The process of formatting non-text data into ASCII format so that it can be sent as an attachment with an email. Email can handle only 7-bit ASCII text; however, many types of files, such as images, are not saved as text because they are binary files. To send non-text binary information, the data must first be encoded into ASCII format on the sender's side, and decoded using the same procedure on the receiver's side. Common encoding methods include: MIME, BinHex, Uuencode, and Base64.