Frequently, email users may wish to send the same message to many different people at the same time. To do this, most people make use of an Email Distribution List. An Email Distribution List is a group of people who share common interests, belong to the same organization, work in the same division of a company, etc. Unlike Listservs, which are described below, people do not subscribe to Email Distribution Lists. Rather, these lists are created and maintained by each individual user of the system.
Email is also a very useful mechanism for electronically sending and receiving computer files.
Most email packages allow the sender to easily attach files to the email before it is sent out. This feature of email is an easy way for members of a collaborative assignment or task to pass a variety of files, from spreadsheets to data to text documents, among each other. While preparing the annual report to shareholders, the CEO, CFO, and other top management might electronically send attachments containing charts, graphs, spreadsheets, and text of sections they have prepared. Many email packages, ranging in cost from expensive to free, exist today. A few World Wide Web-based email services, such as Hotmail , provide an email account and email service free to Internet users who wish to sign up to the system.