Difference Between To and CC

To vs CC

To and CC are two fields that you would find when you are writing an email. Most of us already know the use of the To field since that is where we place the address of the person for whom we are writing the email for but a lot fewer know what the CC field is for. The CC field is where you would place the addresses of the people whom you want to receive a copy of the email but are not the intended recipient of the letter. This concept is much easier to understand with a metaphor. Let’s say that you punched your brother and your mother scolded you and told you to say sorry. Although you would only need to say sorry to your brother, it goes without saying that your mother should also hear it so that she knows that you really did it. If we translate this to emails, your brother would be in the To field while your mother would be in the CC field.

Letter writing is a very old medium of getting communications across long distances with very minimal cost or effort. From letters carried on foot or horse by messengers to homing pigeons, the process has become faster and faster over the years. Letters were the best way of communicating right until the development of the telephone. Now letters have evolved into the digital age with the increasing use of the internet and email. The term CC means Carbon Copy and is a direct result of how multiple copies of letter were made in the past. Instead of typing multiple copies of the same letter, people inserted a sheet of carbon paper in between two sheets of paper. The impact of the typewriter keys causes some of the carbon to deposit on the paper behind it. These copies are then understandably refered to as carbon copies.

Although the term carbon copy is technically incorrect when using emails or even in printed letters. The term has stuck and is still being widely used when furnishing copies regardless of the medium used.

Summary:
1.The To field is reserved for the name or names of the people whom the letter is intended for while the CC field is meant for the people who are to be informed of the letter and its contents but are not the intended recipient of the letter
2.CC is an antiquated acronym that stands for carbon copy

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