E-mail Confirmation script?

I've looked about for an 'Email Confirmation' script that many sites use for verifcation of wannabee new members. That is, the person subscribes, is sent a 'confirmation' number to which they must have in the 'Subject' area of their reply. I would like to implement this on my site, but I haven't discovered a source for a script, or how to go about doing it. That is, how do you retrieve items from an incoming e-mail, and is it possible to parse the same? If anyone who has seen such a script could point me to where I could find one, I would greatly appreciate it, or in the Manual, what it would be listed under. The 'mail()' function doesn't seem to include how to access received e-mails, and to parse individual copmponents of a message. Btw, does anyone know what's up with the 'Search' function of the PHP-general lst? It always seems to be 'offline'. Rather hard to search the archives for previously asked questions. Tia, Andre -- Please pray the Holy Rosary to end the holocaust of abortion. Remember in your prayers the Holy Souls in Purgatory. May God bless you abundantly in His love! For a free Cenacle Scriptural Rosary Booklet: http://www.webhart.net/csrb/