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List:       kmail-devel
Subject:    tabbed email, a revolutionary new concept!
From:       Dan Allen <dan () mojavelinux ! com>
Date:       2004-02-29 6:42:36
Message-ID: 200402290142.36688.dan () mojavelinux ! com
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Tabbed email could easily become one the most influential changes that email 
clients have ever seen and KMail could be there to deliver it first!  I can 
already see the headline:

"While it seems like a simple idea, tabbed email is a revolutionary 
enhancement to email messaging, which evolved from the concept of tabbed 
browsing in web browser clients.  KMail brings you the simplest, most 
intuitive version of tabbed email you will find today."

Tabbed email changes the way you use your email client by allowing you to open 
email views (folders, messages, composers) in background tabs and then work 
with each of them in turn.  Tabbed email makes it much easier to keep track 
of several email related tasks at once by letting you manage them in a single 
pane.  No longer will you have to jump around from message to message to 
collect information or look for the composer screen in your taskbar.  Each 
view aligns side-by-side, allowing you the most efficient experience in email 
messaging.

The idea of tabbed email, though I admit not tremendously original, came to me 
as I was using Konqueror to compose messages in my web-based email.  For each 
message that wanted to view, I would find myself creating a new tab.  
Finally, when I started to compose a follow up email, I was able to reference 
my open tabs to extract information.  Now, remove the shell and replace it 
with the KMail interface and you have your very own tabbed email.  So it was 
off to the concept board to work up a sketch.

As I worked up a screenshot, I considered the possible uses of tabs.  I 
concluded that there is no reason that each and every screen in the email, 
except for the folder list, can be part of the tab set.  The way it works is 
that the list of message for a folder (say the Inbox) would be the first tab 
to appear, and when you double click on a message it opens that message in a 
new tab (or perhaps right click "open in new tab").  Composing a message 
could also use a new tab.  This way, you can have the message you are 
replying to in an adjacent tab to the message you are composing, so you can 
flip back and forth during your response.  Additionally, you might want to 
queue up a bunch of messages that need attention, so you open them all in 
tabs and handle them in turn (how many times have you marked messages as 
important hoping that it will remind you to reply?...now you can just open 
them all in tabs and not close them until you do!).

Below is a screenshot of concept art demonstrating this feature.

http://www.mojavelinux.com/cooker/incoming/tabbed-kmail-concept.png

While the implementation may appear to be straight forward, there are a number 
of configuration settings that will be introduced by this change.  The list 
includes:

* compose messages in new tab (vs window)
* read messages in new tab (perhaps a context menu option to open in new 
window or new tab)
* open mailbox in new tab (perhaps in context menu, so as not to replace 
current "folder" tab)

As I have shown in the screenshot, I believe that each "type" of tab should 
have an icon and a prefix, using the spot of the favicon from Konqueror.  
Prefixes would include:

"Folder:" - for a folder list of message
"Message:" - for viewing the contents of a message
"Compose:" - for composing/replying to a message
"Attachment:" - for viewing an attachment from one of the messages

My hopes is that this idea is well received and work can be started 
immediately.  If all the news is true, the "kpart" design of KDE allows for 
any window to be embedded in any space, hence to become part of a tabbed 
widget.  Unfortunately, I haven't even made a hello world app for KDE yet, so 
I have to pray that someone can implement what I have proposed.

There is no question this feature will land KMail on the front pages of news 
sites...and warrant the "often imitated, never duplicated" title.

Dan Allen
dan@mojavelinux.com


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