Mozilla Thunderbird for Android is Almost Ready After 2 Years (itsfoss.com) 29
An anonymous reader shared this post from the blog It's FOSS
It has been more than two years since K-9 Mail (an open-source email client for Android) joined the Mozilla Thunderbird project. Instead of making a new mobile app from scratch, Mozilla decided to convert K-9 Mail slowly into the new Thunderbird Android app.
While we have known about it for some time now, we finally have something to test: Thunderbird for Android (Beta). Mozilla is looking for users to test it and plans a stable release at the end of October. The new Thunderbird app is now available on the Play Store as a beta version for user testing. So, we are closer to the stable launch than ever before.
The article includes a few screenshots of the app...
"For the functionality side, you can expect things like light/dark theme, email signature, unified inbox, ability to enable/disable contact pictures, threaded view, and opt out of data usage collection for privacy..."
While we have known about it for some time now, we finally have something to test: Thunderbird for Android (Beta). Mozilla is looking for users to test it and plans a stable release at the end of October. The new Thunderbird app is now available on the Play Store as a beta version for user testing. So, we are closer to the stable launch than ever before.
The article includes a few screenshots of the app...
"For the functionality side, you can expect things like light/dark theme, email signature, unified inbox, ability to enable/disable contact pictures, threaded view, and opt out of data usage collection for privacy..."
Oh thank god! (Score:4, Funny)
It looks like Mozilla did nothing for 2 years. Which is a good thing. I was dreading they were going to f--- up K9 Mail now too, but based on the screenshots it looks no different.
K-9 DB export/import (Score:4, Informative)
Go to settings > export DB > save the file somewhere.
Then on the new phone: settings > import DB > select the file > type in your account passwords.
I hope they implement the same thing for Thunderbird on desktop and for Firefox on both Android and desktop.
For Firefox the only way is to use their sync server or implement host your own (with their over-complicated solution).
I know they provide a docker image for this, but come on, this should be way easier.
Re: (Score:2)
For Firefox you can move the profile. It isn't user very friendly but it is supported. https://support.mozilla.org/en... [mozilla.org]
How I found this information: Go to help / move to a new device, it takes you to a page asking you to create an account. There is an FAQ down the page, one item is "can I move to another computer without a Mozilla account" (or something like that).
Re: (Score:2)
That's with desktop Firefox and Thunderbird but on mobile not so much... for mobile the suggestion would probably be to use account sync (works on FF, not yet on TB).
Mozilla added default-on "telemetry" (Score:5, Informative)
https://github.com/thunderbird... [github.com]
You cannot avoid it. If you turn it off, the horse has already left the barn.
Disable an anti-tracking plugin that doesn't track for tracking - check. Track without user consent - check. Mozilla being Mozilla.
Re: (Score:2)
Pocket was also another way for Mozilla to find out what you're doing online.
Let's face it, Mozilla is now an ads company which develops a browser on the side. And they half-ass it constantly at best.
Re: (Score:2)
To their credit, they seem to have a plan to address this issue already:
https://github.com/thunderbird... [github.com]
FairEmail? (Score:3)
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Was about to post this here. Hands down the single best email client for power users on android. You can make it simple, or you can do some very complex things with it.
One thing to remember is that if you need OAuth (google login), you want to grab the github version. Last I checked, F-droid one didn't have it.
Github version has a function to check for new updates and prompt you to download it when it's relevant (and of course you can turn it off if you don't want it).
Re: (Score:2)
Yup, Mozilla has been caught more than once collecting information it should not, and up-post seems to confirm.
On top of that, while an excellent client and great to use before all development(and security updates) stopped, K-9 was never a 'privacy first' client.
FairEmail has many defaults specifically designed to keep your info private. And it also has no tracking/etc. It's FairEmail's "thing". I cannot imagine a Mozilla product with zero tracking. Even though I don't have to, I donate every new device.
Re: (Score:1)
FYI: The Play Store version also works with OAuth (and will update just like anything else downloaded from the play store. And the updates are frequent. I honestly can't remember if the github version auto-updates.)
But as others have stated, it's basically a desktop email client on android.
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I was using it before. Lots of options, but worked well once setup.
Then I changed to another phone. And lost all my config in the process. Never had the time/will to reconfigure again.
I know privacy is their motto, but how about an optional automatic backup to Google Cloud feature?
Threads (Score:2)
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I have something related. I use TB to consult offline emails previously acquired by other softwares (old emails that are in Maildir format). I do "thunderbird myemail.eml &" which then I forward or reply to inside TB. I noticed that when the emails come from contacts that use gmail, the "reply" function does not work well, it is unable to pre-fill the subject, date, name of sender. I can only guess that it fails to parse the headers when written by gmail. I assume the threads are all messed up as a cons
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I use k9mail on android and thunderbird on linux (Score:2)
One thing I miss is the tags I set in thunderbird don't show in k9. I checked this beta, doesn't show work there either, so what exactly changed since the last k9?
Turn K-9 Mail into Thunderbird (Score:2)
means turning a light, fast and pleasant to use email client into a slow bloated whale of a program with a million features nobody wants.
I sure hope Mozilla exercised restraint on that one.
Er (Score:1)
and opt out of data usage collection for privacy...
Why would Thunderbird on my phone need to collect any data at all? They aren't providing email servers, just a client?
Re: (Score:2)
Why would it have anything to do with email servers. It's about app usage. You know app usage right? That thing that Slashdot users don't share and then afterwards complain about how vendors are dumbing down their apps, and that the power users are being forgotten. Yeah no kidding they are, the telemetry shows that.
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If a developer depends on telemetry instead of engaging with customers the old fashioned way then they are idiots, and they will do something stupid no matter what. The telemetry only tells you what, it doesn't tell you why.
Email in a Whatsapp / Telegram interface (Score:1)
What i would like is email in a messaging client type UI like whatsapp or telegram.
Then there would be no issue of everyone being on the same app. And email is also almost real time i guess.
There's some app called Delta Chat that does it i read but yet to try it
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Repeat after me: "Email is not an IM tool".
In fact what I would like is the opposite. I would like an email client that interfaces with electrodes attached to a user's nipples, so that they get zapped every time some idiot sends a one word email like "Thanks" as if my inbox needs your useless idle chitchat clogging it up. Bonus points if the zapping of the nipples spells "S-E-N-D-T-H-I-S-V-I-A-W-H-A-T-S-A-P-P-N-E-X-T-T-I-M-E" in morse code.
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I also hate when people waste my time with "thanks" emails. But I still agree with the poster that one could build an IM tool on the email protocols. Nearly everything is there, only very little tweaking is needed: a "skin" for TB with bubbles and colours for certain email accounts, and implementing a mode that group emails per person or per group. The email protocols have everything good: open protocols, decentralized, data ownership, clear text data but can support encryption, very mature ecosystem with p
Re: Email in a Whatsapp / Telegram interface (Score:2)
No S/MIME support yet (Score:2)
Why? (Score:2)