no receipt messages

User avatar
Dave Davison
SilverLounger
Posts: 1849
Joined: 27 Jan 2010, 19:15
Location: Darlington, Co. Durham. UK

no receipt messages

Post by Dave Davison »

Despite ticking both the boxes as shown in the screen shot I do not get the appropriate responses, are there any other settings that can be selected to remedy this minor issue please? :scratch: :thankyou:
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.

JoeP
SilverLounger
Posts: 2051
Joined: 25 Jan 2010, 02:12

Re: no receipt messages

Post by JoeP »

Most people have their email program set to not respond to these requests. Do you know how the recipients are configured?
Joe

User avatar
StuartR
Administrator
Posts: 12577
Joined: 16 Jan 2010, 15:49
Location: London, Europe

Re: no receipt messages

Post by StuartR »

If your recipients are like me then...
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
StuartR


User avatar
stuck
Panoramic Lounger
Posts: 8127
Joined: 25 Jan 2010, 09:09
Location: retirement

Re: no receipt messages

Post by stuck »

My email client is also configured to 'never send read receipts'. When you get as much email traffic as I (and most people do) at work it's the only way to stay sane and mange the expectation of senders who always can't cope without an instant response, forgetting they are just one of the many people you are relating too.

Mind you, it doesn't help me avoid people who send an email and then seconds later show up at my desk, saying, " I just sent you and email..."

Ken

User avatar
Dave Davison
SilverLounger
Posts: 1849
Joined: 27 Jan 2010, 19:15
Location: Darlington, Co. Durham. UK

Re: no receipt messages

Post by Dave Davison »

I'm not aware of the settings selected by the recipients in question so I assume they have selected the option shown in the second reply. Am I right in assuming that as long as an email is not returned as "undeliveable due to the address not being recognized" it must have reached its destination? Thanks.

User avatar
HansV
Administrator
Posts: 78236
Joined: 16 Jan 2010, 00:14
Status: Microsoft MVP
Location: Wageningen, The Netherlands

Re: no receipt messages

Post by HansV »

Yep, that is correct.
Best wishes,
Hans

User avatar
stuck
Panoramic Lounger
Posts: 8127
Joined: 25 Jan 2010, 09:09
Location: retirement

Re: no receipt messages

Post by stuck »

Dave Davison wrote:...as long as an email is not returned as "undeliveable due to the address not being recognized" it must have reached its destination? Thanks.
Hans has already confirmed this but I would add a note of caution.

If your message gets marked as spam then it might get junked before it reaches the recipient, i.e. there is a chance that although it is 'delivered', it might not be delivered to the recipient, it might end up in a junk folder on a server somewhere. I know for a fact that my ISP and my work systems divert spam to somewhere I never see and never know about.

Ken

User avatar
Dave Davison
SilverLounger
Posts: 1849
Joined: 27 Jan 2010, 19:15
Location: Darlington, Co. Durham. UK

Re: no receipt messages

Post by Dave Davison »

Thanks for the replies, seems like the facts spelled out by Ken are the spoke in the wheel which virtually renders these two request options useless. Cheers.

User avatar
StuartR
Administrator
Posts: 12577
Joined: 16 Jan 2010, 15:49
Location: London, Europe

Re: no receipt messages

Post by StuartR »

The protocol used to deliver email is SMTP (simple mail transfer protocol). This has no guarantees. There are many different ways that a message could be lost between the sender and the recipient.

If an email server knows that it can't deliver the email then it will try to send a response, for example this is what happens when the recipient is not recognised on the server the email is addressed to. There are many other reasons that an email might not get delivered, and these may or may not be able to send you a reply. ALSO the reply to you can be lost somewhere in the internet, even if it is sent by the remote server.
StuartR


User avatar
Dave Davison
SilverLounger
Posts: 1849
Joined: 27 Jan 2010, 19:15
Location: Darlington, Co. Durham. UK

Re: no receipt messages

Post by Dave Davison »

SO, an alternative to an unanswered email is to send a text message or as a last resort, a snail mail. Only have a "pay as you go" mobile which is ridiculously costly hence the juggling. Thanks Stuart.

User avatar
stuck
Panoramic Lounger
Posts: 8127
Joined: 25 Jan 2010, 09:09
Location: retirement

Re: no receipt messages

Post by stuck »

Dave Davison wrote:SO, an alternative to an unanswered email is to send a text message or as a last resort, a snail mail...
Except those options ar even easier to ignore :smile:

I suppose that forces you to use a trackable snail mail option, e.g Royal Mail Signed For, then you'd know your letter had been delivered and there would be an illegible signature of the person who signed for it but that still doesn't guarantee your letter will be read.

My eldest son can be a bit tricky to get hold of sometimes. Only this weekend we started an email conversation about a potential birthday present for him but despite it being in his interest to continue the conversation, I'm still waiting for feedback.

I don't think you can win on this one :laugh:

Ken

User avatar
stuck
Panoramic Lounger
Posts: 8127
Joined: 25 Jan 2010, 09:09
Location: retirement

Re: no receipt messages

Post by stuck »

PS I refer you to the tag line you use as a signature:
    "In this age of unprecedented information; ignorance is a choice"

I think that pretty much explains your problem here.

Ken

User avatar
StuartR
Administrator
Posts: 12577
Joined: 16 Jan 2010, 15:49
Location: London, Europe

Re: no receipt messages

Post by StuartR »

You can use an app like WhatsApp, that guarantees end-to-end message integrity, and always shows you when a message has been displayed at the destination. This does not, of course, guarantee that the message has been read - much less understood.
StuartR


User avatar
Argus
GoldLounger
Posts: 3081
Joined: 24 Jan 2010, 19:07

Re: no receipt messages

Post by Argus »

StuartR wrote: - much less understood.
Communication usually fails, except by accident.
If a message can be interpreted in several ways, it will be interpreted in a manner that maximizes the damage.
There is always someone who knows better than you what you meant with your message.
Korpela's First Corollary: If nobody barks at you, your message did not get through.


I agree with what has been said early on in the thread; I don't see these receipts as stable, they didn't work well in the "early" days (I've seen request for delivery receipt being interpreted as request for read receipt), and today I would expect most to ignore them (and more, such as linked images that can tell if and when an email has been opened, how often (if image isn't cached), and if it has been forwarded, sort of). If you ask me HTML has almost zero place in email.

One can't force people to do anything, and we are all different (some even respond to obvious spam (spam being one of the reasons why these requests are ignored)). If there is a working relation underneath (teenagers is a special case), and if there is something to respond to, then there usually will be some response, at some point.
Byelingual    When you speak two languages but start losing vocabulary in both of them.