BT Webmail Feedback v2 (post 16th April release)

[gg30340]

I do not care whether or not you choose not to use an email client but before totally closing your mind it might be worth you doing a bit of investgation about what an email client does and how simple they are to set up before painting it as the devils work.

And in answer to question about going back to webmail if you don'like using an email client the answer is yes. You do not have to choose one or the other. You can have and use both even on the same device. They are just different ways of accessing your email.

I fully agree BT should provide a working email interface but as yet they have not so that leaves you with using a defective BTMail interface which is presently what you are doing or finding an interface that works such as an email client or of course changing email providers.

As I previously posted, if you use your email using an email app on a mobile device you are already using an email client.

[gg30340]

@Davek100 

Have a read though the "free"  email client Thunderbirds use of your data,

"Thunderbird collects your email domain and other technical data to set-up and configure your email account. Other information, like your name, your email messages, and your account’s address book are stored locally on your computer and never sent to us. Learn more here."

https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/privacy/thunderbird/#:~:text=Thunderbird%20collects%20your%20email%20d....

It is also advert free.

[PeteTH]

@gg30340
Message 331
Thanks for clarifying possibilities with email client option: I will explore if I get time! At the moment, I am happy to live with the (gradually!) improving BT webmail.

[rolluprob]

Just want to add, I tried Thunderbird the other day. Yes, it was set up as IMAP not POP, but it insisted on downloading all the emails that are on my BT Email. And then I noticed, I have 40Gb of data on my account (it says bottom-left on the browser interface). It was taking ages to download everything and - say I was only on a 250Gb SSD (which I'm not) - I'd be very stuck for space on my machine. So it's not a solution for everyone.

[PeteTH]

@rolluprob Message 334
Heard of IMAP and POP but would have to look-up what they mean! However, surely cloud-based storage for emails is the way forward?

[Keith_Beddoe]

@rolluprob 

Just configure it to download mail headers only. Then you can select which message you want to read, and it will download it for you.

Mail headers take up very little space.

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/1327579

"Thunderbird will download headers in all cases to build the local index so it can show what mail is in the folder.

If you turn off the option in account settings > synchronization and storage to keep messages in all folders for this account on this computer then unless you set individual folder options in advanced, only headers for the account will be downloaded. Turn it on and you get the whole message"

[gg30340]

When you first set up an email client it can take a while to fully synch if you have a vast amount of emails. There after it will be instant.

[gg30340]

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@PeteTH wrote:
@rolluprob Message 334
Heard of IMAP and POP but would have to look-up what they mean! However, surely cloud-based storage for emails is the way forward?

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Basically IMAP synch your email account with the BT servers on all your devices so that if you sent an email on one device it will show as sent on all your other devices. Like wise all your folders will be shown and synch. ie add an email to a folder on one device it will show on them all. Same with deleting emails.it is fully in synch with the BT servers and replicates everything that you have there.

POP3 only downloads your email to the device it is on and does not synch with other devices. ie delete or sent on POP3 and it will not synch with outher devices so only shows on that device.

See link

https://support.microsoft.com/en-gb/office/what-are-imap-and-pop-ca2c5799-49f9-4079-aefe-ddca85d5b1c...

[RichardHaselgrove]

@gg30340 

When you first set up an email client ...

Yes, but... I have 10 separate devices at home. Several of them were purchased to debug specific problems which only manifested on specific classes of hardware - so I discussed the problems with the individual developers of the various applications. By - you guessed it - email.

(Actually, only eight of them are at home at the moment - I have two of them with me, 250 miles from home, on a road trip. So my main daily-use desktop isn't available).

And I even, well past retirement, still get called out to provide user support. If I need to refer back to an email in my own account while on site, I may borrow their machine to refer to it. Webmail, in that context, is quick, safe, and secure. Installing a mail client wouldn't be - and violate GDPR in the process. 

We need BOTH options to be available and reliable.

[RogerH27]

I had the same issues woth Thunderbird. Also, needed to go back into BTemail to open a tab to doo a google search, as there seems no obvious way to open a second tab, one thing that it easy and is unchanged with BT email.