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I am not that impressed with Gmail
- Thread starter TH55
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Ok first thing : Just because you cant find things you want in Gmail is not a reason to say that it is not good. Like everything new we have to learn it. When we learn, we can learn to like things also. Of course it will be different when it is something new we are not used to.
Second: You cant compare old Hotmail with Gmail. They are different.
Second: You cant compare old Hotmail with Gmail. They are different.
I always account for a learning curve or adjustment to new design when forming opinions. I have been using Gmail for over 6 months now and I'm still not used to it. Same with iOS 7. I'm sorry, certain things are objectively designed poorly. Everything is not personal taste, there is a level of functionality and intuitiveness that must be present. While this exists in small amounts, for the number one software in any market there is absolutely no excuse for them not to be overwhelmingly easy to use/learn.
I liked the old hotmail (before M$ took over). It was clean; it was simple. I liked. The new hotmail (now called Outlook) is cluttered, overly complicated and chalked full of spam (most of which is from the Outlook staff and MS
). It's completely unusable for me now.Gmail isn't as nice as the old hotmail, but for me it's a lot better than the new hotmail. I like clean and simple. Not getting spam from Google is a huge plus.
And how are they? Both are a web-based email service.
Even having to regularly manage an old lady's Gmail account is a reminder that it's not well designed. I had to look on the Internet to know where the spam box was located. And contrary to some common belief, there are a LOT of spams coming from Gmail addresses and false positives in spam classification, even as this lady didn't subscribe to commercial services.
Nothing beats a rented IMAPS server.
I would be interested to know which version of Gmail you are using. If you are using the Web version then I agree with you. I have been using it for years and could never get used to it. I solve the problem by using an Email application like outlook or the Mac version entourage for my mail interface.
I don't use the web interfaces for email because I have my phone and laptop's native mail apps configured.
But for the rare time I do, I'm not impressed by Gmail or iCloud. Both very spacious yet feel clunky. I really like Outlook.com though - Microsoft's design direction minus Windows 8/metro is nice.
But for the rare time I do, I'm not impressed by Gmail or iCloud. Both very spacious yet feel clunky. I really like Outlook.com though - Microsoft's design direction minus Windows 8/metro is nice.
There are settings specifically to change how close or spread apart things are in the interface.
As said, any rented IMAPS service. They usually come along with shared hosting for one's website, but are also available standalone.
As much as I dislike Microsoft's technologies, this seems reasonable:
http://www.ovh.com/fr/emails/hosted-exchange-2013/
Or that:
http://hebergement.infomaniak.com/emails-a-la-carte/
Well, it would address the "too close together" part, unless that's not really the main issue as it appeared to be in the OP.
I HATE Gmail. Google is pretty awesome in a lot of things. But gmail is just as bad as google +. It just doesn't get the credit that google + does. It sucks really bad. I think that google needs to blow it away. And start all over again. Then allow beta testing to who ever want it. Take the feedback from the user make all changes needed and then update it from every one. I don't think anyone would complain.
The way it's set up is the worse. I don't use gmail online often but when I do I go "where is what I need". Why is it when I open it up it does not show all mail? Then the look of it just sucks. It's not something I want to use, witch is something that I don't really expect from google unless it's hardware or android.
Frankly I never found any web interface to be very good. I use Thunderbird that way my experience is consistent. It doesn't matter if I use GMail, Yahoo Mail, &c. As my experience remains the same.
Because of this I prefer my Google accounts. As it seems to be the most versatile in allowing to sync calendar, contacts and calendar across devices, clients and platforms. Yahoo has been opening theirs up some but doesn't sync with Thunderbird nor does iCloud.
One must requirement is IMAP. So that folders, moves and deletes are consistent.
The services that use Exchange I avoid. As you pretty much have to use Outlook which I never liked. Plus they are not free and have small mailbox sizes.
Because of this I prefer my Google accounts. As it seems to be the most versatile in allowing to sync calendar, contacts and calendar across devices, clients and platforms. Yahoo has been opening theirs up some but doesn't sync with Thunderbird nor does iCloud.
One must requirement is IMAP. So that folders, moves and deletes are consistent.
The services that use Exchange I avoid. As you pretty much have to use Outlook which I never liked. Plus they are not free and have small mailbox sizes.
Looks like there might be a larger redesign coming too: http://www.businessinsider.com/gmail-redesign-2014-5
I admit Gmail's web interface is a bit weak. However, it's feature capabilities are incredibly powerful.
Most email clients can't seem to get a simple keyword search to work correctly. What the hell is up with that? Google's keywords search works perfectly, and the advanced search is incredible. If you didn't know about it:
https://support.google.com/mail/answer/7190?hl=en
At a time when most email providers had paltry size limits, Gmail gave us gigabytes of storage for free. And it's ever increasing.
I love the filters and actions that do automatic routing into separate "labels" (folders), or even the trash can.
The spam detection is vastly superior to Hotmail. I get Hotmail spam almost every single day. I get spam in gmail about once every 3-4 months.
You don't HAVE TO use Gmail's web UI. Use any client you want.
Also, Gmail is the only back end that works with my favorite iOS email client, Mailbox. Mailbox has a very clean UI and uses simple gesture-based commands to quickly accomplish typical tasks. No need to have have buttons all over the place or to first have to tap-to-reveal the buttons.
I think of Gmail as being similar to Excel. It's not very pretty, but it's got power and it gets the job done in a way that nobody else can quite match.
Most email clients can't seem to get a simple keyword search to work correctly. What the hell is up with that? Google's keywords search works perfectly, and the advanced search is incredible. If you didn't know about it:
https://support.google.com/mail/answer/7190?hl=en
At a time when most email providers had paltry size limits, Gmail gave us gigabytes of storage for free. And it's ever increasing.
I love the filters and actions that do automatic routing into separate "labels" (folders), or even the trash can.
The spam detection is vastly superior to Hotmail. I get Hotmail spam almost every single day. I get spam in gmail about once every 3-4 months.
You don't HAVE TO use Gmail's web UI. Use any client you want.
Also, Gmail is the only back end that works with my favorite iOS email client, Mailbox. Mailbox has a very clean UI and uses simple gesture-based commands to quickly accomplish typical tasks. No need to have have buttons all over the place or to first have to tap-to-reveal the buttons.
I think of Gmail as being similar to Excel. It's not very pretty, but it's got power and it gets the job done in a way that nobody else can quite match.
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