Email Puzzle (Can you figure it out?)

planetkarl · 22 Mar 2005, 05:00 PM

OK, here is my problem.

I have two main email accounts.
One is POP3, the other is IMAP.

I have two main computers.
One is at home, one is at work.
Both are laptops, which I don't want to have to lug around

I also have a PDA which I want to synchronize with all my email, calendar and contacts.

What I want to do, is to have all my email in ONE place, with the ability to check it from anywhere.

I do this now like this:
- I use outlook at home, and use rules to push my POP3 mail into my IMAP account. This does not always work properly, especially with sent items
- I sync my emails, contacts and calendar with my PocketPC
- I sync my pst file (with mainly my contacts and calendar) to a small usb hard drive (I also sync my desktop and my documents)
Then, at work,
- I use my PocketPC to handle my contacts and calendar (and use my USB hard drive in case it screws up, such as dead battery etc.)
- I use Thunderbird at work which does a good job of dumping my pop3 mail into my IMAP account
(I also remapped my work computer to have my desktop and my documents come from my usb hard drive)

Now as you see, this is an overly complex process and I am losing my mind. I basically want to carry as little as possible to and from work, but not have such a complex process.

I used to carry my laptop around, but it proved more of a burden than it was worth, such as when I had someplace to go after work, etc.

Can anyone figure out this puzzle?

planetkarl · 22 Mar 2005, 05:08 PM

Just to preempt any responses, I need to have my calendar and contacts synced at least between the two computers.

I also have tried Bynari Insight Connector but it always crashes my outlook.

I sometimes have to hard reset my PDA which makes it a bit unreliable to use as a go between.

New info:
Before I forget, my pop3 account cannot forward mail, nor can my IMAP account pull mail off a pop3 account.

I have also thought of using an intermediary accoutn such as bluebottle, but again that makes things more complicated, plus it adds new restrictions to my email traffic that was not there before. (my IMAP account has 300megs of storage with almost unlimited attachment size)

I used to use both accounts as pop3 and "leave mail on server" so I had access to the mail on the web, but that left on the server a huge inbox with thousands of messages. IMAP gives me the ability to have my mail sorted and stored online.

And before I forget: IMAP is annoyingly slow, which makes me want everything local like pop3. Can you make IMAP act like pop3 in outlook?

The Storm · 22 Mar 2005, 05:20 PM

Wow! What a complicated request! I just wanted to *bump* up the thread so one of the really super tech's can answer it!

(is there a million dollar prize for figuring out the solution!

)

yashsr · 22 Mar 2005, 07:04 PM

If I am not wrong, Fusemail has a unique feature, I do not understand it properly, its related to mail clients. Check this link----
http://www.fusemail.com/about/howitworks.html
------------

I will search in Fusemail forums and try to find to a solution for you if possible.

I want to the million dollars that The storm just mentioned.

Just kidding.

SusanUKF · 22 Mar 2005, 08:20 PM

I chose webmail only, because I have Outlook Express on the pc (my isp email is there) but I never remember to check it. I only check it every few months. I prefer to use Fastmail for anything of any significance and all of my friends have one or more of my fastmail addresses to write to me. I really love webmail the best.

Susan.

planetkarl · 22 Mar 2005, 08:43 PM

@yashsr- Fusemail sounds great! It does pretty much most of what I want, but it's not perfect.
Unfortunatley I do not want to pay even more money for my webmail. Just one more complicated expense I would rather do without....

@Susan- I don't like webmail because the interface is far too slow. When I go from mail to mail, I don't want to wait a few seconds for it to come up. Also, I need the ability to work on my mail offline, and on shaky connections.

Thanks again

yashsr · 23 Mar 2005, 12:54 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by planetkarl
@yashsr- Fusemail sounds great! It does pretty much most of what I want, but it's not perfect.
Unfortunatley I do not want to pay even more money for my webmail. Just one more complicated expense I would rather do without....

@Susan- I don't like webmail because the interface is far too slow. When I go from mail to mail, I don't want to wait a few seconds for it to come up. Also, I need the ability to work on my mail offline, and on shaky connections.

Thanks again

I think you are asking too much for no/less money, aren't you? If you do not prefer to pay for emails, hmmmmm, you can go for Gmail/Bluebottle, but as I said, I do not have much idea about email clients.

Webmail interfaces, though slower, are much more simpler and hassle-free.

And can you please elaborate on the line "Fusemail is not perfect".

Thanks for starting this interesting little thread, I am loving
every bit of it.

