Managing IMAP

Netscape Messenger

Netscape Messenger is the mail client component of the popular Netscape Communicator package. Messenger’s popularity is due in large part to the fact that it’s part of the Communicator package—many Netscape users use it out of convenience, rather than for its merits. In any case, it’s a widely used client, and for that reason is mentioned here. All in all, Netscape Messenger is adequate for the majority of users who want a quick, easy, and free way to read their email and manage addresses. It lacks the functionality that power IMAP users look for in a mail client.

Netscape is available for a variety of platforms, including Windows 95/98/NT, Macintosh, and several flavors of Unix. Complete information and the latest version of the Communicator package are available at Netscape’s download site: http://download.netscape.com/.

Features

Supports SSL

One of the most desirable features of Messenger is that it supports SSL. If your IMAP server is enhanced to support SSL, Netscape Messenger can be used to avoid sending passwords in cleartext over your network.

Folders are stored on the IMAP server

Unlike its primary competitor, Outlook Express, Netscape stores all folders on the IMAP server, including outgoing mail that is automatically saved into a “sent mail” folder and, also, drafts.

Performs well over slow connections

To improve performance over slow connections, Messenger allows the user to choose to download only messages that are below a certain message size threshold. Additionally, attachments are downloaded on demand, allowing a message with a large attachment to be downloaded quickly.

Superior LDAP support

LDAP support is excellent in Messenger. Messenger has a single interface for searching both personal and remote LDAP address books. The address book interface supports search not only by name, but by city, organization, phone number, and, believe it or not, by soundex.^[12] The client also supports integration of custom LDAP schema for searching. The user can drag and drop the results of an LDAP search into her local address book. LDAP directories can be replicated and used in offline mode, and Netscape claims that the local LDAP address book scales to over 200,000 names.

Site customization

The Netscape Communicator Client Customization Kit (CCK) allows sites to customize components of Communicator, including Messenger, and build an installer for distributing Messenger to their users.

Almost-there ACL support

Netscape claims to support ACL modifications and shared folders, but we were not able to make it work with the Cyrus server. It’s possible to view the ACL setting on a folder, but modification of the ACL only works with Netscape’s mail server.

Configuring Netscape Messenger for IMAP

Netscape is easy to configure and works well with most of its default settings. The only required settings are for your IMAP server, your outgoing SMTP mail server, and your username.

Configuring your preferences

If you’re a first-time Messenger user, start up Netscape Communicator, then pull down the Communicator menu and select Messenger. The Mail and Discussion Wizard will guide you through setting your mail preferences.

If you’ve used Messenger before, or if the Wizard does not pop up to help you, then follow these instructions to configure Messenger:

1. Start Communicator.

2. Pull down the Edit menu and select Preferences....

3. Expand the Mail & Newsgroups category.

4. Click on Identity and fill in the information on the Identity form. Don’t click OK yet—if you do, you’ll close the Preferences window, and you don’t want to do that just yet.

5. Click on Mail Servers. Add the fully qualified domain name (FQDN) of your IMAP server under Incoming Mail Servers.

6. Click on your IMAP server under Incoming Mail Servers to highlight it, then click on the Edit button to bring up your IMAP server preferences. There are several options you may want to set, such as whether or not to connect to your IMAP server via SSL (if your server supports SSL), save your password, or empty your Trash folder when you close Messenger.

7. Before you leave the Mail Servers preferences, enter the FQDN of your outgoing SMTP mail host (often the same as your IMAP server) under Outgoing Mail Server. There are other options under Outgoing Mail Server—set them if they’re applicable to your site.

8. You now have the bare minimum configuration to allow you to connect to your IMAP server and read and send mail. Click OK to save your preferences.

Reading your mail

To log in to your IMAP server with Messenger, pull down the Communicator menu and select Messenger. Messenger has three panes. The leftmost pane lists your IMAP server and mail folders. The top-right pane lists your mailbox message index, and the lower-right pane lists the contents of each message you select.

Click once on your server name to display your message index. To read a message, click once on the message listing in the index.

Subscribing to folders

Only the mail folders you’re subscribed to appear in your mail folder listing. To manage your folder subscriptions, pull down the File menu and select Subscriptions.... Click once on the name of a folder, then click on the Subscribe or Unsubscribe button to subscribe to or unsubscribe from the folder.

Expunging your deleted mail

Messenger’s implementation of the IMAP two phase “delete-expunge” model is counterintuitive—you would expect to find two separate buttons or menu items to “delete” and “expunge.” Messenger has you “delete” messages as you would in other clients, but to expunge them, you pull down the File menu and select Compact This Folder.

---

^[12] Soundex is a way of encoding a name (usually surname) that is based on the way the name sounds, rather than the way it’s spelled. This is a valuable feature for names that are difficult to spell and are often entered incorrectly into databases. To find the soundex coding of a surname, visit the National Archives and Records Administration’s The Soundex Machine at http://www.nara.gov/genealogy/soundex/soundex.html.