POP v IMAP (Google Mail)

As I mentioned, I said I'd try IMAP again to see if the alleged
improvements in Apple Mail and Gmail IMAP were true. Or at least
useful. So into the breach - I've been using it since Sunday evening.

While IMAP works fine, it creates a distraction in that items that are
automatically trashed (spam, etc) on the Google Mail server are now
visible in Apple mail as a growing badge count in Trash. A distraction
and no clear way to eliminate that. When I trash spam (etc) on Google's
server but otherwise use POP for access, then that trash is not visible
in Apple Mail on my Mac. So I don't see it, I don't have to clear it.

(Note that I have Apple mail set to not show a count of unopened mail
that I trash automatically. That works fine for all the POP accounts,
but for IMAP it seems immune - if that alone were fixed on the Apple
Mail side, all would be fine).

Also some strange behaviour wrt to archived mails on Gmail occasionally
popping into view in the archive folder in Gmail.

So, as I (and a few others) keep saying, there are situations where IMAP
is not appropriate (or Golidlocksian "just right") for home users and
this is one of them.

Back to POP (which requires mild subterfuge in Apple Mail for Google
accounts).

 

You can try Thunderbird as email client. It has far fewer bells and
whistles and less likely to have you participate in phishing scams.

There may also be preferences in Apple Mail that disable the badging of
folders on remote mailboxes.

You need to remember that IMAP gives your email cleint a view on your
complete remote mailbox. You can create folders on the remote mailbox,
move mail to/from it and organise all your mail on the remote mailbox.
That organisation is automaticxally reflected on all your devices.

For instance, prior to leaving ona trip, I create a folder with all
relevant emails (reservations, boarding passes etc) on my desktop. And
that folder automatically becomes available on my iPhone and Laptop
which I bring with me on the trip (or just iPhone).

Other advantage is that if you read an email on any device, it is marked
as read when you access your mailbox from any other device.

 

Again, Gmail is not IMAP. It is sort of like IMAP. It can work with an
IMAP client, mostly.

It is *not* IMAP. Judging IMAP based on Gmail (and especially on gmail
with a specific client) is a bit like judging rugby based on seeing a
FIFA World Cup qualifier or an NFL game.

 

I have been using Mail and Gmail together in IMAP form for several years
and experience NONE of these issues. I suspect your setup is not fully
correct.

 

Well, there is...

....MailMate gives you complete control of them.

http://manual.mailmate-app.com/preferences#counters_notifications

Example screen shots -

http://MIX.COM/MailMateCounters.png

Billy Y..

 

I occasionally glance at my mail (on my side screen) to see if anything
has come in. No badges - nothing to do. The mere presence of the badge
is enough to cause me pause (and I have, at some point, to clear them).
Distraction and yet another bit of housekeeping to do.

But Howard nudged me to look at a filter condition on GMail that I
hadn't considered and indeed it can set the trashed e-mail as "unread"
... so I'll try IMAP again when I have some time later this week.

 

I used to use it on Windows and was very satisfied with it for mail.

When I first got a Mac I used Apple Mail but wasn't very happy with it
so I began using Thunderbird (since I use it for usenet anyway...).

But I deal with a lot of attachments for various apps, esp. MS Office,
pdf and images. Thunderbird's marriage to OS X in that respect was
pretty poor.

Eventually I went back to Apple Mail and I've stuck with it. Not but
the best integration with OS X for what I do.

If there are, I can't find them. I looked. It does work for local
(POP'd) messages. After reading Howard's message it occurred to me that
I hadn't gone deep enough on the Gmail side. See my reply to him.

No shit.

 

Thanks Howard, it seems you're right! I was looking for the solution on
the Apple Mail side when it is on the Gmail side.

I just looked at Gmail settings and I see that in my filters I was not
marking filtered and trashed SPAM as "read".

So I'll give it another try when I get 'roundtuit.

 

This is an oldy but a goody.

I imagine some of it is out of date but I learned a lot from it.

http://db.tidbits.com/article/10253