**ReuvenNY** · 23 Mar 2005, 01:40 AM

Welcome to the forum, planetkarl! If you have a USB "thumb drive", you can install a Portable Thunderbird version and carry it with you from computer to computer. All your POP and IMAP accounts (settings) will be there, along with all your POP emails, so no matter which computer you are using - it's with you!
Here is the site from where you can download it:

http://johnhaller.com/jh/mozilla/portable_thunderbird/

planetkarl · 23 Mar 2005, 07:58 AM

@yashr- I already pay for my email hosting, and I already spent money on a usb drive, so adding another cost does not seem appealing.

Fusemail is not perfect in these ways:
It adds another step to my email.
It costs money.
Their mail service is limited by the limitations of IMAP.

Don't get me wrong though, you might see me switch to fusemail as that seems like the best solution at this point.

@ReuvenNY - I have a USB Hard drive (not a thumb drive) and the idea you mentioned sounds great, although that does not solve the problem of bringing my calendar, contacts and notes from outlook.

Sunbird seems to be still too early in development, and does not seems to support syncing with my PocketPC.

I will take a look at that link though, thanks.

**ReuvenNY** · 23 Mar 2005, 09:15 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by planetkarl

@ReuvenNY - I have a USB Hard drive (not a thumb drive) and the idea you mentioned sounds great, although that does not solve the problem of bringing my calendar, contacts and notes from outlook.

If you buy a big enough thumb drive (a 2 Gig is available) you can probably install an Outlook compatible PIM on it along with the portable Thunderbird.

planetkarl · 23 Mar 2005, 09:46 AM

Quote:

If you buy a big enough thumb drive (a 2 Gig is available) you can probably install an Outlook compatible PIM on it along with the portable Thunderbird.

The reason I got a usb hard drive (laptop size) is because it still fits in my pocket and I have about 3-4 gigs of files that I like to have with me.

An Outlook compatible PIM sounds great though. I use Outlook for 3 main reasons: excellent contact, calendar and notes, ability to track appointments and email with contacts and, the great interface.
Of course the fact that it is compatible with most everything I use is pretty nice too.

I would love to find a replacement for Outlook if possible, so if you could steer me in the right direction, I would be much obliged.

planetkarl · 23 Mar 2005, 11:28 AM

Maybe I should clarify exactly what I am looking for.

I would like to have my email, contacts and calendar both at work and at home.
I would like to be able to access my email online from anywhere.

My calendar and contacts on my PDA is good enough for mobility.

Thanks again guys for all your help... I appreciate your time

planetkarl · 23 Mar 2005, 01:51 PM

Maybe someone could suggest an free email forwarding service that I could use simply to move my POP mail into my IMAP account?

That would at least simplify things a bit for me...

**ReuvenNY** · 23 Mar 2005, 02:00 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by planetkarl
Maybe someone could suggest an free email forwarding service that I could use simply to move my POP mail into my IMAP account?

That would at least simplify things a bit for me...

Many email services that support IMAP, have what's called POP email checking of external accounts. I regularly check my ISP's POP mail with Fastmail (I think once an hour), so I never login to my POP account.
The only reason I keep that account is because my ISP sends various notifications there.

planetkarl · 23 Mar 2005, 07:20 PM

Quote:

Many email services that support IMAP, have what's called POP email checking of external accounts.

Nope, I wish I had that service, but as I said before: My IMAP acount cannot get mail from external POP3 accounts, and my POP3 account cannot forward mail.

View Poll Results: Which primary email client do you use?
Outlook 2002 or earlier	0	0%
Outlook 2003	4	20.00%
Thunderbird	5	25.00%
Eudora	0	0%
Web based only	6	30.00%
Some other one you have never hear of	5	25.00%
Voters: 20. You may not vote on this poll

22 Mar 2005, 05:00 PM	#1
planetkarl Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Shanghai Posts: 12	Email Puzzle (Can you figure it out?) OK, here is my problem. I have two main email accounts. One is POP3, the other is IMAP. I have two main computers. One is at home, one is at work. Both are laptops, which I don't want to have to lug around I also have a PDA which I want to synchronize with all my email, calendar and contacts. What I want to do, is to have all my email in ONE place, with the ability to check it from anywhere. I do this now like this: - I use outlook at home, and use rules to push my POP3 mail into my IMAP account. This does not always work properly, especially with sent items - I sync my emails, contacts and calendar with my PocketPC - I sync my pst file (with mainly my contacts and calendar) to a small usb hard drive (I also sync my desktop and my documents) Then, at work, - I use my PocketPC to handle my contacts and calendar (and use my USB hard drive in case it screws up, such as dead battery etc.) - I use Thunderbird at work which does a good job of dumping my pop3 mail into my IMAP account (I also remapped my work computer to have my desktop and my documents come from my usb hard drive) Now as you see, this is an overly complex process and I am losing my mind. I basically want to carry as little as possible to and from work, but not have such a complex process. I used to carry my laptop around, but it proved more of a burden than it was worth, such as when I had someplace to go after work, etc. Can anyone figure out this puzzle?

