-> If you do not have computer technical skills, you may want to skip this post.
Create Your Own Domain for Email
I have my own domain, like "example.com" or "example.org". Having your own domain gives you knowledge, power, and control over your email, along with many other advantages. For those whose technical experience is limited, there is definitely a learning curve to do it. With my own domain, I can create email addresses like "
penturner@example.com" or
pen-maker@example.org". It is so easy and fast that I can create a special email address and give it someone while I am talking with them on the phone.
I have very few actual email accounts. Instead, I have a large number of email "forwarders" (also known as "aliases"). They are separate email addresses that forward to my primary email account.
I create a separate, unique email address (forwarder) for each company, website, or whatever. The email all forwards to my primary email account. I create email addresses like "
penicillin-exoticblanks@example.com", "
penicillin-mckenziepenworks@example.com", "
penicillin-rickscustomtools@example.org" etc.
In this case,
@monophoto might have created a forwarder like "
mp-woodturningdesignmag@example.com". When the spam started after Woodturning Design sold their database or got hacked, monophoto could have deleted the forwarder.
Advantages of Using Your Own Personal Domain for Email:
- I know the origin of every email I receive. I know who sells my email addresses to whom.
- If I get spam at a given email address, I have a good idea whose customer database got hacked.
- If I get unwanted email from a certain source and they ignore "unsubscribe" requests, I can delete the email forwarder that I created for them. The unwanted email stops immediately. No waiting. It goes away.
- If too many people get an email address, it is easy to create a new email address.
- If too many merchants get my PayPal email address and start spamming my inbox, then I create a new email forwarder for PayPal, update the PayPal website, and then delete the old forwarder. Problem gone.
- If you move to a new location and change your internet service, you still have the same personal email addresses, etc. Nothing changes. No notifications.
- Yes, I realize that people now use Gmail and other services, freeing dependence on the email address from your internet provider ... at the cost of letting them see all your email. Too high a price, in my opinion.
- "Big Data" companies see less of your personal information and other email activities, because much of your email bypasses them.
- If you send or receive a message from someone with a Gmail account, then Google will still see it and know a little about you, even though your email service is more private.
Risks of Using Your Own Personal Domain for Email:
- If someone hacks your email hosting service, they get all of your email forwarders and email addresses. That could become a lot of spam. If you are not good at security, keep that in mind.
- Hosting email has its own issues.
- I strongly recommend that you use a known reliable email hosting service for your domain's email, rather than hosting it on your own server.
- They know what it takes to have reliable email. These days, it is not easy for one person.
- They know how to keep mail servers up and running.
- They know how to keep spammers out to prevent themselves from being "blacklisted" by the big players. Blacklisting is common.
- The big players like Gmail, Microsoft, and Yahoo often reject messages from self-hosted email servers, virtual private servers (VPS), etc. Fixing the issues is like "whack-a-mole" - they keep popping up.
- Honestly, hosting your own email on your own personal server (like a home server or a VPS) is too much effort. You will waste a lot of time dealing with blocked email. Trust me, the effort is not worth it. Find a good hosting service with good email experience.
Owning your own personal domain (like "example.com") lets you do far more than just email. You can host your own personal website, for example - display your pens, start a blog about your pen making, etc. It requires a certain level of technical knowledge, but many people here have their own websites.
Some services make it easier to own and manage your own domain for less technical people, but they can be expensive. (I intensely dislike GoDaddy and do
not recommend them. GoDaddy is expensive. They provide good support, but even the support people will try to "upsell" all kinds of services and features you do not need. I know GoDaddy well, because I have helped a few friends and local charities that made the mistake of signing up with them.)
Apologies for the long, technical post, but I wanted to plant this seed for those who want to think about the bigger picture.
