# Free email accounts. **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 4, 2004, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-email-accounts/253548 "2004-07-04T22:13:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![duffer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duffer/32/1026_2.png) [@duffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duffer)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2004, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-email-accounts/253548/1 "2004-07-04T22:13:40Z")
My BIL wants to open a new account on my system. I have a hotmail account so don’t want to get them mixed up, plus I can’t remember the password. Also, I don’t want to use Yahoo because of all the crap they try to install. Does anyone know of sites that offer free accounts without all the extra crap? ---
**Author:** ![cstamets](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/958977/32.png) [@cstamets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cstamets)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2004, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-email-accounts/253548/2 "2004-07-04T22:28:54Z")
> [@duffer](#): > > My BIL wants to open a new account on my system. I have a hotmail account so don’t want to get them mixed up, plus I can’t remember the password. Also, I don’t want to use Yahoo because of all the crap they try to install. > > Does anyone know of sites that offer free accounts without all the extra crap? I didn’t think Yahoo installed extra crap just for an e-mail account. The Yahoo Messenger will add some extras, but you don’t have to use it. Excite and Netscape are two others to try. It’s been years since I signed up for my accounts there, so I don’t know what they’re doing today. ---
**Author:** ![Berkut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a88e57/32.png) [@Berkut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Berkut)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2004, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-email-accounts/253548/3 "2004-07-04T22:30:05Z")
> [@duffer](#): > > Does anyone know of sites that offer free accounts without all the extra crap? Been using Gmail and I love it. There is a thread in IMHO offering invites. ---
**Author:** ![duffer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duffer/32/1026_2.png) [@duffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/duffer)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2004, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-email-accounts/253548/4 "2004-07-04T22:38:29Z")
Went with excite for him. I’ll check out the gmail invite. Thanks ---
**Author:** ![reoch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a9adbd/32.png) [@reoch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/reoch)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-email-accounts/253548/5 "2004-07-05T11:55:45Z")
I don’t remember **yahoo** ever putting any crap on my computer when I signed up for it. I say give yahoo another try since they now offer (get this) **100MB** of space!!! Can’t beat that deal!!! Reoch ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 12:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-email-accounts/253548/6 "2004-07-05T12:17:51Z")
> [@](#): > > I don’t remember yahoo ever putting any crap on my computer when I signed up for it. I say give yahoo another try since they now offer (get this)100MB of space!!! Can’t beat that deal!!! Maybe, but w/o pop3 or imap4 access to your mail it isn’t a good deal for us who like to DL our mail to our computers. ---
**Author:** ![reoch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a9adbd/32.png) [@reoch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/reoch)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-email-accounts/253548/7 "2004-07-05T12:49:55Z")
I don’t remember **yahoo** ever putting any crap on my computer when I signed up for it. I say give yahoo another try since they now offer (get this) **100MB** of space!!! Can’t beat that deal!!! Reoch ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-email-accounts/253548/8 "2004-07-05T13:09:26Z")
The extra crap that comes with Yahoo is entirely optional. There are also, I believe, some workaround programs that allow you to access your Yahoo account as if it were a POP3 server. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-email-accounts/253548/9 "2004-07-05T13:15:13Z")
Note that Google has now said that swapping/selling GMail accounts is a violation of the terms of service. ---
**Author:** ![MsRobyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90ced4/32.png) [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-email-accounts/253548/10 "2004-07-05T13:17:21Z")
I’ve opened two or three Yahoo accounts in the last two or so months. I’ve never been asked if I wanted any downloads. I do know that you can get the toolbar, but you have to opt in to get it. I especially like the Yahoo accounts because there is a lot of virus protection. I get maybe 10-15 messages with some kind of virus attached, and Yahoo will protect me from most of them. My regular anti-virus software catches the rest. It’s a pretty good deal for free. Robin ---
**Author:** ![Berkut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a88e57/32.png) [@Berkut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Berkut)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-email-accounts/253548/11 "2004-07-05T18:09:27Z")
> [@asterion](#): > > Note that Google has now said that swapping/selling GMail accounts is a violation of the terms of service. That doesn’t cover what we are doing here, though. You can’t… > [@](#): > > Sell, trade, resell or otherwise exploit for any unauthorized commercial purpose or transfer any Gmail account ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-email-accounts/253548/12 "2004-07-05T18:19:56Z")
> [@Berkut](#): > > That doesn’t cover what we are doing here, though. > > You can’t… > > > [@](#): > > > > Sell, trade, resell or otherwise exploit for any unauthorized commercial purpose or transfer any Gmail account Okay, sorry. I must’ve got the story slightly wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-email-accounts/253548/13 "2004-07-05T18:36:58Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > There are also, I believe, some workaround programs that allow you to access your Yahoo account as if it were a POP3 server. It’s a basic option, now. Used to be part of their payed option, now it’s part of the free account. Look under Mail Options, POP and Forwarding. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-email-accounts/253548/14 "2004-07-05T20:17:09Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > It’s a basic option, now. Used to be part of their payed option, now it’s part of the free account. Look under Mail Options, POP and Forwarding. Are you sure you are not thinking of using Yahoo to use POP to access OTHER accounts? It still looks like POP access to Yahoo mail is only under the Premium Services. ---
**Author:** ![Hanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b3f665/32.png) [@Hanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hanna)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-email-accounts/253548/15 "2004-07-05T20:28:25Z")
Right before I got my gmail account a short while ago I signed up for a new Yahoo account and they tried very hard to get me to install the Yahoo toolbar. I was directed to a page where the only option was to install the toolbar. I just closed the window, but someone less experienced might see it as a no choice thing, or the only way to access their new email account. Pretty sleazy on Yahoo’s part, IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/free-email-accounts/253548/16 "2004-07-05T20:39:53Z")
I created a Yahoo account for someone last week. Straight forward with nothing underhanded. Yahoo did not offer, nor insist, on installing any software. As for Yahoo’s premium POP3 services, open source third party addons are available so that you can use Eudora to read your Yahoo email and not have to pay premium fees.