Mail.app addons

[diane143]

After 18 years with Eudora I am working on switching to a new email client.

I was testing 3 and at the moment and working with Mail.app for two of my business emails.

I was about to test MailHub with it and then found this article: http://iphonforus.blogspot.com/2011/10/10-ways-to-soup-up-apple-mail.html

(you can really go broke adding stuff to Mail if you wanted! I've been so spoiled with Eudora )

While I don't need them all, there are a few I would sure use a lot.

Questions:
- are there any others out there?
- have some of these been taken care of in ML?

I am on SL now and will probably upgrade right to ML - still on the fence about Lion.

One of the other things I would love to do is customize the icon bar up top and redefine the shortcuts in Mail to what I am more used to in Eudora.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,
Diane

 

[astrorider]

After 18 years with Eudora I am working on switching to a new email client.

I was testing 3 and at the moment and working with Mail.app for two of my business emails.

I was about to test MailHub with it and then found this article: http://iphonforus.blogspot.com/2011/10/10-ways-to-soup-up-apple-mail.html

(you can really go broke adding stuff to Mail if you wanted! I've been so spoiled with Eudora )

While I don't need them all, there are a few I would sure use a lot.

Questions:
- are there any others out there?
- have some of these been taken care of in ML?

I am on SL now and will probably upgrade right to ML - still on the fence about Lion.

One of the other things I would love to do is customize the icon bar up top and redefine the shortcuts in Mail to what I am more used to in Eudora.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,
Diane

What would you like Mail.app to do that you're accustomed to with Eudora?

I'm using Lion's Mail and you can customize the toolbar by using the View menu -> Customize Toolbar. It may be the same for Snow Leopard.

 

[Mojo1]

I used Eudora since 1997 and I faced the same situation as you when I purchased an MBP last summer.

I've tried them all: Mail, Thunderbird, Postbox... I even spent $20 on MailForge over two years ago but I have given up on a fully functional version ever seeing the light of day.

The Mail plugins like MailHub didn't do much to improve the app IMO.

I have been using GyazMail for a number of months. And I am happy to report that I don't miss Eudora one bit. In fact, I wish that I had switched sooner.

GyazMail costs $18. Download the demo at http://gyazsquare.com/gyazmail/. Here is a review: http://email.about.com/od/macemailclients/fr/Gyazmail-Review-Mac-Email-Program.htm.

 

[diane143]

What would you like Mail.app to do that you're accustomed to with Eudora?

I'm using Lion's Mail and you can customize the toolbar by using the View menu -> Customize Toolbar. It may be the same for Snow Leopard.

Yes! Thank you, I was looking in the prefs.

Eudora is very keyboard-centric (plus I got my start in DOS). I feel I click way too much in Mail.

MailHub lets you do one-click filing which appeals to me.

I am not sure how to search globally. In Eudora I could search one box, a few boxes or all boxes quite easily. It seems like the search box in Mail will only search the box you are currently clicked on. I did read somewhere that it works if it's "set up right" but I haven't yet figured out how to do that (nor have I spent too much time doing so).

Eudora also allowed you to search on labels (ie flags). Not sure if Mail will allow that. One of the add-ons allows for different colored flags which is great, but I can pass that by. I'd really like to search across a group of boxes by flags though.

Huge thing Eudora did - was the option-click to highlight a group of messages, be it by date, author or subject. I will often let a thread build up in my mailbox for a week or so and when it seems to have petered out, I'll opt-click that last message and they all get highlighted and I file them. I was hoping MailHub would offer something similar or that the one-click filing would help me in that one.

The other Mail thing that really bugs me (and it looks like a plug-in will work at least one way, not sure if it will do both) is its insistence on embedded attachments. I'd much rather have attached attachments.

The more I use it the more I will find things I'm sure. I'm adapting best I can but I am definitely more productive in Eudora still!

Thanks

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I used Eudora since 1997 and I faced the same situation as you when I purchased an MBP last summer.

I've tried them all: Mail, Thunderbird, Postbox... I even spent $20 on MailForge over two years ago but I have given up on a fully functional version ever seeing the light of day.

The Mail plugins like MailHub didn't do much to improve the app IMO.

