
Copyright © 2011 Canonical Ltd. and members of the Ubuntu Documentation Project
This document will present the various ways one can communicate with others using Kubuntu.
Table of Contents
KMail is the default e-mail client used in Kubuntu. KMail is a component of the Personal Information Manager (PIM) called Kontact that also includes calendaring, contacts, tasks, and more.
To start KMail, go to → → → , or press
Alt+F2, type
kmail
and press the Enter key.
The first time that KMail is started, a wizard will appear to help set up an e-mail account. If more advanced settings are needed during the wizard steps, it is safe to cancel the wizard and manually configure the settings. Please review the section called “Configuring KMail” below.
Once KMail is opened, click → to open the configuration dialog for KMail
The first step in setting up e-mail accounts is to create identities for the accounts. The default identity can be safely modified to suit particular needs. There are 6 tabs in the Add or Modify identity dialog.
Identity Add/Modify Tabs
- General
Contains information pertaining to name, organization, and e-mail address.
- Cryptography
Contains information pertaining to OpenPGP signing key, encryption key, S/MIME signing and encryption certificates, as well as the preferred crypto message format.
- Advanced
Contains information pertaining to reply-to and BCC addresses, the dictionary to use, and folder locations for sent-mail, drafts, and templates.
- Templates
Contains information pertaining to custom templates for new messages, reply to sender messages, and more.
- Signature
Contains information pertaining to the use of a signature in e-mails. It can be configured to use a signature file, create and use custom text, or have KMail run a command and append the output to your signature.
- Picture
Contains information pertaining to the use of a picture when sending e-mails.
Once an identity or multiple identities have been set up, the next step is to configure an account or accounts. There are 2 parts to account configuration, one for receiving and the other for for sending.
When adding an account for receiving e-mail, press the under the Accounts section. A dialog will appear asking for the Account Type.
Receiving e-mail account types
- Local mailbox
An advanced setting for use with a local mailbox that is collecting messages via another Mail Transfer Agent (MTA).
- POP3
A typical setting with e-mail clients, POP3 allows for e-mail retrieval from a remote server using an Internet connection. POP3 briefly connects to the remote server and downloads all new messages.
- IMAP
Another common protocol for receiving email, IMAP stays connected to the mail server for e-mail retrieving. Unlike POP3, IMAP allows for multiple clients to be connected simultaneously to the same mailbox.
- Disconnected IMAP
Disconnected IMAP is similar to IMAP. However e-mail messages are synchronized between the server and the client, leaving everything on the server. Both the server and the client will have identical copies.
- Maildir mailbox
Similar to the Local mailbox, except that it uses the Maildir format instead of the mbox format.
When adding an account for sending e-mail, press the in the Accounts section under the Sending tab. A Create Outgoing Account dialog will appear asking for the account type.
Sending e-mail account types
- SMTP
SMTP allows for the use of a server provided either by an e-mail service or an Internet Service Provider (ISP). It is the most common account type used to send e-mail.
- Sendmail
Sendmail is a Mail Transfer Agent (MTA) that is separate from KMail and is used in more advanced configurations.
- Dummy MailTransport Resource
A dummy resource implementing mail transport interface. It should only be used by those who are experienced with it.
The rest of the configuration options for KMail pertain to security and layout. In most situations, the defaults are fine, however KMail can be configured to suit particular needs.