Archiving Messages With Gmail

[Kostya Vasilyev]

It is possible to get the list of Gmail's categories, per message (as assigned) over IMAP, Google has an IMAP extension for it (official, documented).

However:

AquaMail does not do it.

Personally, I've set up my Gmail server side filters to "skip inbox (archive)" so that there are no duplicates -- and I don't have any use for "All Mail".

Yet, I understand that it's perfectly valid to want to make use of this Gmail specific feature (multiple labels per message) and to expect a third party app to work "just like Gmail app". Sorry.

( and yes, I do know that EmClient works "just like Gmail app" here, good for them )

[nica]

First of all, thanks for your posting. I understand your attitude.

Let me just say that I see a contradiction (for me as a gmail user):

Personally, I've set up my Gmail server side filters to "skip inbox (archive)" so that there are no duplicates -- and I don't have any use for "All Mail".

Of course, if you only work with AquaMail as client, you have the Smart Folder, there you can see one of the folders a message is located. You don't need an inbox.

But when you enter the webinterface of gmail, there is no Smart Folder. The only way getting an overview for selected labels in gmail webinterface is using the inbox.

So these two points interfere (of course not caused by you ).

Now I am testing to the end that I find a proper workflow with AquaMail. This will take some time, I don't want to evaluate too early. Maybe I will use AquaMail at the end or return to gmail app, don't know.

E.g at this moment I am testing not showing inbox folder in Smart Folder. So messages in Smart Folder show the right folder, and unlabeled messages are to be found in inbox.  But all prefiltered messages are located in both folders, that's the disadvantage.

BTW:
-> Any other suggestions by gmail user to improve my workflow are welcome .

[Kostya Vasilyev]

Well, here is how I've done this, for years:

- I set up filters in Gmail / web, years ago, with "Assign label" as actions and "Skip inbox" enabled.

- I have those folders set as sync in AquaMail

- Web mail isn't an issue (and I do use it a lot... and "real" mail apps not so much), because there is a simple way to make Gmail / web show a particular label / folder on the left

So when I log into Gmail / web, it has all my "interesting" folders visible at a glance (I mean their unread counts and whether there are any).

[nica]

- Web mail isn't an issue (and I do use it a lot... and "real" mail apps not so much), because there is a simple way to make Gmail / web show a particular label / folder on the left

So when I log into Gmail / web, it has all my "interesting" folders visible at a glance (I mean their unread counts and whether there are any).

So you go without the advantage of an inbox. In AquaMail you give us a Smart Folder to see all important mails (and information about location)  in one place.  This is the same thing what I need in gmail web interface, too.

Will think about a way to go.

[Kostya Vasilyev]

Re: So you go without the advantage of an inbox

Um, no. Some messages don't get filtered and remain in the Inbox.

Just my experience / my personal usage patterns.

[StR]

It is possible to get the list of Gmail's categories, per message (as assigned) over IMAP, Google has an IMAP extension for it (official, documented).

(belated) Thank you, Kostya, for that information.

I haven't been using multiple labels in Gmail (at least consciously). But having thought about this feature for a while, I think it is a good possibility/feature, - one of the Gmail-centric innovations that I consider progressive. In essence, it is similar to what Flickr was one of the first to do for image hosting: one image can be in multiple collections.

I understand perfectly, why the historic mail implementation didn't have labels: that's more of a database feature, whereas the original mail storage ("mbox") is a "flat file". Even those subsequent e-mail storage formats that are database-like (at least some of them, such as Maildirs), still contain static folders (aka directories). (But, as far as I understand, - there are even old "flat-file" formats that have labels, e.g. Babyl)
For the database-based mail storage format, implementing labels would be easier.
And now, when very few people still use Unix-shell-based clients that access mailbox(es) directly, fewer server admins hold to the older mailbox formats. (Guilty as charged, your honor!)