GoalSplit an e-mail address into its three parts and say what each part does.
New words
user name · the first part of an address; the user chooses it and nobody else may have itat sign (@) · the symbol that separates the user name from the domain namedomain name · the name of the mail server that holds the accountmail server · a computer that keeps accounts and stores and passes on messages
Explanation
An e-mail address works like the address of a house, and it has three main parts. The first is the user name. It comes at the start, the user chooses it, and it is unique: no one else may use the same user name on the same mail server, otherwise messages would reach the wrong person. The second part is the at sign, @. It separates the user name from the rest. The third part is the domain name, the name of the mail server that holds the account and stores the messages. In our invented address, salma.books@example.eg, the user name is salma.books, the symbol is @, and the domain name is example.eg. We use invented addresses only. Never write your own address or anyone else’s in lessons or on posters, and never share an address with a stranger.
User name
at sign
Domain name
~salma.books
@
~example.eg
chosen by the user, unique
separates the two
the mail server that holds the account
Worked examples
User name
at sign
Domain name
~omar.maths
@
~example.eg
Split the invented address omar.maths@example.eg. The user name is omar.maths. The symbol is @. The domain name is example.eg.
Two pupils called Marwan want the user name “marwan”. Only the first one can have it. The second one chooses “marwan.drawing”. Like house numbers, a user name must point to one person only.
Address
Right or wrong?
~karim.chess@example.eg
right: three parts
~karim.chess example.eg
wrong: no @
~@example.eg
wrong: no user name
Mina checks three invented addresses. The first is complete. The second has no @, so nothing separates the parts. The third has no user name, so no one knows who owns it.
Class activity
Invent three addresses for made-up pupils, for example “pupil.a”. Write each one on a strip and cut it into three parts. Mix the parts of two addresses and ask a partner to rebuild them. Do not use any real name or address, and never write your own.
Practice
1
Name the three parts of an e-mail address.
User name, at sign (@) and domain name.
2
In mina.art@example.eg, what is the domain name?
example.eg.
3
Which symbol separates the user name from the domain name?
