POP before SMTP
So let's imagine that you want to send a letter to your friend. But before you can send it, you need to get permission from your mommy or daddy. This is kind of like what's happening with pop before smtp.
When you want to send an email, there are two main parts: the first part is called "pop," which stands for "post office protocol" (which is just a fancy way of saying "how your computer gets your new emails"); and the second part is called "smtp," which stands for "simple mail transfer protocol" (which is just a fancy way of saying "how your computer sends your emails to other people").
So, before you can send your email (using smtp), your computer needs to check if there are any new emails waiting for you to read (using pop). And in order for your computer to do that, it needs permission from a special server that knows all about your emails. This special server is kind of like your mommy or daddy - it's the one giving permission for you to send the letter (or email, in this case).
Once your computer checks for new emails and gets permission from the server, it can then send your email to your friend using smtp. And just like that, your email is on its way!
When you want to send an email, there are two main parts: the first part is called "pop," which stands for "post office protocol" (which is just a fancy way of saying "how your computer gets your new emails"); and the second part is called "smtp," which stands for "simple mail transfer protocol" (which is just a fancy way of saying "how your computer sends your emails to other people").
So, before you can send your email (using smtp), your computer needs to check if there are any new emails waiting for you to read (using pop). And in order for your computer to do that, it needs permission from a special server that knows all about your emails. This special server is kind of like your mommy or daddy - it's the one giving permission for you to send the letter (or email, in this case).
Once your computer checks for new emails and gets permission from the server, it can then send your email to your friend using smtp. And just like that, your email is on its way!