AnthemAVM
join:2007-12-01 | Verizon Email on two computers
Hello,
I use FIOS at home, and have two computers I use. Is there a way to get all my messages on two computers in the house with windows mail?
Thanks |
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Hajman
join:2001-12-17
Phoenixville, PA
| If you want the use on either computer to be interchangeable (i.e. so that when you open Windows Mail in either computer, your email boxes (Inbox, Sent, Trash, etc) are the same from computer to computer), you can do this if you have a NAS or always on computer at home.
Verizon's email is a POP3 system so it does not keep track of what happens on the client end (i.e. your 2 home computers). You need to locate your data files for Windows Mail on the NAS/server. Thus, whichever computer you use, it is working from the same server-located data files.
I did this with my email service (not through Verizon) until it switched to IMAP-based email. IMAP is much better as it saves state on the server. This means that that you can access email anywhere in the world from any client and you will have your email (Inbox, Sent, Trash) exactly as you left it the last time you accessed it. |
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birdfeedr
Premium,MVM
join:2001-08-11
Warwick, RI
 ·Verizon FIOS
| Another way is to set the preferences to leave the email on the server. After PC#1 downloads via POP3, the messages are left on the server, so PC#2 can download them as well.
I use this POP3 method for an account that is shared among three users. System is set to delete messages on the server more than 2 weeks old.
Disadvantage is each PC retains only its local reply in the Sent folder. I do not see if someone else replied to a message I am seeing for the first time. If I need to know, I ask. All three PCs are in the same room.
Since Verizon doesn't do IMAP email, this is a POP3 workaround you can use. Obviously it has its drawbacks. |
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Rattler
join:2001-04-13
Havertown, PA
 ·Verizon Online DSL
·Verizon FIOS
| reply to AnthemAVM
Or, you can just set up your email clients independently on both machines and keep two (or more) local copies of your email databases. Set one machine's client (the main one) to leave the mail on the Verizon POP server for a week or two and set the other to leave the mail on permanently. That way, only one controls mail removal from the server and the other leaves it alone. Leaving the mail on the POP server for a week or so, allows for a window for the "slave" client(s) to get the mail before it is removed. This is what I have been doing for quite a while.
My main machine leaves the mail on for 7 days, the second one doesn't do anything about removing it from the POP server and my laptop is set up the same way. I only care about mail on the laptop when I'm on the road. If I need to synchronize the email database on the laptop, I simply copy over the data files from the main machine. I use Eudora so it's not difficult to figure out which files are needed.
This "compartmentalized" method also works well if you use two or more different email clients. e.g. Eudora or T'bird or Outlook/Express where they can't conveniently share the email files.
--
Never raise your hands to your kids. It leaves your groin unprotected. -- Red Buttons |
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Hajman
join:2001-12-17
Phoenixville, PA
| reply to birdfeedr
Doesn't this method also result in emails being shown as read on PC#1 but being shown as unread on PC#2?
That is, you can retrieve the Inbox from multiple computers but emails that have been read on one PC will still appear as unread on the PCs that download after the first download.
Deleting is the same issue - you have to manually delete email on each email client, including emails you deleted on other email clients.
If so (and in addition to the Sent mail issue you not), that seems like a lot of redundant maintenance. |
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birdfeedr
Premium,MVM
join:2001-08-11
Warwick, RI
·Verizon FIOS
| It might be redundant maintenance, but is not bothersome enough to implement Windows Mail on a NAS.
The incoming shared email stream is typically dealt with by 2 people who share office duties, essentially the third person is FYI. Since the two work together, most of the time seamlessly, hitting the delete key is not that big of a deal. If our email stream was more than the dozen or so in a busy day, we would implement some other solution.
For individual business, all three of us have separate addresses. The common address is used for shared communication.
Not sure exactly what the OP wants to accomplish. Most likely it's a desktop/laptop scenario with one user either in the office or on the road.
I have an email account that I have setup in the same way. My purpose is to receive email for a single user, but sometimes the email is intended for use on a Mac, other times on a PC. Again, I don't have enough volume to worry about the extra work of deleting what is redundant. What the heck, it's just a key press. |
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Rattler
join:2001-04-13
Havertown, PA
·Verizon Online DSL
·Verizon FIOS
| reply to Hajman
Hajman...
Yes, that is the case but you don't have to maintain a network "server", that is running all the time, for the files. I don't find it overly annoying to need to delete the same emails on two or three machines in a home environment where we may be only talking 10 - 15 emails/day (excluding SPAM).
If you need to deal with much more than that, then centralized email file storage certainly makes sense and if there is a need to keep all sent mail and replies synchronized and accessible from multiple locations then the individualized client scenario would be clumsy.
I guess it's a personal choice and also depends on how much networking skills one may have. Anyway, it was one other suggestion...
--
Never raise your hands to your kids. It leaves your groin unprotected. -- Red Buttons |
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Hajman
join:2001-12-17
Phoenixville, PA
| Rattler and Birdfeedr,
I agree that you have described legitimate options. I was just pointing out that the option you have both described has downside in that the user has to actively maintain email clients on each machine. There is PIA factor here. Of course, the NAS/server option I've described is more costly because it involves another piece of hardware (and associated costs). I have a home server that hosts various services (like Skype and media files) so the option I've described was a no brainer for me.
