Asp web mail

Mail-Enabling Web Pages

I need to write a Web page that can send e-mail to me. I had a simple mailto: link in my page, but I want to use a form so that users don't leave my page and go to their mail clients. I tried putting the mailto: link in the form action, but it doesn't seem to work well. What should I do?

Rebecca Sigal via the Internet

As you have discovered, the only way to do this in client-side HTML or script is with a mailto: form (as in <FORM action=mailto:foo@bar.com ). And as you have also discovered, such forms don't work well, because they take the user out of his browser to his default STMP program, typically his mail client. Until Version 5.0, Internet Explorer simply brought up the mail client, as with a normal mailto: link. Some browsers don't even go that far. And you'll usually get a warning dialog from the mail client, which can be disconcerting

The only good way to have mail sent to you directly from the browser is to use server-side code, probably a Perl or CGI script or one of a few available ActiveX controls for ASP sites. These give you much more freedom: Because the server-side solutions can be scripted, you can put whatever contents you want in the message body and include as many recipients as you wantand there will be no browser or mail-client compatibility issues.

If you're using a hosted Web page, your hosting service almost certainly offers a script or ActiveX control that it will support. Check with the service. If you have the option of using your own server-side software, here are two Perl scripts that you can use on almost any site.

FormMail: www.worldwidemart.com/scripts/formmail.shtml

Nether-Mail www.nethernet.com/free/mail.htm

And here is an ActiveX control that is available for ASP sites. www.serverobjects.com/products.htm#aspmail

Microsoft also installs a control called CDONTS with its STMP Server. You'll find instructions on how to use CDONTS at http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/Q186/2/04.ASP.