Re: [h-e-w] Integration of emacs and Mozilla Thunderbird

[rob . davenport]

If I've read your message correctly (a big assumption),
it sounds like what you want is:

a)  for Thunderbird to support using an external editor 
for email composition (and configurable enough to just 
use it for replies to plain-text email only).

I haven't used Thunderbird but briefly.  I don't know 
if it supports and external editor or not, or if it 
would be amenable to intercepting "open" commands
a la VisEmacs.

b)  configure your registry so mailto links can be handled 
with a gnudoit command (assuming programs pass them on to 
the windows shell to execute) 

c)  use Emacs to read plain-text email.

I normally use Pegasus Mail at home (I know, I know, 
I just haven't migrated to using Emacs yet - inertia).
But I did try and noticed that PM's supposedly mbox-format 
files weren't entirely mbox format when I tried to direct 
Emacs to read them.
As I recall, there were actually several mbox formats even. 
So it may not be pain-free to get Emacs to read the 
Thunderbird mail stores. I think though that when I tried 
reading Netscape mail files I had better luck, so perhaps 
it wouldn't be too bad.

If you could get it working, I have to believe there's a 
way in GNUS or VM or other email package to identify plain 
text messages to the user. You could then just open only 
those, even though you'd see all of them.  Might be a 
workable compromise on that point.

This may not be a response full of answers, but maybe it will stimulate 
some
discussion.

Rob


ssage from David Vanderschel <address@hidden>@gnu.org received on 
11/10/2004 05:00 AM

Has anyone achieved a graceful integration of Mozilla
Thunderbird and emacs for email?  What I seek is to be
able to reply to plain text email (or a plain-textified
version) from in emacs.  OTOH, I wish to view HTML
email in Thunderbird.  Furthermore, I would like for
mailto: links (from any client) to put me in emacs.
(I have already achieved that for IE, but it appears
that Thunderbird requires some extra code (which I do
not know how to make) to do this.)  I would also
prefer to _read_ plain text email in emacs, though
this is not a critical requirement.

If I recall correctly, Mozilla uses Unix mbox format
for its mail store and emacs can handle that format.
I suspect that it may be possible to have an
appropriate gnus backend which would allow emacs to
access Thunderbird's mail store directly.

I expect that the easiest solution would have one
starting in Thunderbird and moving to emacs for
replies, but a solution that starts in emacs would be
a plus, especially if it automatically put you in
Thunderbird on any HTML messages.

I seek illumination and, with luck, help.

Regards,
David V.