Email Client Recommendations

Simon · Oct 22, 2011, 17:07:12

Thanks Dave.

Rik · Oct 22, 2011, 17:17:45

davej99 · Oct 23, 2011, 15:38:46

Just when I thought I was home and dry, I found that Outlook does not display embedded images. They are present in the import from winmail, but do not display, showing only redx boxes. Is this normal behavior does anyone know, please, or am I missing a trick?

Simon · Oct 23, 2011, 15:52:14

Tools > Options > Security > Change Automatic Download Settings might be worth a look.

davej99 · Oct 23, 2011, 16:23:17

Thx Simon,

If I receive a new message in Outlook with an embedded image, the image is viewable. If I view an message imported from Winmail I can't see the image but it is attached. Problem must be with the export wizard. Behaviour common to a push export in Winmail or as a pull import in Outlook. Heaven bless microsoft.

Steve · Oct 23, 2011, 16:25:06

Is there a repair option? But probably not for the faint hearted.

davej99 · Oct 23, 2011, 16:29:52

Behaviour common to fresh and scanned/repaired imports. Curiously in newly received messages, image can be viewed but does not animate. Just when I thought it was safe to change email clients... zum, zum .... zum, zum!

Rik · Oct 23, 2011, 16:31:43

Computers. You can't live with them, you can't live without them.

Steve · Oct 23, 2011, 16:43:48

Maybe of use http://www.msoutlook.info/question/107

FritzBox · Oct 23, 2011, 20:18:08

Opera, built in mail client, why use two programmes when one will do?

Simon · Oct 23, 2011, 21:08:32

I feel the same about Sea Monkey.

davej99 · Oct 24, 2011, 00:36:40

Well, it seems it is not possible to transition from Windows Mail, descendant of the much loved Outlook Express, to either Windows Live Mail or Outlook 2007 if you want to bring a large message database with you accurately.

After importing Windows Mail messages, Live Mail recognises only foreshortened folder names and original folder creation location in the message tree, requiring lengthy manual corrections. Outlook does a good job importing messages but it cannot display embedded images. Apparently "the behaviour is by design," or rather the lack of it.

After successfully migrating the same message database since windows 95, I am at an end. My writings are "legacy." I am no more; I have ceased to be; I am an ex-communicator, which is probably a very good thing.

Glenn · Oct 24, 2011, 06:56:59

Dave, you need to get an EML to PST converter, there are several about, I can't see a free MS tool for it though.

Glenn · Oct 24, 2011, 07:16:39

This may help http://www.outlookfreeware.com/en/products/all/OutlookMessagesImportEML/

davej99 · Oct 24, 2011, 10:17:11

Quote from: Glenn on Oct 24, 2011, 07:16:39
This may help http://www.outlookfreeware.com/en/products/all/OutlookMessagesImportEML/

Thanks, Glenn. That looks like a usefull site. I'll give some of the utilities a whirl.

I was getting what I thought was an accurate transfer from Winmail to Outlook 2007 of some 6000 messages using the MS export/import wizards provided, except Outlook would not display embedded images for imported messages, though it would for new messages. This seems to be a known issue and I believe it to be by design. Nor does Outlook display gif animations by design.

Import to Live mail does give readable embedded images, but it imports foreshortened filenames arising because of the 15 character limit and places folders in the position in the message tree they were created not where they might have been moved to, because the import to Livemail does not look at the complete OE/Winmail database, again by design.

There remains the possibility to transfer from Winmail to Outlook to Livemail but the latter is not supported by MS, so this is where 3rd party utilities may be of help too.

Thx again, Dave.

davej99 · Oct 27, 2011, 13:44:50

Well, I think it is pretty clear Microsoft read this form, because, bingo, SP3 for Office appeared on my updates today. And behold, I can now view embedded images in messages imported from Winmail.

But of course this is Microsoft, so expect a twist. We are not still allowed to view .gif animations, just the first frame. It's a security issue apparently. In Outlook 2007 email rendering and editing moved from Internet Explorer to a Word. This has its merits but fun .gif animation is not one of them.

One might conclude that rather than fix vulnerabilities in IE it is better to debilitate Outlook.

So the Microsoft email client options are:
Winmail - unsupported since 2006, able to animate but not available post Vista,
Live Mail - able to animate but not able to import message folders intact from Winmail.
Outlook - quite expensive, versatile, but unable to animate, other than by using the clunky open in browser option.

In other words MS does not have a fun friendly, migratable email client beyond Vista Windows mail.

Rik · Oct 27, 2011, 13:54:41

To be fair to them, there was a period when we had to ban avatars, Dave, due to potential security issues. Many people won't accept HTML mail because it's riskier than plain text. I guess it's one of those "You can't please everyone" situations. Despite the obvious level of use here, Outlook is aimed at the business community, so I guess the focus is different to that of Live Mail.