I have been using GyazMail for a number of months. And I am happy to report that I don't miss Eudora one bit. In fact, I wish that I had switched sooner.

GyazMail costs $18. Download the demo at http://gyazsquare.com/gyazmail/. Here is a review: http://email.about.com/od/macemailclients/fr/Gyazmail-Review-Mac-Email-Program.htm.

Hi MoJo! Gyaz and MF were the other two contenders. MF is pretty much out of the running especially based on the past two weeks promised updates. The fact I could never get it to download email kind of killed it was well! I tried 3 different accounts and none would work. The other huge annoyance was that I tried to sign up for the forum weeks ago to get help on my import and retrieval issues. Apparently you have to get approved by the owner and hey, I'm still waiting.

Gyaz I was able to use for a bit. I have to find my notes again, but I think it was almost TOO simplistic. I have coworkers that insist on wicked html email and sometimes even replying they went out horrendous. I'll have to look again, it's been a few weeks. I also found some inline images only showed up as red x's.

I think I just got frustrated with the lack of integration with the OS and decided with ML around the corner, maybe it was time to work with the OS a little better. I would be willing to try it again though.

 

[astrorider]

Eudora is very keyboard-centric (plus I got my start in DOS). I feel I click way too much in Mail.

I'm a bit obsessed with keyboard shortcuts too. What are you trying to do? I find between the built-in shortcuts (that you can usually see next to the command in the menu) and adding my own through System Preferences.app -> Keyboard -> Keyboard Shortcuts that I can do pretty much anything I want.

MailHub lets you do one-click filing which appeals to me.

If I right click on a message I can move any message to any folder in one click, is this what you mean?

I am not sure how to search globally. In Eudora I could search one box, a few boxes or all boxes quite easily. It seems like the search box in Mail will only search the box you are currently clicked on. I did read somewhere that it works if it's "set up right" but I haven't yet figured out how to do that (nor have I spent too much time doing so).

In Lion when I use the search box, a scope bar appears just below the toolbar that allows me to search just the mailbox I'm in, or All mailboxes, or some other specific mailboxes like Sent, Drafts, etc.

Eudora also allowed you to search on labels (ie flags). Not sure if Mail will allow that. One of the add-ons allows for different colored flags which is great, but I can pass that by. I'd really like to search across a group of boxes by flags though.

In Lion, when you use the search box, if I type in "Red" one of the options that shows up is a search specifically for Flags = Red. When selected, I can then further refine the search using that scope bar I mentioned above. I definitely don't remember this in Snow Leopard, but it might be in there somewhere as well, but I'm not sure.

The other Mail thing that really bugs me (and it looks like a plug-in will work at least one way, not sure if it will do both) is its insistence on embedded attachments. I'd much rather have attached attachments.

In Lion's Mail, under the Edit menu -> Attachments -> Insert Attachments at end of message. I think this may be what you're after.

 

[diane143]

I'm a bit obsessed with keyboard shortcuts too. What are you trying to do? I find between the built-in shortcuts (that you can usually see next to the command in the menu) and adding my own through System Preferences.app -> Keyboard -> Keyboard Shortcuts that I can do pretty much anything I want.

That's a big help. I didn't know I could specify the app with the OS keyboard shortcuts. (I really have to get a dummy guide for each os upgrade these days! lol)

If I write click on a message I can move any message to any folder in one click, is this what you mean?

Well I think so. I haven't downloaded it yet. There is a guy on the Eudora mailing list (and here, may be the same person) that swears by it. They have a free trial so I'm game. These are the two features I'm interested in with them: ✓ Organise your email simply and easily using MailHub's auto-suggest intelligent technology which suggests where to file your mail based on your previous email activity
✓ File or delete emails individually, by thread or by sender in one simple process

In Lion when I use the search box, a scope bar appears just below the toolbar that allows me to search just the mailbox I'm in, or All mailboxes, or some other specific mailboxes like Sent, Drafts, etc.

In Lion, when you use the search box, if I type in "Red" one of the options that shows up is a search specifically for Flags = Red. When selected, I can then further refine the search using that scope bar I mentioned above. I definitely don't remember this in Snow Leopard, but it might be in there somewhere as well, but I'm not sure.

