Features in an e-mail address - SS2 ICT Lesson Note

An email address is a unique identifier that allows individuals to send and receive electronic messages over the internet. It's composed of two main parts: the local part (before the "@" symbol) and the domain part (after the "@" symbol). Here are some key features of an email address:

• Local Part: This is the part of the email address before the "@" symbol. It typically represents the user's name or username. It can include letters, numbers, and certain special characters like dots and underscores.

• Domain Part: This is the part of the email address after the "@" symbol. It identifies the email service provider or the organization's domain name. For example, in "[email protected]," "example.com" is the domain part.

• Username: The local part can also be referred to as the username. It uniquely identifies the user within the email system.

• Separator Characters: Some special characters like dots (.), hyphens (-), and underscores (_) can be used within the local part to separate words or create a unique username. For example, "john.doe" or "jane_doe."

• Case Insensitivity: Most email systems treat the local part of the address as case-insensitive, which means "[email protected]" is the same as "[email protected]."

• Domain Extensions: The domain part can have different extensions like ".com," ".org," ".net," etc., which often signify the type of organization or geographical location.

• Personalization: Some email services offer the ability to create personalized email addresses using a custom domain. For instance, a business might use "[email protected]."

• Aliases: Some email services allow users to create aliases, which are alternative email addresses that direct messages to the same inbox. This can help manage different purposes or filter incoming emails.

• Subdomains: Domains can have subdomains, like "[email protected]" where "support" is a subdomain of "example.com."

• Security: Email addresses are used for communication, so it's important to ensure their security. Some email services offer two-factor authentication (2FA) and encryption to enhance security.