title: Most Effective Public Key Encryption Method
body: <p>There seems to be a lot of hype about asymmetric Public Key encryption. RSA, PGP... etc. You have a set of two keys and distribute one, so that either only you can encrypt the message <em>or</em> only you can decrypt the message. One method provides a way to verify the sender, while the other provides a way to secure the message. (Feel free to correct me if I am wrong.)</p>
  
  <p>Now, I have also been reading about the Diffie-Hellman class of Key-Exchanges. This <em>seems</em> to be more secure as you can verify the sender and secure the message with the keys as each 'conversation' requires a computed 'shared key'.</p>
  
  <p>So, my question is, are there any major disadvantages (besides the setup requirements) to using Diffie-Hellman over a more standard form of public key encryption?</p>
  
  <p>Or, to put it more bluntly. If Diffie-Hellman makes more sense, why isn't <em>it</em> the standard form of encryption?</p>