixon AT&T !tnixon Atlanta, Georgia 30348 USA | Internet hayes!tnixon@uunet.uu.net [Moderator's Note: Your instructions are correct. Although the gateway was officially closed for some time pending software changes and the making of policy decisions regarding traffic from ATT Mail to our net and vice-versa, TELECOM Digest has been allowed to pass through to ATT Mail subscribers for some time. I was asked to say nothing about it until everything was finalized. I got a note several days ago saying the documentation would be sent to me for publication, but it has not arrived. When it does, I'll publish it. In the meantime, the use of the gateway is very simple: username@attmail.com gets it from here to there; internet!site!username gets it from there to here. For the purpose of this discussion, Bitnet is considered a 'domain' of the Internet, i.e. 'internet!nuacc.bitnet!telecom' would reach me as would 'internet!eecs.nwu.edu!telecom'. Likewise, Fido is a 'domain', meaning you would write to: 'internet!fido.address!username. Always use the bang (!) style of addressing from ATT Mail; never use '@'. PAT]
wolfgang@uunet.uu.net (Wolfgang S. Rupprecht) (12/04/90)
nelson%bolyard.wpd.sgi.com@sgi.com (Nelson Bolyard) writes: >So with no alternative left, I ask Pat and any other AT&T Mail users in >Telecom-land, the following questions: >2. How do I (an Internet mail user) address mail to you, an AT&T Mail user? > I invite you to send me some e-mail from your AT&T Mail account. > I should be able to figure out the reply address from the mail I receive. psuvax1.psu.edu!cbis3!attmail!<username> >1. How do you, as an AT&T Mail user, address mail to someone on the Internet. > How would you address mail to me, nelson@sgi.com, for example? attmail!cbis3!psuvax1.psu.edu!<machine>!<user> This assumes attmail can send to uucp addresses. I have no idea about this silly mail service. Why wouldn't one just run UUPC on their own pc and get uucp mail connectivity for free? UUPC is a PD uucp clone by Rick Lamb. It's avalable on uunet and other PD sources archives. Wolfgang Rupprecht wolfgang@wsrcc.com (or) uunet!wsrcc!wolfgang Snail Mail Address: Box 6524, Alexandria, VA 22306-0524 [Moderator's Note: I think the preferred addressing for outbound from ATT Mail is: internet!wherever.domain!username. And it is really a moot point as to whether or not ATT Mail can reach uucp addresses, since all they do (I believe) is hand off everything to the Internet for routing, including Bitnet and Fido, and I assume uucp as well. Regarding your comment about running a uucp clone and 'getting it for free', I'd be interested in hearing about the deal you cut with C&P to give you a no-charge phone line for your site. PAT]
hrs1@cbnewsi.att.com (Herman R Silbiger) (12/05/90)
> you would write to: 'internet!fido.address!username. Always use the > bang (!) style of addressing from ATT Mail; never use '@'. PAT] Not so! I regularly use @ in my mailings from attmail, however, attmail always shows the From: in !style. Herman Silbiger hsilbiger@attmail.com
psrc@mtunq.att.com (Paul S R Chisholm) (12/05/90)
In article <15164@accuvax.nwu.edu>, wsrcc!wolfgang@uunet.uu.net (Wolfgang S. Rupprecht), in response to a question about how to get form the Internet from AT&T Mail, replies: > psuvax1.psu.edu!WOLFSYS!attmail!<username> Well, no; it's not WOLFSYS. But please *don't* follow Mr. Repprecht's suggestion. (I'm sure his suggestions was made helpfully, and I don't mean to criticize; but it does have problems.) Yes, some systems are registered with AT&T Mail and reachable via the Internet. It's possible to send e-mail through those systems, thus causing them to be billed by AT&T for your e-mail messages. That makes our customers unhappy. When our customers are unhappy, I'm unhappy. You wouldn't want to make me unhappy, would you? (There are ways for administrators to limit pass-through traffic.) This is the kind of problem that could be solved by someone funding an AT&T Mail/Internet gateway. I have discussed this with AT&T Mail management at length. At, in fact, great length. However, AT&T has not announced any such gateway. I won't discuss any unannounced AT&T products or services. Is the suspense killing you, or what? Paul S. R. Chisholm, AT&T Bell Laboratories att!mtunq!psrc, psrc@mtunq.att.com, AT&T Mail !psrchisholm I'm not speaking for the company, I'm just speaking my mind. Pat (an open note): Yes, I did ask product management to send you an announcement for a new feature of AT&T Mail. That is, to send the announcement to you after it had been announced, or with an embargo date and a request not to say anything until just after we make an official announcement. Sorry for the confusion. --Paul [Moderator's Note: Mr. Chisholm is the person who arranged for the Digest to be delivered to ATT Mail readers, and the person who asked that I not discuss it further until an official announcement came out. I assumed (from the note he alludes to above) that the memo I was to receive (but still have not received) was regarding the gateway. PAT]