Re: Is Penelope Still alive ? was Cramming Eudora users into Thunderbird
on Wed, 11 Apr 2007 02:05:35 +0100
>I used to think that Web mail was just because the average computer user
>was not computer literate enough to set up POP e-mail. Now I think
>otherwise since my very computer literate friends prefer web mail as well.
Email, as a whole, bothers me. I don't think that there is any approach that
will support everyone's needs. It took me quite some time to come to the
method that I'm currently using, but it works very well for me.
I have an IMAP mail account with Fastmail.FM. No, I don't work for them, nor
do I intend this to be an advertisement for them -- I only mention them
because their service works very well for me, and I strongly recommend them
to anyone needing such services. Their service has a very well developed
web-based mail interface, that is both easy to use, and is very powerful (I
will admit that the first week or two I had it, I strongly disliked the
interface, but it grew on me, quickly). When I'm at work or on a computer on
which my preferred mail client is not installed, I log into the web interface,
and use that.
When I get home (well, in my case, to the house of the nearest neighbor with a
decent internet connection), I launch Thunderbird, and it downloads all
messages to its mail store. Thus, the mail on the IMAP server is synchronized
with the mail in Thunderbird. I can then use Thunderbird while connected to
the mail server, which allows mail to automatically be downloaded into
Thunderbird, while also remaining on the IMAP server, or I can use Thunderbird
in disconnected mode, which allows me to have access to all of my email,
without needing a connection to the IMAP server (it uses the locally cached
mailbox).
As for legacy email: I had been using POP since the mid-90s, and had thousands
and thousands of messages that I had already migrated to Thunderbird, before I
decided that I needed a more portable solution. Adding my IMAP mail account to
Thunderbird was just the trick -- I was able to just click and drag folders
full of mail onto the IMAP account, and then just sit and wait a little while,
during which time Thunderbird uploaded the messages to the server. I now have
all of my legacy email in the IMAP account, so I can access them with
Thunderbird or via the web interface.
Some people incorrectly believe that IMAP does not support nested folders --
that is incorrect. Some mail servers do not, but that is not an IMAP
limitation. The IMAP service I use allows nested folders, and server-side
rules (that are very easy to configure, or the user can use the "advanced"
configuration mode) that allow mail to be automatically put into any IMAP
folder -- where it will then be available via any connection to that account,
be it a web interface, or via a mail client.
I used to be a die-hard advocate for POP accounts, but after I truly gave IMAP
a chance, the only thing I see in POP is how limited it is.
I apologize for how much I jumped around between topics in this message, but I
hope that someone finds at least a little bit of it helpful.
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