Ask your buddy to walk you through the process for the first couple of times until you feel confident on your own. In general, keep email messages simple, short and to the point. It is easy to spend a lot of time getting little accomplished via email unless we keep things simple. Let's emphasize learning both content and process in an organized fashion. Occasionally, the messages will be longer especially for major assignments.
Email is faster than snail mail, but less reliable.
Some of your correspondents get MANY emails each day. Help them see which relate to you or your course. Messages to individual students will not normally be numbered sequentially. When you send a message that you cannot afford to have ignored , use the return receipt function on your emailer if you have one. Check your settings or preferences file and turn on this feature if possible.