The Catalyst Internet Mail .NET component enables you to quickly and easily incorporate e-mail functionality in your applications, using the Post Office Protocol (POP3), Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP4) and Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP). Using this component you can retrieve messages from a mail server and send messages using a single, unified interface. The Internet Mail .NET component provides a high-level interface, and does not require that you understand network programming or how the specific application protocols work. In most cases, only a few lines of code are required add e-mail related features in your application.
Because standard Internet protocols are used, there's no dependencies on MAPI or third-party libraries, and it's not required that the user have any specific e-mail client software installed on their system. For most applications, this is the only component that you'll need to implement complete e-mail functionality in your software. However, in some cases your application may require some of the advanced features SocketTools product. In this situation, the InternetMail class can be seamlessly integrated with the other SocketTools .NET components to build a more complex solution that requires a greater degree of customization.
In addition to supporting standard e-mail protocols, the Internet Mail .NET class also supports secure SSL and TLS connections. By simply setting a few properties, a secure connection using 128-bit encryption can be established, providing your application with the greatest flexibility and highest level of security available. Even advanced options such as client certificates are seamlessly supported.
For developers who have used the ActiveX version of the Internet Mail control, you'll immediately find yourself in familiar territory. The Internet Mail .NET class interface has properties, methods and events that are very similar to the control that you've used in languages like Visual Basic 6.0. It is important to keep in mind that Internet Mail .NET is a managed code class, not a wrapper around the ActiveX control, so there will be some inherent differences. However, whenever possible the class interface was designed to make the transition from the ActiveX control as easy as possible.
The following are just some of the features for the Catalyst Internet Mail .NET component:
To help you get started using the Internet Mail .NET class, the Developer's Guide covers a variety of programming topics related to the component, as well an overview of each of the classes included in the product. Even if you have experience working with previous versions of the Internet Mail ActiveX control, we recommend that you thoroughly review the Developer's Guide.
The Technical Reference provides extensive documentation on all of the functions in the Internet Mail .NET class. It's here that you'll find information on the various properties, methods and events provided by the component. If it is your first time using the component, we recommend that you first read the overview in the Developer's Guide.