[clue-tech] So-called "smart" hosts.

[David L. Anselmi]

T. Joseph Carter wrote:
> Okay, now that I am using Comcast for connection purposes, I have
> discovered an old pet peeve of mine: Discrimination based on connection
> class.  I have a valid IP, I have valid DNS, and I have a valid mailserver
> at the IP with the appropriate DNS entry.

But you probably don't have reverse DNS that resolves to your domain.

This isn't discrimination, you're collateral damage in the spam war.

We just had this discussion on BLUG:

http://archive.lug.boulder.co.us/Week-of-Mon-20060703/032426.html

> At least two major sites refuse my email because I am not using Comcast's
> so-called smarthost.  Now, I'm paranoid about my email.  I want to know if
> my mail is delivered or not, first of all, and I don't necessarily trust
> Comcast nor any other ISP whose admins I do not know and trust at least by
> reputation to not lose my mail, in either direction.

Dave G gave you the technical options.  The psychological option is to 
get over it.

If a mail server doesn't deliver your mail it has an obligation to give 
you a bounce.  If you find one that doesn't you have a beef with the 
admin because he's not doing what he should.  I don't think you can 
accuse Comcast et. al. of that.

When your mail server has delivered a message to the recipient's MX you 
trust it and its admin to do the right thing with it.  De facto.

If you use a smart host, you trust Comcast to do what you would have 
done, deliver it to the recipient's MX.

In neither case do you have any basis for that trust.

For the vast majority of mail servers you won't ever have a strong basis 
for the trust you place in them.  But for Comcast, if you send all your 
mail through them, you can develop a basis of trust based on experience 
and testing.  Do you get a bounce when you send to a bad address?  Do 
your messages usually go through, like they do now?  You can collect 
evidence to support your trust.  Not to mention that you're paying 
Comcast to provide smart host service to you so you have considerably 
more leverage with them than you do with any other mail server admin 
besides yourself.

Mail addressed to your domain will still go through your MX.  Smart 
hosts are irrelevant.

So I think the value you place on "delivery" from your mail server is 
excessive and your "paranoia" is silly.

This is not meant to be ad hominem.  Have you ever thought about what 
exactly your "delivery" means?

Dave