22 Mar 2005, 05:08 PM	#2
planetkarl Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Shanghai Posts: 12	Just to preempt any responses, I need to have my calendar and contacts synced at least between the two computers. I also have tried Bynari Insight Connector but it always crashes my outlook. I sometimes have to hard reset my PDA which makes it a bit unreliable to use as a go between. New info: Before I forget, my pop3 account cannot forward mail, nor can my IMAP account pull mail off a pop3 account. I have also thought of using an intermediary accoutn such as bluebottle, but again that makes things more complicated, plus it adds new restrictions to my email traffic that was not there before. (my IMAP account has 300megs of storage with almost unlimited attachment size) I used to use both accounts as pop3 and "leave mail on server" so I had access to the mail on the web, but that left on the server a huge inbox with thousands of messages. IMAP gives me the ability to have my mail sorted and stored online. And before I forget: IMAP is annoyingly slow, which makes me want everything local like pop3. Can you make IMAP act like pop3 in outlook? Last edited by planetkarl : 22 Mar 2005 at 06:22 PM.

22 Mar 2005, 05:20 PM	#3
The Storm Essential Contributor Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: SE Queensland, Australia Posts: 314	Wow! What a complicated request! I just wanted to bump up the thread so one of the really super tech's can answer it! (is there a million dollar prize for figuring out the solution! )

22 Mar 2005, 07:04 PM	#4
yashsr Essential Contributor Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Mumbai, India Posts: 240	If I am not wrong, Fusemail has a unique feature, I do not understand it properly, its related to mail clients. Check this link---- http://www.fusemail.com/about/howitworks.html ------------ I will search in Fusemail forums and try to find to a solution for you if possible. I want to the million dollars that The storm just mentioned. Just kidding.

22 Mar 2005, 08:20 PM	#5
SusanUKF Intergalactic Postmaster Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Canada Posts: 5,428	I chose webmail only, because I have Outlook Express on the pc (my isp email is there) but I never remember to check it. I only check it every few months. I prefer to use Fastmail for anything of any significance and all of my friends have one or more of my fastmail addresses to write to me. I really love webmail the best. Susan.

22 Mar 2005, 08:43 PM	#6
planetkarl Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Shanghai Posts: 12	@yashsr- Fusemail sounds great! It does pretty much most of what I want, but it's not perfect. Unfortunatley I do not want to pay even more money for my webmail. Just one more complicated expense I would rather do without.... @Susan- I don't like webmail because the interface is far too slow. When I go from mail to mail, I don't want to wait a few seconds for it to come up. Also, I need the ability to work on my mail offline, and on shaky connections. Thanks again

23 Mar 2005, 01:40 AM	#8
ReuvenNY Moderator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: New York Posts: 4,259	Welcome to the forum, planetkarl! If you have a USB "thumb drive", you can install a Portable Thunderbird version and carry it with you from computer to computer. All your POP and IMAP accounts (settings) will be there, along with all your POP emails, so no matter which computer you are using - it's with you! Here is the site from where you can download it: http://johnhaller.com/jh/mozilla/portable_thunderbird/

23 Mar 2005, 07:58 AM	#9
planetkarl Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Shanghai Posts: 12	@yashr- I already pay for my email hosting, and I already spent money on a usb drive, so adding another cost does not seem appealing. Fusemail is not perfect in these ways: It adds another step to my email. It costs money. Their mail service is limited by the limitations of IMAP. Don't get me wrong though, you might see me switch to fusemail as that seems like the best solution at this point. @ReuvenNY - I have a USB Hard drive (not a thumb drive) and the idea you mentioned sounds great, although that does not solve the problem of bringing my calendar, contacts and notes from outlook. Sunbird seems to be still too early in development, and does not seems to support syncing with my PocketPC. I will take a look at that link though, thanks.

23 Mar 2005, 11:28 AM	#12
planetkarl Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Shanghai Posts: 12	Maybe I should clarify exactly what I am looking for. I would like to have my email, contacts and calendar both at work and at home. I would like to be able to access my email online from anywhere. My calendar and contacts on my PDA is good enough for mobility. Thanks again guys for all your help... I appreciate your time

23 Mar 2005, 01:51 PM	#13
planetkarl Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Shanghai Posts: 12	Maybe someone could suggest an free email forwarding service that I could use simply to move my POP mail into my IMAP account? That would at least simplify things a bit for me...