What MIME is
Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions. An industry-standard code that defines how an e-mail message is sent in code and then decoded when received at its destination. It is actually a protocol for e-mail that enables the transmission of non-text data, such as graphics, audio, video, and other binary types of files. These files are encoded into text that would look like gobbledygook to us.
An e-mail program, such as Eudora, is MIME-compliant if it can send and receive files using the MIME standard. The MIME standard is universally used by Internet servers to identify the files that are sent to clients. Since the files are identified by the servers, users can accommodate new file formats by adding them to their browser's list of MIME-types and programs for handling each type. S/MIME, the secure version of the standard, utilizes an encryption system to protect e-mail, even when it is sent between different e-mail clients. S/MIME messages include the message itself and the encryption information (such as a digital certificate).
The meaning of Download
To transfer a file or files from one computer to another, for example, from a server to your desktop computer. Download is the opposite of upload. There are a few methods of downloading on the Internet: HTTP, FTP and e-mail attachments are the most common. When you "load" a Web page into your browser, you are essentially "downloading" the page from the server it is hosted on. One of the most resourceful functions of the Internet is that you can download almost any type of computer file or program. Many of these files are shareware, which means you can try them before you buy them. Want to try downloading something?
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