[Novalug] Email update: Switched to Evolution from pine.

[Maxwell Spangler]

I received a lot of good comments about mail programs recently,
including:

Greg Przyby wrote:
"User error. Thunderbird does all that Evolution does from a mail
client. Or at least that is my experience, and it isn't bloated like
Evolution."

After reading these comments, I fired up Thunderbird and went looking
for features.  Sure enough, Thunderbird seems to have all the features
I'm relying on in Evolution: Easily setup folders, message filters to
place incoming mail in folders, three-column views to show folders,
message headers and messages at the same time, and search options.

So that means for years I've probably had two very good mail readers
under my nose but I was too complacent with pine to really give them a
chance.

It is a personal decision of mine to cautiously but steadily try new
things and cautiously select those that make my life better.  For those
of us with computer backgrounds that have integrated computers to our
daily lives, switching email programs can be a disruptive experience
that is positive or negative in outcomes.  My postings about my own
experiences are so that others, especially the lurkers on the list can
see what I'm doing and be aware of the pluses and minuses for their own
choices.

That said, here's what I'm really enjoying about Evolution (which could
be said for Thunderbird as well, we think.)

* I really like HTML mail.  I know there is some concern about this for
security and privacy reasons, but after years of *always* getting my
mail in text only format, HTML mail seems like a cool new novelty.
Welcome to 1999, indeed, it is very colourful here!  I could launch
links in pine's email messages and have them appear in firefox, but I
want the quick and easy approach that an integrated mail reader with
html viewer give me.

* I like not having to edit procmail files.  Editing configuration files
gives the user power and if you're up for it, that's great.  But being
able to setup a new rule in 4-5 clicks with a GUI is the way I want it.

* I'm getting used to, but enjoying three-paned views.  Folders on the
left, a 'browse' of messages in the middle, and messages displayed (text
or html) on the right.  Text email readers never seemed to embrace this
because they always seemed to think in terms of 80x25 screens as their
primary environment.  With GUI, things are a lot more flexible and I
like the results.

* I like having massive amounts of email to search for quick retrieval
of information.  I never did this in pine, I just saved messages to one
big directory of many little files and I'd poke through them if I wanted
to find something.  Using gmail made archiving and search required
features and was one of the primary reasons I wanted to get away from
pine.  Search in Evolution works well, and fast.

Finally ditching pine marks the end of an era for me.  I've been hacking
away at computers since the early 1980s and I've stayed with Linux
because of the power and control that it gives me.  But I've always
wanted an elegant, beautiful, user-friendly GUI environment over a
supposedly powerful, cryptic text environment.  I wanted a Mac when I
first touched one in 1985.  I wanted a NeXT when I first read about them
in 1987.  And I was thrilled when GNOME was announced for Linux.  So it
took all that time to finally get me to a portable computer, running a
Unix style OS with a pretty GUI on top that doesn't require me to use a
shell.. Unless I want to.  Pretty cool, 2008!