mail with no argument prints a user's mail, message-by-message, in last-in, first-out order; the optional argument + displays the mail messages in first-in, first-out order. For each message, it reads a line from the standard input to direct disposition of the message.
An interrupt normally terminates the mail command; the mail file is unchanged. The optional argument -i tells mail to continue after interrupts.
When persons are named, mail takes the standard input up to an end-of-file (or a line with just `.') and adds it to each person's `mail' file. The message is preceded by the sender's name and a postmark. Lines that look like postmarks are prepended with `>'. A person is usually a user name recognized by login.1 To denote a recipient on a remote system, prefix person by the system name and exclamation mark (see uucp.1c
The -f option causes the named file, for example, `mbox', to be printed as if it were the mail file.
When a user logs in he is informed of the presence of mail.
Normally anybody can read your mail, unless it is sent by xsend.1 An installation can overcome this by making mail a set-user-id command that owns the mail directory.
Created by unroff & hp-tools. © somebody (See intro for details). All Rights Reserved. Last modified 11/5/97