Wrote a quick function today also to verify that the syntax of an email address is valid, using regular expressions.

^([a-zA-Z0-9_\.\-])+\@(([a-zA-Z0-9\-])+\.)+([a-zA-Z0-9]{2,4})+$

This will match a userid containing letters, numbers, underscores, dots and hyphens, followed by an at sign, then a domain name containing letters, numbers, hyphens and dots, followed by a suffix of 2-to-4 characters.

Using this regex, I can ensure that the user has entered a potentially valid email address before attempting to send out a confirmation email.

So I ran across Google Apps for Your Domain today...

Google Apps for Your Domain lets you offer private-labeled email, instant messaging and calendar accounts to all of your users, so they can share ideas and work more effectively. These services are all unified by the start page, a unique, dynamic page where your users can preview their inboxes and calendars, browse content and links that you choose, search the web, and further customize the page to their liking. You can also design and publish web pages for your domain.

It's all free* and everything is hosted by Google. No hardware or software required.

I signed up yesterday for email and calendar on my domain just to see how it all works, and it honestly couldn't be simpler. All you do is sign in with your Google account, pick the services you want on your domain, and update the appropriate CNAME and MX records with your DNS provider.

I'm now reachable via email at tim timfanelli com, which I'm able to check by logging into a page on my domain, hosted by Google... and I get all the features, flexibility, and storage space of a standard gmail account. It's pretty sweet.

Available services include mail, calendar, chat and customizable start pages for logging in.

One of my favorite features for the email is domain aliasing... if you own multiple domains, you can alias them together in your Google account which allows you to receive email at multiple domains to a single mailbox.

Definitely worth checking out if you need a free, powerful email solution for your domain.

Recently at work we implemented a new Acceptable Use Policy for company equipment and resources, such as computers, email, internet access, etc. Part of the policy states that when posting to newsgroups or, in general, expressing yourself via email, that we must include a disclaimer stating that the opinions expressed are solely our own, and not the company's. I was just curious to know what, if any, disclaimer you're required to use in your company email to protect them from you running your mouth off.

Mine reads as follows:

DISCLAIMER: Opinions expressed in this email are strictly
those of its author, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions 
of Kenosia Corporation, HALO Technology Holdings, Inc., their 
subsidiaries, or affiliates.

Leave yours in the comments