I don't see any of that in SL but it's good to know it exists now. Hopefully ML will keep it.

In Lion's Mail, under the Edit menu -> Attachments -> Insert Attachments at end of message. I think this may be what you're after.

Not really but it will work for now to keep them forced below the sig. Eudora and Outlook I believe, would display attachments up top, just below the send to/from/subject lines. They were truly attached, it was just an icon and you'd have to double click to open. They were also less intrusive this way. Mail always seems to put them inline in full though sometimes they come to me as just an icon. I'd like to send them out that way. I did try the customize button in the new message pane but no go

 

[Mojo1]

While GyazMail handles incoming HTML well it does not offer HTML formatting, so forwarded HTML mail doesn't work as you have discovered... The developer told me that HTML formatting will be added in the future, but GyazMail updates can take awhile since GyazMail is a one-man shop.

I like GyazMail's simplicity, particularly its lack of a "wizard." Mail insists on creating only IMAP GMail accounts even though I use POP3. The workaround is to create a new account while offline; unfortunately, I had to figure it out for myself since Mail Help doesn't have a clue about how to configure a POP3 GMail account.

I also appreciate that GyazMail doesn't routinely "forget" my account passwords like Mail ends to do.

I keep Mail around in case I need to do something that GyazMail cannot handle such as composing HTML mail. But it sounds like Mail may be the best option for your situation.

 

[diane143]

I haven't tried any gmail accounts in Mail yet. I just have two, one is a domain I own (and that's currently set to POP), the other is for a job I have, set to IMAP.

I will keep an eye on Gyaz though, I did like what little I tried of it.

When the Claris emailer was phased out, did it port over to anything? I don't think I ever used it as I was a happy Eudora user at the time. I tried Mail when it came out and didn't like it much at all. It's gotten better since then and I am really running out of options. Even if I move most of my personal stuff over to my G4 tower, I really need to keep my biz emails on my laptop, which will handle ML, so I had to bite the bullet for a couple of accounts anyway.

 

[Mojo1]

I remember that a lot of folks were unhappy when Claris was discontinued but I don't recall it being ported to another app. (Boy, we are really going back in time!)

A lot of problems that I have read regarding moving from Eudora to a new e-mail client is moving messages, filters, etc. I decided to start fresh since I can still access Eudora on my iMac, not that I have much reason to do so these days.

I used to keep all my software registration info in Eudora; now it lives in 1Password. I'll have to take the time to confirm that everything is moved when I finally upgrade the iMac this summer...

Otherwise I am creating new filters in GyazMail; I haven't bothered recreating signatures since they aren't essential for me.

Here are some Mail plugin links that might be helpful:

http://www.tuaw.com/2007/05/27/apple-mail-plug-in-roundup/2#comments

http://www.indev.ca/MailActOn.html

http://www.cs.unc.edu/~welch/MailFollowup/

http://tikouka.net/mailapp/

 

[diane143]

I remember that a lot of folks were unhappy when Claris was discontinued but I don't recall it being ported to another app. (Boy, we are really going back in time!)

Saying I've used Eudora for 18 years is kind of dating myself as well!

A lot of problems that I have read regarding moving from Eudora to a new e-mail client is moving messages, filters, etc. I decided to start fresh since I can still access Eudora on my iMac, not that I have much reason to do so these days.

I still have a lot of archives that I go back to, so I'll move it over to my G4 and hope that keeps going for awhile. I guess worse case is that I can import everything into Mail at some point if need be. The filters don't worry me much as they were mostly personality or spam-based. Eudora Mailbox Cleaner worked great for the import.

I used to keep all my software registration info in Eudora; now it lives in 1Password. I'll have to take the time to confirm that everything is moved when I finally upgrade the iMac this summer...

I do too! I have a "Registrations and Passwords" box that has almost 600 entries in it. Did you have to manually re-enter everything? How do you like 1Password for the most part? I know I can just import that mailbox but then I wonder if there is a better way.

Here are some Mail plugin links that might be helpful:

<snip> - thanks I will check them out!

I did get the attachment thing sort of resolved. There is a terminal command for forcing Mail to send them as icons, combined with the in-app setting of always placing the icon at the bottom of the message.

