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▲ jxjnskkzxxhx 2 days ago

Why does this matter?

I can't pick my own domain when using Gmail, and still works just fine.

▲ivanmontillam 2 days ago | parent | next [-]

It matters because on your own domain you control the MX records (Mail eXchange) servers.

So, if Mozilla Thundermail were to disappear, you can switch servers on the MX record to another email provider with little downtime if done correctly.

You also become the sovereign of your email. Should your Google account get banned (a news like these hit HN once a month), you are left to start over changing email address in every service you use.

Not to mention dead accesses to SSO, because the Google account would be inaccesible by then.

▲jxjnskkzxxhx 2 days ago | parent [-]

I don't understand. You don't control any Mx records. You have an account with some company. You might lose it just like you might lose your Gmail account.

Also... You can use Gmail with your own domain. I don't get the meme with mx records.

▲ivanmontillam a day ago | parent [-]

> I don't understand. You don't control any Mx records.

Yes, you do (on your own domain).

> You have an account with some company. You might lose it just like you might lose your Gmail account.

Yes, but if you use your own domain, the same account username can exist on another provider. I can still write you an email to "firstname[at]firstnamelastname.com" and reach you.

As for the email messages, if you do email correctly (by downloading emails to a local email client, and then creating backups, or at the very least, using Google Takeout to export your mailbox regularly), you don't have to lose your email messages.

> Also... You can use Gmail with your own domain. I don't get the meme with mx records.

Exactly my point. By then, you use Google Workspace, which is an email provider to your own domain.

If you wanted to switch to Microsoft 365, or Fastmail like I do, I am the sovereign of my email address. Nobody noticed I switched email providers when I changed from Google Workspace to Fastmail, and that's the point.

To be able to dump the provider when you need to. Sovereignty.

> Also... You can use Gmail with your own domain. I don't get the meme with mx records.

Additional reply to this: To use that, you need to fiddle with MX records.

▲cosmic_cheese 2 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Owning the domain your email address uses gives you a greater degree of ownership over that email address and makes you service provider agnostic.

Using an @gmail.com address for example, if you decide to move to another service provider at some point or especially if your Google account gets banned, you’re stuck manually migrating over however many things you have attached to your address (some of which may not be easy or possible without access to the original address).

In contrast, if your address is on a domain you own, the provider becomes moot. It doesn’t matter if you migrate or get banned, you still have your email address, and after a small blip between providers all is as it was.

▲progman32 2 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Can't speak for op, but for me it's a question of control. If this service ends up closing or otherwise loses me as a customer, I have to update every single contact and account before I can stop using it. That's not practical. If I bring my own domain, I can switch providers much more easily.

Some people might be ok with losing contact with the long tail after an email provider migration, but I'm not one of those people.

▲RegW 2 days ago | parent | prev [-]

> I can't pick my own domain when using Gmail, and still works just fine.

I do. I've used my own domain with GMail for many years. I moved it there from another provider when Google were giving such things away for free to beta users.

Perhaps I should move on again and avoid the big data kleptomania.