Peter's Blog

Redefining the Impossible

Outlook vs Thunderbird

Outlook vs Thunderbird

Submitted by Peter on Wed Apr 19 2006 21:14 over 2 years ago

I'm back to using Outlook for two reasons:

  • the journal feature may be useable as a desktop notetaking tool. Being integrated into the email program means fewer apps running and a leaner and meaner system (ha). It does look like a half decent note taking tool, entries can be formatted, pictures pasted in etc.
  • was reading how hackers can carry packet sniffers on memory keys and became paranoid about my unencrypted password floating around the ether(net). I looked into setting up ssl authentication on the exchange server but it involves messing around setting up an ssl certificate server and I couldn't be bothered.

I've given up on using folders to categorise my email: I leave it all in the inbox and rely in searching to find stuff. I have google desktop search to speed this up but that still thinks I am still using thunderbird and tries using that to display messages. How to persuade it I have vaccilated back to the evil ones?

Anonymous Says:

Sat Dec 16 2006 01:43 over 2 years ago

"Worried about packet sniffers" If your email server doesn't take SSL connections that's not Thunderbird's problem. So I'm not sure how that forces you back to Outlook. I started using Thunderbird recently and haven't looked back. Enigmail blows PGP Corp's email encryption solution away.

Peter Says:

Tue Dec 19 2006 16:38 over 2 years ago

The email server is Microsoft Exchange. Setting up SSL means setting up an SSL certificate server. This means hassle and only adds to the house of cards of Microsoft this-and-that servers.

My gripe is not with Thunderbird but rather with Exchange.

Peter

zb! Says:

Fri Nov 16 2007 07:49 about 1 year ago

on a sidenote: the "all mail in one location"-approach, be it the inbox or whatever folder, implies a higher risk of data loss, be it in thunderbird as in outlook. just had major fun repairing mbox files that weren't compacted in years and because of that had "cuts" in them caused by the occasional windows drop outs causing inconsistent disc states (or even a power outage or sth) and not running a proper disc check afterwards. might be outlooks binary (?) o/pst formats are less prone to this, but anyways: more mail data in one file, more possible trouble. filesystem stability is a very important OS feature, what may be easily (and painfully) seen from what i just witnessed there.

Peter Says:

Fri Nov 16 2007 08:47 about 1 year ago

All the mail is stored on the Exchange server in a huge proprietary black box database. That is the part that worries me, the Exchange database. If it used a real database I would be happier, especially being able to query it myself. Unfortunately SQL Server wasn't invented by the Exchange team sad

Peter

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