[LINK] Eudora email moves to open source

[Ivan Trundle]

On 14/11/2006, at 11:15 AM, Roger Clarke wrote:

> G'day Ivan
>
>> On 14/11/2006, at 10:14 AM, Peter Batchelor wrote:
>>>  Linkers might be interested in the following...
>>>  http://www.eudora.com/
>>>  Eudora email moves to open source development and delivers final  
>>> commercial version -- Eudora 7.1 for Windows and 6.2.4 for Mac OSX.
>
> Ivan replied:
>> People still use Eudora on Mac OS X? That's got me interested...
>
> Yep.  Currently the final 6.2.4, until recently 6.1.
>
> What's your recommendation(s), and why's it/they superior?

I've tried a number of options, ranging from Eudora to Entourage/ 
Outlook, QuickMail to Mailsmith, and GroupWise to Apple Mail. I've  
stuck with Apple Mail. Numerous reasons: at one stage I was looking  
for an integrated tool that would allow me to closely manage events  
and appointments with mail (and tasks). I don't think that any tool  
has achieved this with the combination of security and cross-platform  
compatibility, so I've pretty much abandoned that path. Plus, a  
change of employer made all the difference. For what it's worth, the  
front-end of Novell's GroupWise was, a long time ago, so far ahead  
that I regarded it as superior to anything else long past its use-by  
date. I suspect that Eudora followers would feel the same.

These days, what is offered in the combination of Apple Mail, iCal,  
AddressBook, and Safari offer me the tools that I need. Apple Mail's  
junk filter is robust enough to do the job (with some caveats - I use  
dspam as well, remotely), the interface very well thought out - and  
with enough smarts under the hood to go unappreciated by even Mac  
enthusiasts - and the overall reliability extremely good. Plus, I can  
export out my mailbox and prefs at any time, into virtually any other  
mail client.

>
> I've always avoided using browser and email from the same supplier,  
> because of the risk of correlation of messages with browsing- 
> behaviour.

Not any concern on a Macintosh - the browser of choice does not  
'integrate' anywhere nearly as much as in Windows to create any kind  
of security risk. I'd rate this a non-issue in the Mac OS X environment.

What I *do* like with Mail, though, is how well it integrates with  
other things, like iPhoto. And how it handles images when sent en  
masse. This is simply very slick indeed. The understated elegance,  
combined with the usual Apple panache at not listing every known  
feature ('content concentrator'? C'mon Eudora!), makes it easier to  
use, imho.


> And given that I use Safari and Mozilla as my main browsers, I've  
> not gone to Apple's email-server.

<snip>

> (I've also had such appallingly bad experience with Macs over the  
> last couple of years that I'm not anticipating staying with them  
> forever and hence would much prefer to use a multi-platform email- 
> client).

My earlier comment about exportability would not be an impediment to  
your choice of platform. I'd be keen to know what has been so  
appallingly bad - this is a rare statement in the Mac world, and  
whilst off-topic, I'd be happy to assist, if I could.

>
> (This message is off-list, but your reply is probably of interest  
> to a reasonable number of linkers - and this is open to everyone if  
> you do reply to the list as a whole).

Okay, though a bit wordy, I'll throw it back at Link...

The anticipated release of OS X 10.5 early next year will introduce  
more compelling features into Apple's Mail software, but I suspect  
that Eudora users will not change for this reason alone, even though  
development on Eudora for Mac has been in fits and starts lately.

However, those that I know have dropped Eudora haven't once  
complained about anything lacking in Mail. I suspect it's down to  
personal preferences and taste in interface design. Some pine  
(deliberate pun intended) for different mail checking intervals for  
different accounts; option-clicking to select like senders, subjects,  
etc; option to NOT use Apple's AddressBook, and different folder  
arrangements (all of which Eudora can do, but Mail can't) - but I see  
these as being esoteric for most people. On the other hand, Mail  
handles html mail (ugh) better.

I'll say one thing, though - any app that is designed to run on both  
Mac and Windows platforms is invariably compromised - mostly from a  
UI perspective, but often it goes deeper than this - and Mac users  
come off second-best. This applies to the big guns, too (Adobe, are  
you listening?).

My tuppence-worth.

iT