Hi all, Im just curious, how many of you guys use email clients such as outlook and others?
If you do, what are the advantages of using a email client as opposed to using just web-based email?
I personally use web-base email. 
I’m not sure it’s an issue here - what to use: either an e-mail client or a web-base e-mail.
If you use only one e-mail address and you are satisfied with antispam features of the website where it is located, it would be better to use the latter.
If you use two or more e-mail addresses (especially with different login options), you’d rather use any suitable e-mail client.
I’ve used Outlook Express, then Thunderbird, then Windows Mail and now MS Outlook (due to integration with PocketPC).
The possibility of download and local storage of messages could be a reason to use an email client. Also some webmails are very poor on formating the text. GMail, for instance, will keep the email message in archive, so, it will be there, on-line available, when the user needs it.
I have used OE in various versions for many years, I also used to use HotMail when that could be downloaded with OE. By far the biggest pain in the rear was logging on to hotmail and browsing my email on-line, as a dial-up user I just want my email downloaded (after I run an anti-spam on the emails on the server) so I can read it off-line.
I am rather surprised that there is someone who does not use his own e-mail client.
How inconvenient it must be, to have to have a web page open all the time, to write in usually awkard environment and not to have all your mail at disposal when you are not connected.
Also, I have heard of drops out just at the moment you want to send a long, laborious e-mail resulting in all the work being lost.
Also, if you want to prepare several mails and compile them from one source, how incovenient it must be with the web client,
shortly
I cannot imagine I would not work inside my cp based email client. I personaly am using M2, since its integration into my favorit browser is something that can hardly be surpassed…
I use both and both have their advantages and sometimes disadvantages.
I use Outlook for local storage of certain emails collected from my ISP after
Mailwasher has checked it for Spam etc.
Online, I have several email addresses each one serves a purpose and gives me a way of tracking
replies.
I’ve found gmail to be the most reliable.
Sorry,
but what is the advantage of working with those addresses of your in web browser and not poping or imaping them into your outlook ?
I use Thunderbird simply because getting mail off my local POP is usually much faster than getting it via the web. And my ISP includes good anti-spam and anti-virus, the latter good enough that avast’s never “seen” any problems yet simply because they’re caught before they get to me.
As for the problem of time-outs … if I’m composing something that’s likely to take a while, I’ll usually do that off-line in Notepad (or whatever) and then copy-and-paste into a mail message when it’s ready.
But if you use Thunderbird, is there any reason (that I am not aware of) to use notepad instead of composing your post right in thunderbird application? You can, after all, put away sending the post off for as long as you need and it won’t get lost, am I right?
so i guess for people that have multiple email addresses, like me, is more convenient to use an email client to collect all your messages in one place.
So what would be a better option, POP/POP3 or IMAP? What’s the difference?
IMAP, is usually better than POP/POP3 but not all ISPs support it. You can however get a free GMail address which does support IMAP.
IMAP uses Mail folders located on the Mail server for mail storage. But usually the mail stays on the server with IMAP. So say you are reading your mail on your desktop and have to go, you can use your laptop or Smartphone to continue reading you mail where you left off. Whereas if you were using POP3 all the mail would have been downloaded to your desktop and only be there.
What IMAP does is “Syncs” each of your devices mail folders with the servers copy.
Put simply IMAP is the preferred protocol when using the same account between multiple devices, say a computer and your Smartphone or between multiple PCs/Macs.
so if i use IMAP and deletes an email, it will also be deleted on the server right?
The intention of IMAP is to keep all devices “synced” with the latest status.
So if you use one device to delete an email then pretty soon that status should be reflected in all the devices.
This is an important difference from those folks who think that if they “accidentally” delete an email in their mail client it can still be found on the server. In IMAP your actions are quickly made the same on the server.
well explained, thanks people ;D
This is the only incorrect part of your post, otherwise I agree with everything you said. But concerning the pop3, I think all email clients have options “to leave the message on the server” and if they don’t, then the message is left there automatically.
Also, as Alanrf wrote, if you delete an email in your client with IMAP, then you won’t have it anymore anywhere.
IMAP procotol is newer and more sophisticated,
BUT:
1.
POP3 is generally safer. Some mail clients (my M2 eg) do not process IMAP quite correctly…
2.
While most of mail providers give enable POP3 free of charge, it is not so with IMAP, quite the contrary, only few do so.
3.
I don’t use outlook anymore so I am not sure if it enables what other clients do, ie. to connect to as many email addresses as you wish. And in that case IMAP will most probably have problems. Since it mirrors your server settings, all addresses would have to have the same settings and even then the problems can still persist.
It is I think more convenient to organize folders in your comp only and download and arrange the post from several addresses there, than to do it on several servers, where you would have to reflect any change in disposition in all of them. For that reason and after many tries I selected POP3 as my protocol and I am very satisfied with it.
Just a couple of observations.
Almost all mail clients still default to “delete mail from the server” in POP. That’s the way it started out when POP was created (long, long ago) and space server space was precious. The wary user needs to make sure to select the option to “retain mail on the server” or risk finding it has all gone after the first download.
There are quite a few free IMAP offers now. Two of the larger services that come to mind are Gmail and AOL.
And please, do you have some experience with more than one IMAP connectet to the mail client?
Does it not interfere somehow?
I have multiple IMAP accounts running with Thunderbird along side a rather larger number of POP accounts without any problems.
Thanks for that info.
I see that based on my experience with M2 I falsely supposed there might be common problems with multiple IMAP which you prove to be untrue.
Just out of curiosity: why do you still keep some of your accounts POP3ed?
Is it because provider does not provide IMAP or because there are still some problems?
It is I think more convenient to organize folders in your comp only and download and arrange the post from several addresses there, than to do it on several servers, where you would have to reflect any change in disposition in all of them. For that reason and after many tries I selected POP3 as my protocol and I am very satisfied with it.In gmail, it's also very easy to set up folders and save your mail according to their subjects. With the amount of storage they supply, you'll most likely never run out of e-mail storage space. :) (Provided you use it strictly for e-mail)