Can you tell when there's no mailto: available?

[MrMcTerse]

I would be more interested to know if the user had their mail client set up to an active account. The name and bearing of the account being inconsequential.

What good is a mailto link if the user has no active account in their mail client?

Is there someway to detect this so that an alternative can be provided (similar to a noscript) in the event that a user is not utilizing their mail client?

I know that web forms are the logical solution, but it would be nice to offer it as an automatic alternative, without having to actually embed the form in the contact/comments/support page. The form would be generated only if an active account (or no mail reader) is not detected.

[tedster]

I've often wished for this capability - and I suffer it as a user because I'm often using a browser that is not configured with my preferred mail client.

As far as I know, there is nothing we can do. We must trust the end user to know what they're doing (not a good assumption at times!) I believe the security risks and potential exploits that would be opened up made this kind of detection not practical.

But I'd be delighted to know if I'm wrong. Just look at the problems in getting an accurate email address when you use form input. If you could depend on triggering a mail client, you would automatically get an accurate address.

[g1smd]

I never put live plain-text mailto links on a website. The addresses are harvested for spam in only a matter of weeks.

I always use an external javascript file that uses a document.write statement to write the whole <a href="mailto: ..... " title=" ..... ">link text</a> link out to the browser, but from fragments that can't be easily assembled together by a pure parser. This keeps the harvesters at bay.

This provides a solution for both types of user, most of the time. People without javascript only get to have the feedback form option available.

Under the link, I then have the text "... or use the feedback form" which then links through to another page where there is a feedback form. The user can fill in the required details and hit submit.

[tedster]

I use that approach as well - works nicely - but it leaves an unresolved issue when someone has javascript active, but they do not have a mail client associated with the browser they are using. I think that's the kind of situation that MrMcTerse was looking at.

[MrMcTerse]

I think that's the kind of situation that MrMcTerse was looking at.

Right you are, Tedster.

The document.write method is my preferred method as well, with notable results judging by the 100% drop in spam immediately upon implementation some months ago.

The sites I manage are using shared hosting plans with little in the way of server-side features. Having no CGI skills, any forms I wish to deploy would depend on outside servers, who in turn must have their day, as well (namely advertising). Not an option on theses sites, which are both advertising free.

It occurs to me that one would need to delve deep into the bowels of Windows, or whichever OS platform to determine if a mail client identity does exist. This would put the user at risk, and must necessarily be avoided.

I just wondered if there was another way. The browser must 'know' (or am I wrong?). I've never had a machine without a mail client, so cannot tell whether a browser would crash, or not, if the user engages the mailto link. Perhaps someone can enlighten me?

McT

[isitreal]

so cannot tell whether a browser would crash, or not, if the user engages the mailto link

I believe what happens in that case is that nothing happens, it's not very dramatic.