noob mail question

[BlackEdition]

i just got a new white macbook (2.13ghz variety), and i was curious about mail. i would like to use mail on my macbook, but, i don't want it to store copies of my mails on my hard drive.

my question is, if i set mail up to retrieve mails from my gmail account, does it store copies on my hard drive? i have a ton of mails, and i don't want them to clutter up my brand new macbook.

thanks!

 

[jman240]

What you're looking for doesn't probably work the way you want.

With Gmail you have 3 options.
1. Use the browser. Nothing is stored on your hard drive.
2. Use IMAP protocol. This is the best for use with mail. It will sync up between your Mail app and the Gmail server. This means if you delete a message in Mail it will also delete it on the server. If you delete a message on the server (via gmail.com) it will also get deleted when you next sync Mail app (get mail button).
3. POP3 protocol which will download a copy of everything to your Mail app and anything you do in mail app will only affect whats in Mail app. This means if you delete a message on the server it will still exist in Mail app and if you delete a message on Mail app it will still exist on the server.

Both options download at least a cache of your messages into Mail app. The only difference is whether or not your changes are pushed back to the server.
If you are familiar with how Mobile Me works then the IMAP protocol isn't much different.

The main reason I see people using POP3 is to create a local backup of their mail or because the service doesn't provide IMAP support.

Here are instructions from Google http://mail.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?answer=81379 and some tips
http://mail.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?answer=78892#

I personally use IMAP on my work PC, my home PC, my Macbook, and my iPhone along with Gmail. It works great for me.

 

[macgrl]

Yes, it will store emails on your hard drive. The only way to get around this will be to access gmail via your web browser

 

[angemon89]

Why do you say that your emails will clutter up your MB? Its not like your emails get saved on your desktop. They are neatly tucked away nowhere to be found except for when you open up the mail app.