E-mail Apps

[skipwitch]

i hate hate hate microsoft.
vista is killing me. and outlook is the worst email server i've ever used.

do any of you have any experience with viable alternates? i don't want to use the free services, as they look a little unprofessional to say the least. what about lotus? or linux?

-sis

[StupidScript]

There are LOTS of alternative email clients. Thunderbird, from Mozilla, is one that many people use. I use Courier, when I'm using Windows. Pegasus comes to mind ...

Google "email client" and include your operating system of choice for a long list.

(An email "client" is what you would use to collect, read and manage your email from your home computer. An email "server" is what your email company would use to handle email delivery to your email client from their "server" machines.)

[rpoy]

I am using Thunderbird portable and I LOVE it!

http://portableapps.com/

With PortableApps you can load all of these applications onto a thumb drive and take it with you everywhere. You can plug into any computer that has internet access and have access your email.

The biggest thing that I like is that even if there is no internet access you can still access your email and if there is an important attachment you can get to it. Its been working pretty well for me.

If you decide to go this route I would get an 8GB drive or bigger.

[simonr]

Another vote for Thunderbird. So many of my friends and colleagues are using it now I'd even forgotten that it wasn't the 'de facto' standard!

It's also important to differentiate between the application - the email client which you can replace with Thunderbird - and the operating system. Linux and Windows are OSs. One of the reasons we use Thunderbird, by the way, is that it looks pretty much the same on Windows, Mac and Linux and we use all three.

S

[Intelestream]

Thunderbird is great for a few reasons:

1) It is developed by Mozilla - they rock
2) It is incredibly easy to use
3) It is Open Source

Open Source means you can shed the ball and chain that Outlook and others force you to wear. With Thunderbird, your email can be fully tailored to your personal and business needs. It can link up with other programs you use and you can add countless plug-ins like built in Voice over IP, web page previews, and personalized themes.

Oh yeah - the other thing - Its free!

[scott_kersey]

Another vote for Thunderbird. It has come a long, long ways in just the last two years.

One vote for gmail as well. Having 7GB (as of today) of storage is great, but real benefit comes in ability to search for any thread you may have had a week or 3 years ago. The interface can take some getting used, especially if you are coming straight from Outlook but your patience will pay off. I even use gmail as sort of an information repository, i.e. names of contact's spouses, children, address, cell phone numbers, etc.. If there is something I want to jot down, I just send an email to my gmail instead.

Thanks,
Scott Kersey