Thunderbird (Mozilla) E-mail

[Bob in a quantum-state-of-faith]

In case anyone's missed out, Thunderbird is the Mozilla project's e-mail client/program.  It's a direct replacement for Outlook/Outlook Express.

It is too cool, really.

Since my main box is still down (awaiting parts) I decided to import my E-mail from my main drive onto my laptop.

Could not have been simpler.

No--really!  Anyone could do it, easy.

Download and install Thunderbird.

Create a bogus e-mail account using your name-- doesn't matter what you put into the settings, it's gonna get overwritten.

Exit Thunderbird (to the desktop).

Locate the profile on your old drive/computer-- look under "Documents and Settings" folder for the Thunderbird profile.

Locate the newly created profile under your current/working computer.

Now, copy all the files from your old drive/profile into your new one.

Restart Thunderbird-- and behold!  All your settings, files, old e-mails, passwords, etc are now working, just like on your old pc.

For Thunderbird, backup is truly a backup of everything!  

(contrast this with Outlook/OE-- you must extract Registry settings to get your actual account stuff.  And all your e-mails are stored in a single file!  That if corrupted, all is lost.   *bleah* )

[beagle]

Watch out when dropping attachments on the body of messages though. I'm regularly explaining to Thunderbird users that unlike Outlook or Windows Mail it only attaches a link which is why the recipient didn't get it.
Dropping it to the RHS of the recipient caption bar works. 

This one catches most people moving from Outlook.

[Sibling Zono (anon1mat0)]

Thunderbird is nice but I got so used to the regular gmail interface that I don't use a hard client anymore. There was a time in which I used Outlook because it supported hotmail but they decided to discontinue support for their Live thing. In the end I only receive chain letters on that account so...

[Bob in a quantum-state-of-faith]

Watch out when dropping attachments on the body of messages though. I'm regularly explaining to Thunderbird users that unlike Outlook or Windows Mail it only attaches a link which is why the recipient didn't get it.
Dropping it to the RHS of the recipient caption bar works. 

This one catches most people moving from Outlook.

Almost never send attachments.

Rarely, when I do, I use the menu (click add attachment or whatever, browse to said attachment, etc) -- I never "drag and drop" stuff-- it's apt to end up somewhere I can't find it.

I loathe the "mac way" of doing things anyway....  Too counter-intuitive for this "I learned computing with FORTRAN and a typewriter and I don' wanna learn new computin' no hows" guy.