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/* ====================================================================
* Copyright (c) 2000-2002 University of Valencia. All rights reserved.
*
* Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without
* modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions
* are met:
*
* 1. Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright
* notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
*
* 2. Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright
* notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in
* the documentation and/or other materials provided with the
* distribution.
*
* 3. All advertising materials mentioning features or use of this
* software must display the following acknowledgment:
* "This product includes software developed by the University
* of Valencia."
*
* 4. The names "Postman" must not be used to endorse or promote products
* derived from this software without prior written permission.
*
* 5. Redistributions of any form whatsoever must retain the following
* acknowledgment:
* "This product includes software developed by the University of Valencia"
*
* THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED ``AS IS'' AND ANY EXPRESSED OR
* IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE
* IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
* PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL ITS CONTRIBUTORS
* BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL,
* SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT
* NOT LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES;
* LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION)
* HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT,
* STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE)
* ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED
* OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
* ====================================================================
*/
You can get updated info for Postman in:
http://www.uv.es/postman/
To subscribe to Postman mail list, please send one message with body
"subscribe Postman-l YourFirstName YourLastName"
to address
"listserv@listserv.uv.es"
README file for Postman (current version: 2.0)
----------------------------------------------
"POSTMAN" is a WebMail client of high performance.
Postman is a client of Mail with interface Web designed and programmed in
the Service of Computer science of the University of Valencia. The program
has been developed in answer to the necessities raised in our University in
the matter of easy, safe, accessible electronic mail and of high performance;
necessities that then did not find solution adapted in the different programs
available in the network. Concretely, the conditions were (in addition to
elementary of facility and the comfort of the interface):
- Client IMAP and NNTP, with possibility of using several mailboxes by user.
- That maintained the connection with server during the user session.
- Support, in a same machine of a high number of sessions (several hundreds).
- "shareware" or "freeware", "open source".
The development of "Postman" took place then having these conditions in
mind, as well as the characteristics, strongpoints and weaknesses of many other
studied clients "WebMail" with anteriority.
Like result of it, the main characteristics of Postman are at the moment:
- Open source.
- All codified in C and C++.
- Only HTML. No Java, minimal Javascript used (not necesary, you can delete it!).
- If the browser supports cookies, these will be used.
- Support for IMAP protocol.
- Support for NNTP (NetNews) protocol.
- The connection maintains open.
- MIME supports (read the "mime-torture-test-mailbox" successfully).
- Support for send several attachments.
- There is no transfer of passwords during the session: the password is only
sent once in the beginning.
- Search and Sort mailboxes.
- It can work under safe server (SSL).
- Support of addressbook, signature and several mailboxes in the server.
- All the system works under a same user of UNIX. Not setuids.
- Support multilanguage (until now translated English, Spanish and Catalan).
- Complete help for each screen.
- Aesthetic and ergonomic interface (three skins implemented).
- User can choose IMAP server (if the Admin allow it).
And, in addition:
- Selecting and operating with multiple messages simultaneously.
- Possibility of use of button BACK of the navigator without loss of
synchronism with the server.
- Storage automatic of sent messages and dump of a whole mailbox.
- Selective resent of attachments in Replies or Forwards.
- Draft storage between sessions.
- He is able to show attached HTML with images enclosed "in-line", the URLs
within the messages are like "links" effective.
- Automatic commutation of server IMAP based on table user-server.
- Filters to avoid multiple connections (multiple pulsations of buttons) and
automatic locking of previous connection in case of reconnection.
- Optimized occupation and response time of memory.
- Dynamic identification of which it is the process that takes care of each
user.
- Timeout for forgotten sessions.
Functions IMAP, NNTP and MIME implemented via libreria standard c-client of the
University of Washington (written by Mark Crispin, the author of specification
IMAP). The shipment of attachments is made by means of "Form-based File
specified Upload" in rfc1867.
Postman is made up of two elements: a small called cgi-bin every time by
the WWW server, and "daemon" permanent in charge to send the servers (one by
user session) who take care of the cgi-bin and who maintain the connections
with servers IMAP or NNTP.
Postman has been compiled and proven successfully in Linux,
HP-UX and SUN (Solaris 8). One does not hope that it has serious problems of
portability to other "flavors" of UNIX. It has worked with servers IMAP of the UW
and the Cyrus.
Postman this being used in production from beginning of year 2000 in the
University of Valencia in a server HP-UX with 256 MB of RAM and supporting
peaks of to 300 simultaneous users without producing no remarkable load in the
server. A previous software, that towards use of another technology (mod_perl),
exhausted the resources of the server with the 60 or less usuary ones.
Postman can be used with any browser (Internet Explorer, Netscape, lynx, ...).
Screenshots:
-------------
We have a working Postman in
http://correo.uv.es
Sorry, no demo user at this moment.
You can see screenshots in:
ftp://ftp.uv.es/pub/unix/postman/screenshots/screenshots.html
Gratefulness:
-------------
-Thanks to Robin Whittle for his wonderful comments.
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