Maybe the next generation e-mail system should evolve to become "active"
rather than "passive" as it is today. By "active", meaning a _smart
agent_ running at the senders machine, would be called to clear the
message BEFORE it is allowed to travel. The message once cleared, would
be sent by this _smart agent_ to the addressee mailbox. At the receiving
side, the _smart agent_ upon recognizing itself, will accept the
message. Anything else is ignored.
How would this work?
By first transforming "someone(_at_)xyz(_dot_)com" in a _program_ (not an address)
which has the following features:
1- it contains the actual mailbox address of "someone";
2- it carries with it, a decision tree on how e-mails should be handled;
3- it only accepts messages from himself.
E-mails to "someone" will be cleared to be sent, only if the following
conditions are met:
1 - the sender is known and the content is ok;
2 - the sender is unknown, but agrees to pay in advance, say 50 cents,
for each message which is checked as ok;
So, how under the new system, one can send a message to "someone"?
a- the sender machine will need to load from the net (one time) the
"someone(_at_)xyz(_dot_)com" program;
b- the program will ask questions 1 and 2 above and if cleared;
c- program contact itself at the receiving side and inform a message is
on its way.
Point to remember: only the _program_ knows the actual mailbox address
of "someone" and he only receives messages from himself.
When creating "someone" account, XYZ Corp will ask a few questions on
how e-mail should be handled and this will be incorporated and protected
inside the program. The default template would be for "someone" to
receive e-mail from anyone without requiring payment, as it is today.
As soon as "someone" by using a default template gets upset with
joe_spammer, he/she modifies his template to only accept e-mail from
this guy, if he pays in advance 50 cents per message and violá, no more
e-mail from joe_spammer. Or maybe, if joe_spammer accepts it, money will
be raining in "someone" mailbox.
So, with this new system:
1- a basic template is created and can be easily modified to
include/exclude people you want to receive e-mail from or don´t want to
receive;
2- you don´t need to hide your e-mail. Sending e-mail directly to
"someone(_at_)xyz(_dot_)com" goes nowhere;
3- you control things from your seat - no more garbage thrown your way -
unless you want to.
As such, when "someone" sees his inbox full of e-mail, he/she will not
be mad. Actually, it could mean cash waiting to be spent!
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