Today, I have spent an inordinate amount of time evaluating a new e-mail client. I think I like it, but my requirements are extremely strict so the jury is still out. I’ve looked at many e-mail programs over the years and found SO many of them lacking.
Some folks may remember that I use Courier, which is a program that has a number of features that I really like:
1. The ability to manage multiple e-mail accounts easily. I have seven that I work with regularly. (I actually have 8 or 9, but I don’t really use a couple of them.)
2. The ability to delete unwanted e-mail on the server. I have never received anything evil via e-mail because it never gets downloaded to my computer in the first place.
3. The ability to create e-mail templates. I use templates for our newsletters (Logical Tips, Pet Tails and the Sandpoint Insider).
4. It’s not Outlook. As I’ve ranted in the past, I think Outlook and all its variants are horrible and the source of much online badness. (No one but YOU should be able to touch your address book, and Microsoft made a huge mistake by making it possible for the nefarious to access it.)
So why am I switching? The short answer is that James is returning to Logical Expressions, Inc. and it would be great to have some of the groupware and PIM functions that are in Outlook. The trouble is, as noted, I won’t use Outlook (or LookOut as we call it around here).
Enter Barca Pro from the folks at Poco Systems. These are the folks who created a reasonably well-known e-mail client called PocoMail.
I’m not thrilled with how Barca deals with accessing just headers on the server, but it’s filtering seems to be great. I can have the filters scan for junk on the server, so I still don’t download anything bad. Plus, Barca’s shared calendars, To Do List, Notes, and planning features are cool. They should make working with the returning LEI employee a lot easier. Even better, I figured out how to import my old Courier address book and e-mail folders. (I have a LOT of folders.)
But I still have a long way to go. So over this long weekend, I’ll see if I can get myself and Barca up to speed. However, if next weeks’ Logical Tips looks weird, now you know why.