What Alternative To Webmail?

[#1]

Despite my complaint to PN in May and an extensively contributed thread by others experiencing similar poor Webmail service I need to find an alternative browser based mail service that gives similar, but better performing, service that Webmail.

 I set up a Gmail account and can see my emails on the PN server but it doesn't work like Webmail because when I delete an email in Webmail it is also deleted on the PN server so that when I download my emails to my home PC I only download the emails I want as I am effectively using Webmail to filter out the rubbish.

However, when I use Gmail I can either download my PN emails and keep everything on the PN server or I can download my emails to Gmail and delete everything off the PN server.

Currently I keep everything on the PN server but when I go through my emails in Gmail and delete the rubbish it isn't being deleted on the PN server so when I download my emails on my home PC I'm getting everything including the rubbish I wanted to delete.

How do I get around this or does someone use another webmail service that will do what PN's Webmail currently does?

[#2]

If you downloaded your emails using POP3 they would be deleted from the PN server; if you used IMAP then they would be left on PN.

Why not just download everything to Gmail - it has excellent spam filtering built-in.

[#3]

Thanks for your reply.

I am in the habit of keeping my mails on a PC, I'm not comfortable with having them held in the cloud. Probably old fashioned way of operating I agree.

IMAP in Gmail is on but if I delete an email in Gmail that has been downloaded from PN it is not being deleted from the PN server as I can still see it via Webmail and it is then downloaded onto my PC.

[#4]

After you delete messages in gmail then login to webmail are the "deleted" messages listed in normal coloured text or very pale text? If the latter this means the messages are flagged for delete but still physically present.

[#5]

Hi David.

When I delete messages in Gmail and then login to Webmail the messages that I have deleted via Gmail appear in my Webmail inbox as 'read'. This is how I know they are not being deleted from the PN server.

In fact, when I receive emails in my Webmail inbox they only stay in Unread status, I.E. bold, for a short while because as soon as Gmail downloads them they show as Read.

I am going to reconfigure the settings I have in Gmail to connect with my Plusnet account. Do you know what the Port number should be?

Thanks for your help.

[#6]

What I was trying to describe was not the unread(bold)/read(normal) shading difference but a very pale shade. You obviously haven't got this or you would have recognised what I meant. Here's a redacted example:

The top two items in the list show as unread and read as you mentioned. Several entries after that are very pale and show a "deleted" flag ø . These result from deleting the entries using IMAP from Thunderbird which copies them to the Deleted folder and flags the original. Compacting the Inbox removes them.

To set up IMAP access from Gmail the server is imap.plus.net and port 143.

[#7]

Thanks for the image David.

I have never seen this format. 

I think there must be an error somewhere in how I have set up Gmail to access my PN mails. 

I'm going to review the settings and see if I can resolve as I had already input the imap settings as per your post but it returns an error message.

Will update - thanks. 

[#8]

Setting up Gmail to access emails from another service is not something I've tried. Having looked up how to do this my impression is that the access has to be POP3 (but messages can be left on the server). This might be why trying to set up IMAP access failed. However with that restriction it's strange that the port selection box offers alternatives which are used for different protocols including IMAP..

For POP3 access the server is mail.plus.net with port 110.

[#9]

If it can't operate the way Webmail does it will be an issue for me as I screen all my emails via Webmail before downloading to my PC.

I just wish that PN would get their act together and sort this out so that I and others can get on without having to spend large amounts of time trying to sort this out.

Thanks for your help David.

[#10]

Hi bazzer, I believe,as David says, that Gmail is limited to accessing other services using POP3. This only provides 2 options, leave mail on server or automatically delete from server when downloaded. In order to provide the 'screening' you need you need an email client that can support IMAP, which is what webmail uses. This allows much more flexible options including 'delete mail from server when deleted by the client' , which is , I guess, what you want.

Do you have an Android tablet or phone by any chance ? If so there is a pretty good email client, K9 mail, which does support IMAP . I use this on my Nexus tablet when away from home, it's setup using IMAP to access all of my PlusNet mailboxes and works as you want it to I think. I can view all my mail, if I delete any then they are deleted from the PN servers but any that are left will be downloaded to my PC when I get home.

[#11]

Hello MisterW. Thanks for your reply.

You understand correctly my requirements but, unfortunately for me, I am IOS only with a MAC at home and iPhone / iPad.

Would you know of a PC or MAC browser based email client?

Appreciate your help.

[#12]

Sorry , I've no direct experience of Iphone or MAC. All you need though is a mail client that will support IMAP access to any ISP mail accounts. This http://www.knowyourmobile.com/mobile-phones/apple-iphone-5s/22449/best-iphone-email-apps-2016 might help. Strangely Microsoft Outlook for IPhone gets a good review! Not sure if it supports Non SSL connections though, you wil need that for PlusNet IMAP access

[#13]

I use Outlook on my iPhone for my work emails which come via a secure server and I do agree that it works very well.

I'll explore the options and see if I can find a web based IMAP client that will emulate Webmail which again is appallingly slow and error ridden today.

Thanks once again.

[#14]

With an iPad mini currently running iOS 10.1.1, the standard mail app can do what you want provided the folder usage properties are set appropriately in advanced settings. I think the default settings use local folders; these need changing to use server folders with associations set to link drafts, sent and deleted to the correct ones on the server.

If I delete a message from my iPad it gets moved to the Deleted folder as required and other devices see it there. This also works in reverse.

[#15]

It's more the capability to emulate Webmail using a MAC or PC based client as I don't use an iPad at work.

Ultimately I  may have to change my current process if I cannot get a Webmail equivalent. It's annoying that so much time and effort by many is spent because PN cannot or will not fix Webmail.