Frankly, I think the best option for email is to not use the email services provided by your ISP. People should use a third party email service (I use NetIdentity.com) using IMAP so that (1) they can access the email service from any client that does IMAP and have state saving and (2) they can switch ISPs based on the quality and cost of the internet service (as opposed to email service) and not be hassled with changing email addresses when changing ISPs. |
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Hajman
join:2001-12-17
Phoenixville, PA
| reply to birdfeedr
said by birdfeedr  :It might be redundant maintenance, but is not bothersome enough to implement Windows Mail on a NAS. "Implementation" is simply having a shared folder on a computer (or NAS) that is accessible to the other computers on the network and having Windows Mail on each computer use the files in the shared folder. Doesn't get much simpler than that - and for me, a lot easier than having to sift through emails that I've already sifted through (as well as having consistently available Sent, Trash and other email boxes). Of course, you need to have a NAS (which are pretty cheap these days) or a computer that provides the file server functionlity. I bet most of us have an older computer lying around these days that can be used as the server. |
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peterl1365
join:2005-01-03
Murrieta, CA
| reply to AnthemAVM
The simplest solution is to switch to Verizon's netmail. This is basically a rebranded version of Yahoo Mail. It doesn't have all the capabilities of Outlook, but it's quite useable.
If you used Verizon's netmail a couple of years ago, it was pretty horrendous. The new netmail actually has the "look and feel" of Outlook. |
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aaronwt
Premium
join:2004-11-07
Woodbridge, VA
·Verizon FIOS
 ·Comcast
| reply to Rattler
This is basically how I have my 50+ email accounts setup. My main PC is set to delete the emails after 5 days or if it is deleted from the deleted folder. My 6 other PCs are set to leave the mail on the server. This way I can easily have access to all my accounts whether I'm on the road, at my girlfriends or at home.
said by Rattler :Or, you can just set up your email clients independently on both machines and keep two (or more) local copies of your email databases. Set one machine's client (the main one) to leave the mail on the Verizon POP server for a week or two and set the other to leave the mail on permanently. That way, only one controls mail removal from the server and the other leaves it alone. Leaving the mail on the POP server for a week or so, allows for a window for the "slave" client(s) to get the mail before it is removed. This is what I have been doing for quite a while. My main machine leaves the mail on for 7 days, the second one doesn't do anything about removing it from the POP server and my laptop is set up the same way. I only care about mail on the laptop when I'm on the road. If I need to synchronize the email database on the laptop, I simply copy over the data files from the main machine. I use Eudora so it's not difficult to figure out which files are needed. This "compartmentalized" method also works well if you use two or more different email clients. e.g. Eudora or T'bird or Outlook/Express where they can't conveniently share the email files. |
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magilladke
join:2005-12-07
Collegeville, PA | reply to birdfeedr
Looks like gmail does IMAP. I use gmail, but will have to look more into the benefits of using IMAP.
Thanks. |
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magilladke
join:2005-12-07
Collegeville, PA | reply to Hajman
Hajman,
Do you use Outlook w/IMAP? I have been testing it and it looks good, but I can't get Drafts to save in the Gmail folders (only the base Outlook folder)? |
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amarryat
Verizon FiOS
join:2005-05-02
Marshfield, MA
·Verizon FIOS
| reply to peterl1365
said by peterl1365 :The simplest solution is to switch to Verizon's netmail. This is basically a rebranded version of Yahoo Mail. It doesn't have all the capabilities of Outlook, but it's quite useable. If you used Verizon's netmail a couple of years ago, it was pretty horrendous. The new netmail actually has the "look and feel" of Outlook. I would not go that far as to say it's like Yahoo Mail. Yahoo mail is far slicker. However I do think that the Verizon webmail is quite nice! One gripe though - I pay $20/year to Yahoo for my Yahoo webmail so that there are no ads, and I pay $180/month to Verizon, and there are ads all over this thing. 99% of the time I use OUtlook for my Verizon email anyway, but still annoying to have those ads on a pay product. |
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Marty1781
join:2008-03-26
Chevy Chase, MD
| reply to AnthemAVM
I think the easiest solution here is to simply forward the Verizon email to a gMail account (assuming Verizon email has the option to automatically forward/redirect to a different address). Then setup Windows Mail to use IMAP with the gMail account and your inbox and other folders will look the same no matter which of your PCs you use. You can also configure gMail to appear as if you are sending from your Verizon account so no one ever has to see the gMail account.
Personally though, I would just forget about the Verizon account and use gMail instead. More storage, more options, and in case you ever decide to leave Verizon, you won't have to worry about alerting people to your new email address since gMail is ISP-independent. |
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Hajman
join:2001-12-17
Phoenixville, PA
| reply to magilladke
said by magilladke :Hajman, Do you use Outlook w/IMAP? I have been testing it and it looks good, but I can't get Drafts to save in the Gmail folders (only the base Outlook folder)? Outlook does not sync with the drafts folder. If that function is important to you, you will need to find another email client that supports that function. |
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magilladke
join:2005-12-07
Collegeville, PA | Basically just wanted to make sure I wasn't messing things up. I'm trying to figure out the best configuration. |
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