Create a terminal-based email composer

Creating a terminal-based email composer involves writing a simple program that lets the user input email details—like recipient, subject, and body—in the terminal, then composes the email and optionally sends it via an SMTP server.

Below is a Python example of a terminal-based email composer with these features:

• Input for To, Cc, Bcc, Subject, and Body

• Supports multi-line body input until a specific keyword (e.g., a single dot . on a line)

• Option to send the email using SMTP (with configurable SMTP settings)

• Validation for email fields

python
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import smtplib
from email.message import EmailMessage
import getpass
import re

def is_valid_email(email):
    # Basic email validation
    pattern = r'^[^@]+@[^@]+.[^@]+$'
    return re.match(pattern, email) is not None

def get_email_addresses(prompt):
    addresses = input(prompt).strip()
    if not addresses:
        return []
    emails = [email.strip() for email in addresses.split(',')]
    for email in emails:
        if not is_valid_email(email):
            print(f"Invalid email address detected: {email}")
            return None
    return emails

def main():
    print("=== Terminal Email Composer ===")

    while True:
        to_emails = get_email_addresses("To (comma-separated emails): ")
        if to_emails is not None and to_emails:
            break
        print("Please enter at least one valid recipient email.")

    cc_emails = get_email_addresses("Cc (comma-separated emails, optional): ")
    if cc_emails is None:
        cc_emails = []

    bcc_emails = get_email_addresses("Bcc (comma-separated emails, optional): ")
    if bcc_emails is None:
        bcc_emails = []

    subject = input("Subject: ").strip()

    print("Enter email body (end with a single dot '.' on a line):")
    lines = []
    while True:
        line = input()
        if line.strip() == ".":
            break
        lines.append(line)
    body = "n".join(lines)

    print("n--- Email Preview ---")
    print(f"To: {', '.join(to_emails)}")
    if cc_emails:
        print(f"Cc: {', '.join(cc_emails)}")
    if bcc_emails:
        print(f"Bcc: {', '.join(bcc_emails)}")
    print(f"Subject: {subject}")
    print("n" + body)
    print("---------------------")

    send = input("Send email? (y/N): ").strip().lower()
    if send != 'y':
        print("Email discarded.")
        return

    # SMTP details (modify as needed)
    smtp_server = input("SMTP server (e.g., smtp.gmail.com): ").strip()
    smtp_port = input("SMTP port (default 587): ").strip()
    if not smtp_port:
        smtp_port = 587
    else:
        smtp_port = int(smtp_port)
    smtp_user = input("SMTP username (your email): ").strip()
    smtp_password = getpass.getpass("SMTP password: ")

    msg = EmailMessage()
    msg['From'] = smtp_user
    msg['To'] = ", ".join(to_emails)
    if cc_emails:
        msg['Cc'] = ", ".join(cc_emails)
    if bcc_emails:
        # Bcc is usually hidden from headers, but needed for sending:
        all_recipients = to_emails + cc_emails + bcc_emails
    else:
        all_recipients = to_emails + cc_emails
    msg['Subject'] = subject
    msg.set_content(body)

    try:
        with smtplib.SMTP(smtp_server, smtp_port) as server:
            server.starttls()
            server.login(smtp_user, smtp_password)
            server.sendmail(smtp_user, all_recipients, msg.as_string())
        print("Email sent successfully!")
    except Exception as e:
        print(f"Failed to send email: {e}")

if __name__ == "__main__":
    main()

How to use:

1. Save this as email_composer.py.

2. Run python3 email_composer.py in your terminal.

3. Input recipients, subject, and the body (end body input with a single . line).

4. Enter SMTP details (for example, Gmail SMTP server: smtp.gmail.com port 587).

5. The email will be sent if all details are correct.

Note:

• For Gmail, you may need to create an app password or enable “less secure apps” (which Google has been disabling) to allow SMTP login.

• Modify SMTP settings to your email provider’s info as needed.

Would you like me to help create a version that stores drafts or has a richer editor in terminal?