Oh, since Mail doesn't open a mailbox when new mail goes into it like Eudora did, is there a way for it to change the color of the unread count? Just the other day I missed a bunch of filtered emails. My imported boxes still have messages that show up as unread as does one of my current mailboxes. They are all the same dull blue/grey color. I know either Gyaz or MF allowed you to change the color which really made it stand out.

 

[Mojo1]

I had to manually reenter the registration info, but it isn't as bad as it sounds since I discovered that I had a lot of software info that I did not need to keep. You could move the messages from Eudora to Mail and then take your time entering the data in 1Password.

1Password? It's one of my Must Have programs. I also use the iOS version on my iPhone and iPad. I used Web Confidential for years until I discovered 1Password. I keep my 1Password data synced via Dropbox.

GyazMail lets you change the unread message color for folders with unread messages via Preferences/Fonts and Colors/Folder List.

BTW, how are you managing your Web bookmarks? I had to give up on browser management years ago when Internet Explorer and other Web browsers would choke after the bookmark count exceeded around 200. (The last time I checked I had over 8,000 bookmarks!)

I used URLM Pro for many years but I began having problems with it a couple of years ago. Its developer and I tried to fix the problem but we never could get it to work like it used to. When I was planning the move to Lion I began seriously exploring alternatives... I settled on Bookmacster primarily because it allows easy syncing between Macs; I went with the Dropbox option. It's the easiest syncing solution but you have to be careful when you have two Macs running Bookmacster simultaneously because of how Dropbox updates the data. The simplest fix for me was to not have Bookmacster startup automatically on my MBP when I am using both Macs at the same time.

Bookmacster lacks a couple of URLM Pro features that I miss but its developer is very open to user feedback and implementing new features. I could not import my bookmarks from URLM Pro (too many???) so I imported them into Safari and from there to Bookmacster.

http://www.sheepsystems.com/products/bkmx/

 

[astrorider]

Oh, since Mail doesn't open a mailbox when new mail goes into it like Eudora did, is there a way for it to change the color of the unread count? Just the other day I missed a bunch of filtered emails. My imported boxes still have messages that show up as unread as does one of my current mailboxes. They are all the same dull blue/grey color. I know either Gyaz or MF allowed you to change the color which really made it stand out.

Not sure if this is what you're after, but I change the dock's unread mail count to reflect all mailboxes, not just my inbox. That way when a rule automatically moves my mail I'm still alerted that there's something new. It's in the Mail preferences, General tab.

----------

BTW, how are you managing your Web bookmarks?

Bookmark sync is included in iCloud (previously it was in MobileMe) assuming you're running Lion. Syncs between Macs and iOS devices.

 

[diane143]

I had to manually reenter the registration info, but it isn't as bad as it sounds since I discovered that I had a lot of software info that I did not need to keep. You could move the messages from Eudora to Mail and then take your time entering the data in 1Password.

1Password? It's one of my Must Have programs. I also use the iOS version on my iPhone and iPad. I used Web Confidential for years until I discovered 1Password. I keep my 1Password data synced via Dropbox.

I know I have some I can get rid of, but I really have to go through the list. I've heard great things about 1Password! Just kind of pricey though, $65 for desktop and mobile version combined. should've bought in way back when I guess.

BTW, how are you managing your Web bookmarks? I had to give up on browser management years ago when Internet Explorer and other Web browsers would choke after the bookmark count exceeded around 200. (The last time I checked I had over 8,000 bookmarks!)

I used URLM Pro for many years but I began having problems with it a couple of years ago. Its developer and I tried to fix the problem but we never could get it to work like it used to. When I was planning the move to Lion I began seriously exploring alternatives... I settled on Bookmacster primarily because it allows easy syncing between Macs; I went with the Dropbox option. It's the easiest syncing solution but you have to be careful when you have two Macs running Bookmacster simultaneously because of how Dropbox updates the data. The simplest fix for me was to not have Bookmacster startup automatically on my MBP when I am using both Macs at the same time.

