# Mac Mail or Yahoo mail?



## Deep Blue (Sep 16, 2005)

This all revolves around the purpose of Mail...

I could have a shaw.ca email address but find yahoo mail, with messenger, just fine. Spam filter works excellently for me - rarely see any. I've no need to switch.

However, when I click on an email hyperlink on a web site it automatically brings up the Mail program. I've tried to figure out how to use Mail but it defies me. I thought I was overlooking something. So, while chatting with an Applecare agent about a totally separate and unrelated matter, I casually asked how to make Mail work for me. 

He couldn't explain the program to me, nor whether I could get Yahoo and Mail to talk to each other and work as conduits to one another. His solution was just pull the Mail program out of my Applications folder and dump it in the Trash.  

I've not bothered to investigate any further as the only irritation I have (a minor one) is that I can't click directly on email hyperlinks and get a useable window to write an email in. I instead copy and paste the hyperlinked email address into my yahoo window to send mail. Otherwise I get a useless Mail composition window.)

The annoying thing is that Apple sends me emails there every now and again (How do they do that when I can't send mail out??)...however not for months so perhaps it was linked up to my trial period with .mac (which long ago expired).

Am I just being daft or is there a real use for Mail that I haven't discerned? 

Could it just be my settings need tweaking? 

Is there perhaps a way to make it work in tandem with Yahoo or is it an either/or scenario? 

Any input on Mail would be welcome.

Thanks.


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## wdejong (Jun 15, 2006)

The Mail application is, well, an application. It's nothing more than a client which can gather your email for you. It's not an email service. For that, well, you've mentioned a couple already (.Mac, Shaw, and Yahoo).

What Mail can do is take the server settings for any of those email services so you can easily view all your mail in one spot. Mail can read from one of three types of incoming mail servers: POP (post office protocol), IMAP (Internet Message Access Protocol) and .Mac (which, coincidentally, is a POP server)/

Unfortunately, Yahoo is one of very few exceptions. The Applecare agent probably couldn't help you because he didn't know why it didn't work. You can't read Yahoo emails in an external client, like Mail or Entourage, because Yahoo doesn't allow it. In order to use a POP client, you must be subscribed to Yahoo Mail! Plus. If you're not, then you won't be able to access your Yahoo Mail outside of Yahoo without a third party app (of which there are many) to convert it.

Another rather unfortunate thing for you, and something I don't think the Applecare agent should have suggested, is that Mail is now deleted from your system. As it's not a "bundled" application, the only recourse is to Archive and Install in order to replace it.

I hope some of this made sense. I'm kinda tired, and I tell people this all day at work, so it's kinda scripted.


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## Orion (Apr 16, 2004)

Assuming that Mail has in fact been deleted (not just in the Trash, but gone), you can restore Mail from the installation CDs that came with the machine or the OS installation disks (depending on whether you're using the OS the machine came with). Download a free-to-try program named Pacifist (http://www.charlessoft.com/). After running it and placing the first CD or DVD of the above mentioned disks you should have the option of looking for a specific "package". You're looking for Mail. When you find it, highlight it and install (double click or Pacifist may present you with a button).

After this, Mail will be restored to your system.

Not sure about getting Mail to download your mail for you. Sorry.


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## bishopandarlo (Mar 22, 2006)

wdejong said:


> Unfortunately, Yahoo is one of very few exceptions. The Applecare agent probably couldn't help you because he didn't know why it didn't work. You can't read Yahoo emails in an external client, like Mail or Entourage, because Yahoo doesn't allow it. In order to use a POP client, you must be subscribed to Yahoo Mail! Plus. If you're not, then you won't be able to access your Yahoo Mail outside of Yahoo without a third party app (of which there are many) to convert it.


*Yahoo.ca does allow POP Access now.* 




From Yahoo! Mail said:


> POP Access Settings
> 
> [Close Window]
> In order to read your Yahoo! Canada Mail an external email client (such as Eudora, Outlook, Netscape, etc.), you will need to configure the Incoming (POP) and Outgoing (SMTP) server settings so that it can send and receive messages from your Yahoo! Canada Mail account. Generally, you can find these settings under the Tools or Preferences menus for your particular email program.
> ...


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## Demosthenes X (Sep 23, 2004)

Mail is great if you have to manage multiple email accounts. I have one personal one, one school one (which is assigned by the school, so that's where profs send anything), and one used just for signing up for stuff on the internet.

With Mail, I'm able to receive messages from all three in one place, and reply from whichever of the three I like.

It also means my mail is on my harddrive for easy reading and searchable through Spotlight. 

I also have Entourage installed, and find Mail much nicer to use than that, or Outlook, Thunderbird, etc., which I've used in the past...


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## Iwantamac (Sep 25, 2006)

*Send with Mail - receive with Yahoo/Rogers*

Mail is great but why would use up to 2 GB of my space when I'm paying Rogers for it? I have Mail set to send only and use it when I want to include graphics in the message or want to keep a copy of the message. Admittedly, using Spotlight to search mail would be useful at times but it's tough to escape the Scottish gene.


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## Deep Blue (Sep 16, 2005)

Ok, now I'm beginning to get it. 

When I bought my first Mac 18 months ago I assumed Mail must be a gathering point for email but the inability to make it work with yahoo threw me...and when the Applecare tech didn't know any better I just forgot about it.

I'll dig into my Yahoo settings and see if I can uncover the POP info I need.


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## bishopandarlo (Mar 22, 2006)

Deep Blue said:


> I'll dig into my Yahoo settings and see if I can uncover the POP info I need.


Sign into Yahoo! Mail. Then just go into *Options* and then select *POP Access and Forwarding* and the setting & addition info are there. It will give you the info needed to set it up in Mail.


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## Deep Blue (Sep 16, 2005)

Cool.


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## crawford (Oct 8, 2005)

Iwantamac said:


> Mail is great but why would use up to 2 GB of my space when I'm paying Rogers for it? I have Mail set to send only and use it when I want to include graphics in the message or want to keep a copy of the message. Admittedly, using Spotlight to search mail would be useful at times but it's tough to escape the Scottish gene.


I don't understand this at all. Send with Mail - receive with Yahoo/Rogers?


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## Iwantamac (Sep 25, 2006)

In other words, I use Yahoo (aka Rogers mail) 95% of the time to send and receive but have enabled Mail to send - only when I neeed to use it.


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## GratuitousApplesauce (Jan 29, 2004)

Gmail allows you POP access. I have a few gmail accounts that I rarely access via the web, but I use them a lot from within Mail.app. It's simple and easy. I have used a yahoo.ca email the same way but found it seems to screw up from time to time, especially when I'm trying to send. Gmail seems almost bulletproof.


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## Deep Blue (Sep 16, 2005)

I tried all the above advice and entered the POP settings into mail. I created two new POP accounts for my two yahoo email accounts.

I used the settings yahoo recommends and the port (smtp 587) but got the following message when I tried to send myself a trial email through Mail:

"Cannot send the message using the server smtp.mail.yahoo.ca

Use the pop-up menu below to try a different outgoing mail server. All 
messages will use this server until you quit Mail or change your network 
settings."

I inputed the correct passwords for my two accounts so I must be doing something basic incorrectly. The weird things is Yahoo recommends using several different smtp ports.


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