5.2. Accessing IMAP and mBox Mailboxes
Sending mail is useful, but you can also go one step further and give your users a full Web mail experience like those provided by Hotmail or Gmail. There are three primary protocols used to allow a user access to their mailbox:
POP3: Post Office Protocol, version 3. Primarily used for sending and downloading e-mails to a local client such as Microsoft Outlook. POP3 is what's used by the mail() function discussed in the previous sections.
IMAP: Internet Message Access Protocol. This is meant for users who will access their mailboxes online and will store their messages on the server.
mBox: The Unix-style mailbox. Originally designed to be a local mailbox that users would access directly by logging onto the server, mBox mailboxes are still used, so you might need to support them.
5.2.1. Using the Mail_IMAP extension
The Mail_IMAP extension contains a long list of functions, but for everyday use, you need only a few of them. We've included code examples for each function. These examples assume you have a Mail_IMAP object called $imap:
connect(): Opens the user's mailbox as shown in the following code snippet:
$imap->connect(imap://user:password@mail. example.com:143/INBOX);
close(): Disconnects from the user's mailbox
$imap->close();
getHeaders(): Retrieves the headers of messages in the user's mailbox
$imap->getHeaders($message_id);
getBody(): Retrieves the message body
$imap->getBody($message_id);
messageCount(): Displays the number of messages ...
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