Writing Letters 11 In spite of telephones, faxes, e-mails and the Internet, it is unlikely that letters will ever become redundant. A personal letter shows that you are thinking of someone; a business letter is a permanent record that can be produced, if necessary, as evidence at a later date. Unless it is recorded, there is no record of what was said on the telephone and a business letter can be more detailed than fax messages or even e-mail. Longer letters can be transmitted by a facsimile machine (fax) but the quality of the reproduction is not as good as the original. Of course, you can print out e-mail letters and keep them. When sending a business letter by e-mail, it is not necessary to put in addresses as the e-mail addresses will automatically appear. If you do wish someone to reply by post or tele- phone, you could insert your details into the body of the e-mail. The endings would be the same as for printed or handwritten letters. Do remember that a business e-mail is not the same as one sent to a close friend. Do not use the ‘texting’ language that you use on a mobile phone. Giving a warning USING E-MAIL 133