Thunderbird As The Ubuntu E-Mail Client

[devius]

Why don't you implement it then?

Holy fuck! Why is it that whenever someone says that a certain feature would improve the software and it would be easy to implement someone else always says that?? I'm sick of replies to questions like "Hey, it would be great if Ubuntu ran on my NES!" to be in the lines of "Oh yeah smartass?? Then why don't you make your own kernel and find a way to compress the whole userspace programs to fit in 128KB ROMs yourself!!!????", or "It's a shame there aren't any more native games for linux" with "Fuck you!!! You want games?? Go make them yourself!!!".

I'm pretty sure that if those guys were indeed part of the developers in charge of OperaMail, Thunderbird or Evolution they would implement it. The problem with any of us doing any kind of development for software we're not familiar with is that it takes a very long time to get to know how the program is built and organized and what's the best way to achieve the set goals. The developers who have been working on those programs are much more familiar with them and for them it would take a lot less time to implement the aforementioned features. So, it wouldn't be easy for a newcomer to do it. Also, Opera is closed source...

[runeks]

Yeah I kind of know what you're saying. I guess it depends a lot on how it's being said though, the "it's easy, implement it"-statement.

I think what triggers me, personally, is that there are developers out there who are willing to use their spare time developing new features and fixing bugs in programs that we then choose to use. And our response to this is not "thanks for spending your time developing this program I can use for free", but rather: "come on guys, please use more of your spare time to implement feature x. It's so easy!".
I think it's that attitude that makes my hands move the mouse cursor to "Reply", typing in "why don't you do it yourself?" and hitting "Post".

I mean, I know what it's like to have that thought saying "this feature is so obviously nice, why don't you implement it?!". But I always seem to realize, before making anything public, that I probably should be thanking the devs for spending their time writing code that I find useful, instead of criticizing them for not spending their time developing some particular feature that I think would be great.

[AlbertP]

Both Thunderbird and Evolution are having their pros and cons.

I like Windows Mail since its Vista and 7 versions. Or the Windows Live Mail program, to receive different accounts in different folders (but it's a horrible program to get e-mail imported/exported).
But Thunderbird (or Evolution) also does what I want it to do: send and receive e-mail using two mail addresses. I don't really worry about which of these programs is used, I do not have RAM shortage and if I had, the providers of the two addresses are both having a very good webmail.

[devius]

@runeks Well, bug trackers are a great way of letting the devs know what features we want and I try to use them as much as possible. Also, contributing to a project isn't only confined to writing code. Sometimes making sure the devs get the message on what's important for users will also be a great help for the project since it's potential to attract more users will be greater. But I do agree that whenever possible "if you want something done right, do it yourself".
The "we must appreciate the free work" argument isn't always the most valid one. Sure it's awesome that there are people willing to let me use software created by them for free, but that doesn't mean I have to like it. If I make a FOSS program that has a feature that only I can use and so no one else is going to use the program, you're not going to thank me for making it are you?

[runeks]

If I make a FOSS program that has a feature that only I can use and so no one else is going to use the program, you're not going to thank me for making it are you?

It's not about thanking, it's about not telling other people what they should spend their time doing. It's not about doing, it's about not doing.
I wasn't trying to say that we should be thanking developers, but rather that thanking - to me - seems like a more appropriate response when someone gives you something, regardless of whether you like what you receive or not.

I'm not saying that you or anyone else in this thread has commanded any developers to implement a feature, I'm just trying to explain the essence of my attitude towards this.

EDIT:

@runeks Well, bug trackers are a great way of letting the devs know what features we want and I try to use them as much as possible. Also, contributing to a project isn't only confined to writing code. Sometimes making sure the devs get the message on what's important for users will also be a great help for the project since it's potential to attract more users will be greater.

And you are completely right about this. Coding isn't all there is to open source, not at all. All kinds of help can be useful.
But I think we all can sense the difference in attitude between someone clicking the "affects me too"-button in a bug report, and something commenting "this is so un-fucking-believeable that this feature hasn't been implemented, this bug is 300 years old".
Although the same desire fuels both these responses, only one of them is actually helpful.