Asking: One More Gmail Question Post

[rsadelle]

Okay, people, I am moving into this decade and I've been using Gmail's web interface only for about the last week. The switch from email as messages to email as threads is not an easy one, but I'm working it out and I'm just about ready to give up using a client and switch to Gmail full-time. The biggest annoyance that's not a deal breaker is a color issue that I can't seem to change (even using the choose your own colors thing). Anyway, as usual, I have to fret and fuss for a bit first.

Two (Possibly Last) Questions:

1. I have multiple email addresses (all but one of them via Gmail), most of which I don't use very much but a few of which I need to actually know when something comes in. Does anyone have experience using Gmail to read a different Gmail address? (I would really like to IMAP from one Gmail address to the others, but apparently my choice is POP.) Does it work well? If I want to sign in only to email address A, but then send email coming from email address B, can I do it from email address A, or do I need to log out and log in to email address B? (I guess I could try this out myself to see how it works, but maybe one of you knows and can just tell me before I go fussing with it.)

2. Backing up. I have years worth of email - years! - and while some of it could probably disappear and I wouldn't notice, I want to keep a lot of it, and I'm uneasy not having a local backup. How do you back up your Gmail? Or do you just leave it in the hands of Google?

Comments

re: Backing up

[trcunning.livejournal.com]

I've not used it but if you go to Setting > Offline > Offline Mail, you can "Synchronize your mail to this computer so you can access it without an internet connection."

Re: Backing up

[rsadelle]

Hmm. That's a possibility! (My worrywart worry is: what happens if gmail accidentally wipes out my mail and I go online and it resyncs?)

[allegram.livejournal.com]

for 2, I leave it in Google's hands they seem to be more reliable than my local drive(s) anyways. However I do have a mail program which is set to download but not delete from my main account from waaay back in the day, I accidently open the program about once a month and then have to tell it to stop downloading everything. For me this is an annoyance but it could be a way to keep a local back-up.

for 1, it's easy to set up multiple outgoing addresses these days, just go to:
settings
accounts and import
then follow the directions in the "send mail as" section
the section beneath it also suggests that it can import from your other accounts, but I like having my accounts segregated so I haven't tried that one yet...

Also google does now allow you to prevent your messages from threading. On the general tab of the settings page there is a "conversation view" option, turn it off to go to old-fashioned viewing.

[rsadelle]

I've never had an issue with either my own hard drives or a service, but I also don't want to lose anything! I'm also looking for a backup solution that doesn't require me to do anything.

Oooh, I'll have to try that out.

I'm trying to move into the new world, so I don't think I want to actually turn off threading.