For many years, there have been various proposals to add mail sending
capabilities to mail access protocols such as POP and IMAP.
These proposals are always strongly opposed. It is one of the "attractive
nuisances" of email protocols. The value of the capability is obvious to
many people, but the high cost of having it in POP or IMAP is much less
obvious.
I am one of the opponents. For the past 25 or so years we have been in
the overwhelming majority. It is quite unlikely that this concensus will
change. If anything, it has become stronger in recent years.
Typically a proponent implements it unilaterally in a single server (such
as Courier) and possibly also a client, and then expects everybody else to
follow his lead as a fait accompli. That hasn't happened. It isn't a
question of "can" (in the technical sense); it's a question of "should".
Or rather, "should not"/"must not"...
This is not the proper forum for discussing the arguments for/against the
capability. In the proper forums, it has been hashed and rehashed to
death. If anyone wants to bring it up again in the proper forums, be my
guest; but don't be surprised if you get pummelled into submission. ;-)
If you're just curious as to the reasons, and don't wish to argue it, I'll
gladly explain in private email (offline from the list).
If you're not really that curious, suffice it to say that the people who
design the protocols and systems understand the attraction but have
excellent reasons not to do it.
-- Mark --
http://panda.com/mrc
Democracy is two wolves and a sheep deciding what to eat for lunch.
Liberty is a well-armed sheep contesting the vote.
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