Bookmacster lacks a couple of URLM Pro features that I miss but its developer is very open to user feedback and implementing new features. I could not import my bookmarks from URLM Pro (too many???) so I imported them into Safari and from there to Bookmacster.

http://www.sheepsystems.com/products/bkmx/

I gave up managing my bookmarks about 10 years ago. Such a shame as I've lost quite a few. I had URLM Prom as well. Looks like I used it from 2002-2005. No idea why I stopped. At one point in time I was using a browser that exported to HTML (could've been on the pc side) and I had all my links on my web server.

I may try URLM Pro again and I'll check out your links and iCloud too. I just upgraded to SL though so not sure if it will work. I'm already having issues syncing the iPad and iPhone calendars (oddly enough the SL workaround is actually working, the phone is being stubborn)

What problems were you having with URLM? I wouldn't have nearly the amount you do though I'm sure I have some old bookmark files I could add to an import!

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Not sure if this is what you're after, but I change the dock's unread mail count to reflect all mailboxes, not just my inbox. That way when a rule automatically moves my mail I'm still alerted that there's something new. It's in the Mail preferences, General tab.

My dock icons are pretty small, not sure I'd really see any number. Worth a shot though!
----------

Bookmark sync is included in iCloud (previously it was in MobileMe) assuming you're running Lion. Syncs between Macs and iOS devices.

See above, still on SL. I will check to see if the iPhone and iPad are syncing. May be a reason to upgrade though..... When is ML due?

 

[Mojo1]

I use bookmark managers because I need better organization options than are offered by Web browsers. Bookmark managers also make it possible to access stored bookmarks from any Web browser.

I started having problems with URLM Pro when I tried to upgrade the app. It wouldn't display the pull-down menu of bookmarks accessible via its Finder Menu Bar icon (that's another handy feature of bookmark managers).

I think that URLM Pro recently added syncing via Dropbox, but I haven't checked it out.

I do keep some bookmarks in Safari that I access via its Bookmarks Bar. They are bookmarks that I regularly use; I have one called "First Thing" that with one click opens all the Web sites that I read at the start of my day.

1Password is regularly available at a discount via software bundles. It is also sometimes offered at a discount price around the holidays. I don't use the iOS version much; you can save some money by skipping it.

 

[diane143]

I liked having all my bookmarks accessible fromm work and home. I don't have this issue as much anymore though.

Drawback to iCloud is that you can't see the actual bookmarks, they just sync to a device (from what I can tell). My iPhone and iPad are synced fine but the laptop (Snow Leopard) is not. It would be great if I could log into iCloud and just see the bookmarks!

I downloaded the latest version of URLM Pro but it won't accept my 3.3 number. I tried to d/l that 3.5 version but no matter which I click on, I keep getting 4.1. I'll drop them a line when I get a chance.

Where does FF keep its bookmarks? I tried to import them and only got the couple of default ones. It must not be called bookmark(s).htm(l) either as the only one that I find on the laptop is Safari.

I'll keep an eye out for bundles. I bought one a couple of years back and never ended up using anything in it. I'll have to dig back and see what that was.

Never finished going through the Mail.app addon links you sent. Found another frustration though..... in Eudora you've got your keystroke to bring up the mailbox (or it just opens when you get new mail). Then you can keyboard around in it. In Mail, it looks like you have to click on the mailbox on the left to select it, then you have to click on the message to the right before you can move around. If you do Opt-1 to get into the entire inbox, IIRC that works the way I want but it would be great if it did so in the others. I wonder if assigning keystrokes for most commonly used mailboxes would solve this. I can't believe how dependent on the keyboard I am!!

 

[astrorider]

in Eudora you've got your keystroke to bring up the mailbox (or it just opens when you get new mail). Then you can keyboard around in it. In Mail, it looks like you have to click on the mailbox on the left to select it, then you have to click on the message to the right before you can move around. If you do Opt-1 to get into the entire inbox, IIRC that works the way I want but it would be great if it did so in the others. I wonder if assigning keystrokes for most commonly used mailboxes would solve this. I can't believe how dependent on the keyboard I am!!

