With the advent of an Internet protocol called MIME, Multipurpose Internet Mail Extension, and other types of encoding schemes, you can send formatted documents, photos, sound and video files as attachments to your e-mail messages.
These protocols use a complex mathematical formula to convert files to text and then back to their original form. This conversion process is known as encoding and decoding. If the person to whom you are sending an attachment uses a MIME-compliant or UUencode e-mail program--most programs do--it will automatically detect the attachment, decode it, and either open it or prompt the recipient to save the file to disk. This process is mostly invisible to you. Before you send binary files or formatted documents as attachments, make sure that the person you are sending them to has the ability to decode the files.
By the way, don't confuse encoding a file with encrypting a file. Encoding files adds no security. Anyone with the right decoding software can view it.
How to Do It
The procedure for attaching files varies depending on the type of e-mail program you use. In general, you click on an icon, such as a paper clip, located on the toolbar of the program. You then select the file you want to attach by locating it on your hard drive or on disk. Once you've selected the file, either its name will appear as part of the e-mail header, or as an icon within the body of your message. Most programs allow you to attach multiple files.
