n/a unsending email n/a

[mattaxelrod]

Just wondering from all the techies out there. Why doesn't the technology exist to "unsend" an email? You know that horrible feeling when you notice too late that you just sent some email to the wrong person. It can be embarrassing or worse. I haven't used AOL in years, but I remember that you could "unsend" an email to a fellow AOL user if they hadn't yet read it.

It seems to me that someone who perfected this technology would make a zillion dollars.

 

[RotaryWingBob]

Just wondering from all the techies out there. Why doesn't the technology exist to "unsend" an email? You know that horrible feeling when you notice too late that you just sent some email to the wrong person. It can be embarrassing or worse. I haven't used AOL in years, but I remember that you could "unsend" an email to a fellow AOL user if they hadn't yet read it.

It seems to me that someone who perfected this technology would make a zillion dollars.

Interesting question, Matt.

It seems to me the only way it would be possible woulld be for all of the mail reader companies (Foxfire, Netscape, Eudora, MS Outlook, etc, etc) to agree on a standard to accomplish it (I don't think there is any other way it could be done). Don't hold your breath

 

[bbchien]

Matt, just make sure your client doesn't send until you tell it to, in batches. "Send" just put sit in the "ready to send" box....

 

[bbchien]

Matt,

 

[W.O'Boogie]

I am not sure of the effectiveness, but in MS Outlook, you can "recall" sent mail. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't; I think it depends on how the mail is handled at the arriving site server/mailbox.

 

[wsuffa]

Recall in OUtlook only works when the mail server(s) are Microsoft, and even then, in some versions, present the recipient with a message that (sender) wished to recall the message, allowing an option to get it anyway.

Bruce is right - configure the mail client to send only when you tell it to, not immediately with the "send" button on compose. Even better, don't put anything in email that you wouldn't want the world to see (or do it through a quasi-anon Yahoo account that a non-known recipient would not associate with you).

The problem, such as it is, is that email was designed to replicate the Post Office, meaning once you sent it, it was relayed from mail server to mail server until it hit the destination. It then resided on the end mail server until the recipient picked it up. These days, the mail typically goes directly from your mail server to the recipient server, and if the recipient is on-line, the mail is immediately forwarded from the recipient server to recipient. No chance for recall once it's in the recipient's computer.

There is no really good way to avoid it, just like the US mail, once it's posted for delivery, there is no way to get it back. It's just faster....

 

[Let'sgoflying!]

then someone will invent software to "Block mail retrieval" so mail 'cannot be unsent to your computer' ("available now for 9.99/mo")

 

[AirBaker]

There needs to be an official email certification organization... There are a ton of little 'easy fix' things with email that could be done to make it all better.

One day.

 

[mikea]

There needs to be an official email certification organization... There are a ton of little 'easy fix' things with email that could be done to make it all better.

One day.

Your idea will not work. Here is why it won't work. (One or more of the following may apply to your particular idea, and it may have other flaws which used to vary from state to state before a bad federal law was passed.)

( ) Spammers can easily use it to harvest email addresses
( ) Mailing lists and other legitimate email uses would be affected
( ) No one will be able to find the guy or collect the money
( ) It is defenseless against brute force attacks
( ) It will stop spam for two weeks and then we'll be stuck with it
(X) It requires the cooperative change to billions of sites overnight

 

[flyingcheesehead]

It seems to me that someone who perfected this technology would make a zillion dollars.

Yeah, but the person who put all of the juicy recalled emails in a book would make two zillion.

 

[alaskaflyer]

Matt, just make sure your client doesn't send until you tell it to, in batches. "Send" just put sit in the "ready to send" box....

Bingo! Saved me more than once.

Of course if you are using a web interface for email instead of a client this won't help...