How is your email organised? Neat folders or pure CHAOS?
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Buddy Bradley
Pantheistic solipsist
Work: Everything in one big folder in Mac Mail, search function can find anything I need.
Online: Gmail at Inbox Zero.
Home: Folders for specific accounts in Mac Mail, but otherwise it's the search function again.
When I was on Outlook I had dozens of folders, but since switching to Mac I've never needed them.
Online: Gmail at Inbox Zero.
Home: Folders for specific accounts in Mac Mail, but otherwise it's the search function again.
When I was on Outlook I had dozens of folders, but since switching to Mac I've never needed them.
Gmart
Well-Known Member
Yep, that's about right. Have a hotmail account thousands large and can't find anything.
Is it worth installing Thunderbird or equivalent? Or are they unable to liaise with free hotmail?
the button
out on the kocker
I have a dizzying array of folders. And I use the "flag" function so I can prioritise the responses. 
untethered
For industry & decency
I use Gmail. It would take a medical emergency to stop me getting to inbox zero at 7am, 1pm and 6pm every day.
The trick: don't read 90% of it.
The trick: don't read 90% of it.
FridgeMagnet
Administrator
Clicking "archive" in Gmail is not filing. In theory, I could dump all my mail into one big folder called "Archive" and then try to use Spotlight to find everything again. In practice, this just doesn't work. I tried it, and the thing is that not every email that you want to see as part of a group actually contains relevant terms that appear in every other. Either you tag them all - which is basically foldering - or you lose some.
I now use an Mail.app plugin called MailTags which actually adds relevant data to the header of the message - you can set tags and projects and notes, as well as automatically turn email into to-dos or calendar entries with it. I file into a dozen or so folders in addition to that, and I make temporary folders for little projects which I then empty into the parent folder when that project is done with.
But actually, in most cases I clip the relevant text from the email and file it elsewhere with the rest of my project information, so I never need to look back at the email. The idea of email being a communication medium rather than an archival medium appeals to me, as I have so many damn archives that I really, really do not want to have to try to cross-reference different ones to see all of the information about a project at once glance.
I now use an Mail.app plugin called MailTags which actually adds relevant data to the header of the message - you can set tags and projects and notes, as well as automatically turn email into to-dos or calendar entries with it. I file into a dozen or so folders in addition to that, and I make temporary folders for little projects which I then empty into the parent folder when that project is done with.
But actually, in most cases I clip the relevant text from the email and file it elsewhere with the rest of my project information, so I never need to look back at the email. The idea of email being a communication medium rather than an archival medium appeals to me, as I have so many damn archives that I really, really do not want to have to try to cross-reference different ones to see all of the information about a project at once glance.
Guineveretoo
Mostly bewildered
My work email is somewhat ordered, although not completely, but my personal email is just a muddle.
youve never deleted an email EVER?? wow...
i delete them as soon as i read them usually...its still a mess though cause i read the ones that have an interesting subject/or that i want to read and go past the ones i dont til some other time...so its a big mess...but i dont save em after i read em (usually)
damn, you may hold some sort of record.
Boczkowski
has 'deleted his account'
I have far too many bloody email accounts
some are organised
most are not
I'm trying to migrate everything over to smaller number of Gmail accounts and will use one master Gmail acct to check all the other accounts and then use coloured labels to differentiate - all good as long as I am checking stuff online via Gmail and not using my PDA or Thunderbird, all organisation and labels etc goes out of the window then. I think I need to simplify what should be an already simple life
some are organised
most are not
I'm trying to migrate everything over to smaller number of Gmail accounts and will use one master Gmail acct to check all the other accounts and then use coloured labels to differentiate - all good as long as I am checking stuff online via Gmail and not using my PDA or Thunderbird, all organisation and labels etc goes out of the window then. I think I need to simplify what should be an already simple life
cesare
shady's dreams ♥
I have far too many bloody email accounts
some are organised
most are not
I'm trying to migrate everything over to smaller number of Gmail accounts and will use one master Gmail acct to check all the other accounts and then use coloured labels to differentiate - all good as long as I am checking stuff online via Gmail and not using my PDA or Thunderbird, all organisation and labels etc goes out of the window then. I think I need to simplify what should be an already simple life
Is there any reason why you don't have all your email accounts routed through Outlook (or similar) so they're all in one place?
beesonthewhatnow
going deaf for a living
I only ever have around 20-30 emails, once they've been read/delt with I just delete them, why people keep stuff going back years I have no idea...
cesare
shady's dreams ♥
For me, saving them means that I don't have to print and store them (work).
Boczkowski
has 'deleted his account'
2.0 innit
I use:
PDA
laptop
2 PC's
computers at various libraries and at various Uni campus sites
mainly because different things are done in different places
Just easier if it online - I tried to stick with Tbird running from a usb stick but I was feart of losing it to be honest.
My Digitil life......left on the bus along with my phone, or dropped down the bog on a night out - no thanks - I'd rather trust someone else's RAID array
I use:
PDA
laptop
2 PC's
computers at various libraries and at various Uni campus sites
mainly because different things are done in different places
Just easier if it online - I tried to stick with Tbird running from a usb stick but I was feart of losing it to be honest.
My Digitil life......left on the bus along with my phone, or dropped down the bog on a night out - no thanks - I'd rather trust someone else's RAID array
cesare
shady's dreams ♥
Ah, right. I tend to be in one location even if using different pooters, so I tend to only use the webmail versions if I'm out and about, then download em all when I get back.
Yep, I'm very careful with USB sticks too!
FridgeMagnet
Administrator
Well, this is the advantage of IMAP. You can have as many clients as you want wherever you want (I have about six on various devices) or use webmail, and it's all in sync.
cesare
shady's dreams ♥
Is there any particular advantage over POP if you save all emails to just the one pooter though?
19sixtysix
Bring me sunshine
No folders, because Search is king
^^^^^^
This. Before mac mail i had outlook and it fucked up when I hit and invisible wall of numbers of emails per folder. I downloaded my mail with it to end up with -32000 odd unread emails. Microsoft just so shit.
Sorted it out and can see most of my emails since 1999.
All my older emails since 1996 were with a mail programme leemail.
I have to use mac classic to access those.
Search functions is king with email.
beesonthewhatnow
going deaf for a living
Why on earth do you need emails from 1996? 
Pingu
Credo
in true geek fashion I have transcended the norms of just having separate folders.
I have my own exchange server and various email accounts I use for different things. so not only do I have diff folders I also have different accounts each with their own folders. all neatly automated, full text indexed and available via OWA or via a full client.
I have my own exchange server and various email accounts I use for different things. so not only do I have diff folders I also have different accounts each with their own folders. all neatly automated, full text indexed and available via OWA or via a full client.
19sixtysix
Bring me sunshine
Why on earth do you need emails from 1996?
Don't need them. Mostly personal stuff. It don't take up much room. Why press delete.
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