I'm inclined to go along with PB's observations. Our fully functional WinMail is slowly dropping as fully functional as the term goes. Having said that, 1) I don't use the Spamatola filter and 2) I never work offline so I'm still content with the condition of our Windows Mail in Windows Seven but, I'm more than likely and eventually going to make the move to the dreaded Windows Live Mail. My holdout has nothing to do with me being Old School which I am but it has to do with MS's apps which in my opinion love to get their meat hooks into you deeply in ways I don't like. I'm not saying Wndows Live Mail is like that but my wife and kids have some that are. One in particular is MS Office. You talk about an updating Pimp, this thing is constantly soliciting new updates. If I had to run something that updates once or twice a day other than a security app, well I wouldn't and don't. Anywho, PB or others, I may be calling on you to hold my hand through this transition some time in the near future.
Totally agree with your sentiments. In general terms I hate Windows Live anything, and only through necessity have I moved over to WinLiveMail. I've been using it for about a month now, and a few days ago downloaded WLM Wave 4 Beta, and I have to admit I've been pleasantly surprised. It seems they have been listening to the feedback.
A few of the main points of aggrevation in the earlier versions were the need to sign on to Windows Live when opening WLM, and having every account listed in the left panel. There is a switch so you never have to sign in to Windows Live, and while all the individual accounts are still shown in the left panel, they can be minimized to just the account name with no sub-folders showing. Also, the Quick Views folder in the left panel can be used similar to Local Folders in WinMail, with all emails from all accounts shown in this folder.
It has mega buttons and switches, and can do most anything you want. It's format is very similar to that of Office 2007 in that it has 4 Tabs across the top, and a Ribbon with icons for each tab. The Ribbon can be hidden if so desired. There is also a Quick Access bar, which can be customized. In the top task bar, there is a Drop Down Menu accessed through a button on the top left side. Here are some images of how I have mine set up.
1. This shows Drop Down menu accessed from top left button with Options clicked.
2. This shows the Home Tab with the Accounts Poppa & Bern in left panel minimized and Quick Views folder acting as master folder for all accounts. The Quick Views folder can be customized by right clicking the name of the folder.
3. This shows the Folders tab.
4. This shows the View tab.
This shows the Accounts tab.
The main adjustment is in becoming accustomed to the new layout and finding the location of the various functions. Overall there are a lot more features than WinMail, and a lot more options for different settings such as view, etc. On the home page under Tools there is a Send/Receive button, which can execute this function for all accounts or any one selected account.
I'm still learning but overall am very pleased with the functionality of WinLiveMail. The more I use it the more features I'm finding. Hope this helps anyone making the transition over from 'ol faithful,
WinMail. If someone hasn't already done so, I think it might be a good idea to start a thread for discussion of WinLiveMail Wave 4 Beta, and to offer assistance for those starting the transition.
Cheers PB