Fetchmail
 Screenshot of fetchmail launcher |
|
| Original author(s) | Eric S. Raymond |
|---|---|
| Stable release | 6.3.21 / August 21, 2011[1] |
| Operating system | Unix-like |
| Type | |
| License | GNU General Public License |
| Website | http://www.fetchmail.info/ |
Fetchmail is an open source software utility for POSIX-compliant operating systems which is used to retrieve e-mail from a remote POP3, IMAP, ETRN or ODMR mail server to the user's local system. It was developed from the popclient program, written by Carl Harris.[2]
Its chief significance is perhaps that its author, Eric S. Raymond, used it as a model to discuss his theories of open source software development in a widely-read and influential essay on software development methodologies, The Cathedral and the Bazaar.
Contents |
[edit] Design
By design Fetchmail's only means of delivering messages is by submitting them to the local MTA; delivering directly to mail folders such as maildir is not supported.
Some programmers, including Dan Bernstein, getmail creator Charles Cazabon and FreeBSD developer Terry Lambert, have criticized Fetchmail's design,[3] its number of security holes,[4] and that it was prematurely put into "maintenance mode". In 2004, a new team of maintainers took over Fetchmail development,[5] and laid out development plans that in some cases broke with design decisions that Eric Raymond had made in earlier versions.[6]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ "File Release Notes and Changelog". 2011-08-21. http://developer.berlios.de/project/shownotes.php?group_id=1824&release_id=18743. Retrieved 2011-09-09.
- ^ Raymond, Eric. "'Eric S. Raymond's former Design Notes On Fetchmail'". http://www.fetchmail.info/esrs-design-notes.html. Retrieved 2007-04-03.
- ^ Lambert, Terry. "'UUCP must stay; fetchmail sucks (was list 'o things)'". http://docs.freebsd.org/cgi/getmsg.cgi?fetch=585008+0+archive/2001/freebsd-arch/20010218.freebsd-arch. Retrieved 2007-04-05.
- ^ Cazabon, Charles. "'getmail frequently asked questions'". http://pyropus.ca/software/getmail/faq.html#faq-about-why. Retrieved 2007-04-05.
- ^ "'Developer History'". http://www.fetchmail.info/. Retrieved 2007-04-05.
- ^ "'Design Notes On Fetchmail'". http://www.fetchmail.info/design-notes.html. Retrieved 2007-04-05.
[edit] External links
 |
This network-related software article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