Here's how I have it setup in Lion. I added a keyboard shortcut of cmd-option-M to bring up the Message Viewer in case I have it closed but Mail is still running (under the Window menu in Mail...surprised there was no built-in shortcut for that). I often find myself cmd-tab'ing between applications but I closed my Message Viewer, so cmd-option-M does the trick. Mail in Lion uses a 3-pane view with mailboxes on the left, message preview in the middle, and the message itself on the right. So once I'm in the Message Viewer, by default I'm in the left pane of mailboxes. Using the arrow key I can move around all the mailboxes. Hitting the tab key will move me over to the message preview pane, where I can again use the arrow keys to move around all my messages, and see the full email in the right pane. If I want to get back to the mailboxes pane, shift-Tab does the trick. Maybe the "tab" key works the same way in Snow Leopard for navigating around the Mail interface?

Just curious, I may have missed it but I don't remember you mentioning why you aren't upgrading to Lion? IMO, for $29 it's a steal for the lots of little things you get and Mail.app is one of those little things that's much improved.

 

[diane143]

Here's how I have it setup in Lion. I added a keyboard shortcut of cmd-option-M to bring up the Message Viewer in case I have it closed but Mail is still running (under the Window menu in Mail...surprised there was no built-in shortcut for that). I often find myself cmd-tab'ing between applications but I closed my Message Viewer, so cmd-option-M does the trick. Mail in Lion uses a 3-pane view with mailboxes on the left, message preview in the middle, and the message itself on the right. So once I'm in the Message Viewer, by default I'm in the left pane of mailboxes. Using the arrow key I can move around all the mailboxes. Hitting the tab key will move me over to the message preview pane, where I can again use the arrow keys to move around all my messages, and see the full email in the right pane. If I want to get back to the mailboxes pane, shift-Tab does the trick. Maybe the "tab" key works the same way in Snow Leopard for navigating around the Mail interface?

Ack! This totally goes under idiot mode, I swore I tried this the other day. I *can* tab and shift-tab back and forth and then arrow to my hearts content on the mailbox *and* message sides. I have the preview pane turned off.

Just curious, I may have missed it but I don't remember you mentioning why you aren't upgrading to Lion? IMO, for $29 it's a steal for the lots of little things you get and Mail.app is one of those little things that's much improved.

I literally just upgraded to SL a couple of weeks ago. I had held out as I lost access to my old Xante laser printer (which I now access through my G4 - if it's turned on). I also bought more ink for my inkjet but I really don't like using that for day-to-day use. I guess I'm trying to get used to SL a bit and I figured with ML around the corner, was it worth upgrading to Lion?

Am I going to have to buy the Lion upgrade in order to get the ML upgrade?

Is there a way to do a clean install vs an upgrade? SL didn't really give me any options, unless there was a keystroke command on boot I didn't do. I've of course read a ton of threads on those that have upgraded to Lion and it seems to be firmly split down the middle, those that absolutely hate it and those that absolutely love it.

I'm running a late 2008 unibody, 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo with 6gb of ram. From what I understand this is one of the oldest machines that will accept ML. I do want to upgrade so I won't be so far behind. This machine started on Leopard though IIRC. I remember how speedy my old machines were when I would finally do a clean install instead of repeated upgrades, and wondered if eliminating one upgrade would help. For once, I'm actually fine with HD space!

So far I have not seen a speed difference at all between Leopard and SL. Upgrading the RAM last year helped immensely with the various spinning beach balls I had.

Oh - I read somewhere there is a program, freeware I think, that will look through your drive and tell you which programs are using code incompatible with Lion. Do you know what that is? I usually email stuff like that to myself and don't see it.

 

[Mojo1]

When I purchased a 13" MBP last summer I thought that it would come with SL installed but the Amazon info was incorrect and it arrived with Lion. Even though it is possible to run SL I decided to give Lion a try since it's the current OS and SL has been problematic on my 2006 24" iMac.

I haven't regretted sticking with Lion. Yes, it's a different animal (pun intended) but it hasn't been a problem adjusting to it. I purchased David Pogue's Lion Missing Manual so I could learn the difference between the systems.

One thing that I did differently was to forgo using Migration Assistant for the first time in years. I just installed the apps that I really need and manually configured the Mac. It took more time but in the end it was worth it. The MBP runs like a top and it doesn't have all the dross that has accumulated on my iMac.

When I replace the iMac this year I will probably use Migration Assistant to move stuff from the MBP. I don't see any reason not to...

Try using Google to search for that freeware to check for Lion compatibility.