is a powerful 's "'''P'''rogram for '''I'''nternet '''N'''ews & '''E'''mail." Many people believe that Pine stood for "Pine is not
Elm ." However, its original author,
Laurence Lundblade , insists this was never the case and that it started off simply as a word and not an acronym, and that his first choice of a
Backronym for pine would be "Pine Is Nearly Elm"
{Link without Title} .
In comparison to other major
E-mail Clients , Pine is considered by some to organize and archive email efficiently. For instance, it offers the ''file carbon copy'' (fcc) option, in which an outgoing e-mail to the e-mail address example@example.org is saved ''automatically'' in a file that stores ''only those'' emails to/from this particular e-mail address or contact person. Incoming emails from example@example.org can be quickly saved in this same file simply by pressing a combination of two keys. This allows the creation of a file for ''each'' contact person that contains all of his/her e-mails with ''very little effort''. The emails in this file can be sorted, viewed, and searched quickly. Pine is mainly used in universities and research institutions, where it is widely considered to be the most efficient
E-mail Client . Pine's basic features (such as the file carbon copy) are generally very easy to use since the setup options are clearly arranged. More advanced options (which are lacking in most other e-mail clients) require more experience.
There are both
Unix and
Windows versions of Pine. The Unix version is
Command Line Interface -based. Its user interface inspired the text editor
Pico . Individuals associated with the university (students,
Faculty , staff, etc.) are also able to use , a version of Pine implemented as a
Web application. Webpine has several interesting characteristics:
- Ease of use: at the cost of fewer advanced features compared to its Unix and Windows counterparts
- Accessibility: only requires a Web Browser and proper university credentials
(''Pine'' and ''Pico'' are registered trademarks of the University of Washington.)
