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Ask HN: How many email addresses do you actively use?

21 points by chdaniel 7y ago

I'm addressing this question especially to those who have multiple businesses online. Also, how do you access them?

thibaultamartin 7y ago
I tried to limit as much as possible switching between email addresses. Because of there is no central authority to bind an email to a person, you cannot really ever delete an address. I used to have a gmail address, and then I switched to a custom domain + email provider when I started to want some emancipation from Google. My gmail address still exists but redirects emails to my new address. I refrained from creating aliases to that address for the very reason that I wouldn’t be able to delete them.
- chdaniel 7y ago
  When you say email provider, is that an Exchange account? Or just roundcube/free thing from your custom domain? What do you use to read/send emails? And did I get it right that you only have two now i.e. custom domain and the gmail one?
  - thibaultamartin 7y ago
    Yes I have two addresses, the custom (actively used) and the gmail (legacy, forwards everything to my custom). I registered my domain at Gandi.net, which offers access to their smtp and imap servers when you do so. They are my provider atm, but since I own the domain I could switch to self hosting anytime.
    - chdaniel 7y ago
      What do you do if you get a new device? Is it painful to set these things up across your devices? They'd need to have the same signature, display name etc.
stzup7 7y ago
As a customer I use one email address per service, using a catch-all on my domain name. As a business, I have about 3 or 4 email addresses for each business and all of them are managed through a single fastmail.com account
- chdaniel 7y ago
  If you get a new device, do you just login with your fastmail.com and everything is synced (display names, signatures etc) or do you need to set up these things again?
ahuth 7y ago
1 work, 1 personal, 1 professional (for recruiters and domain stuff)
- chdaniel 7y ago
  Would you use a web-based email client where, with one login, you can access all 3 addresses? Not in an unified inbox, but have them as separates. Say the "cmd+1" keyboard shortcut is instantly switching to address #1, cmd +2 is switching to address #2 and so on...
Wowfunhappy 7y ago
Three: 1. My work email 2. My "personal" email, with a silly-sounding address (see my username). 3. A professional-sounding, but non-work-affiliated email (firstname.lastname@gmail.com) I would love to combine 2 and 3. Unfortunately, I came up with my email/username when I was 12 and didn't know any better, and I don't want it seen in professional correspondence. I add all three to Apple Mail on my various devices, and access them from a unified inbox. The exception is my work computer (an iMac), where I could add my personal accounts but have chosen not to.
- chdaniel 7y ago
  You're the perfect person I can asked an "advanced" question since you're using a unified inbox. Would you see an improvement in having a web-based mail client where, with one login, you can access and quickly switch between all these addresses' inboxes?
  - Wowfunhappy 7y ago
    Yes it would be an improvement, but I use web-based email so rarely I don't know if I'd bother setting up such a thing. The only time I use web-based email is when I'm on a public computer and need a very specific message. When that happens, I know intuitively which account it's in.
    - chdaniel 7y ago
      Oh? I assumed web-based email is superior to a client installed on your machine since it's... in the cloud as opposed to local. I can see you're not thinking of it that way. What's your underlying thought on web-based email vs local client?
      - mici 7y ago
        Not OP, but I'm in a similar situation, so I though I'd share my insight, in case you're interested. I prefer a desktop client because it's more lightweight than a web browser, I can keep it running indefinitely, I don't have to worry about accidentaly closing it and not receiving notifications afterwards. I can also have a dedicated icon in the tray that shows the number of new messages.
darrmit 7y ago
I have one personal domain at Fastmail that I use nearly always, but it’s a .me domain and I’ve ran into weird issues with certain services thinking it’s a fake email address or just general unexplained delivery issues over the years, so I fall back to a fastmail.com address in those cases. I also have iCloud and GMail addresses I rarely ever use. I forward everything into Fastmail and use their web interface and mobile apps. I have a work address I keep entirely separate.
- agustif 7y ago
  ditto on fastmail and .me. Also hate the did you mean me@domain.de?
- chdaniel 7y ago
  If you switch devices, do you just login with Fastmail once and everything is synced? Or do you have to sync details such as display name+signatures again?
menzoic 7y ago
3: Work, personal, independent business
- chdaniel 7y ago
  I see. How do you manage access them? Mail client or browser?
lucasverra 7y ago
5 : - 3 personal (of them 2 personal domains) - 2 pro/project based
- chdaniel 7y ago
  When you switch devices, do you set these addresses up all over again? How do you deal with syncing display names, signatures etc, if so?
TheMog 7y ago
I've got several - one gmail (aka the "refuse collection" that I use mostly for email registrations for website I suspect will send me more email I care for), one protonmail I use as a backup business email where I'm the customer, plus my main personal email address a handful for side projects that I all run via an email server I host myself on a VPS. Oh, and a work email address.
- chdaniel 7y ago
  Would you use a web-based email client where, with one login, you can access all three addresses? Not in a unified inbox, but have them as separates. Say the "cmd+1" keyboard shortcut is instantly switching to address #1, cmd +2 is switching to address #2 and so on...
away_throw 7y ago
Three Emails: - accounts@domain.tld - Catch All for emails for services (account/<service>@domain.tld) - handle@domain.tld - Personal Email - first@domain.tld - Work/Professional Email
- chdaniel 7y ago
  Would you use a web-based email client where, with one login, you can access all three addresses? Not in a unified inbox, but have them as separates. Say the "cmd+1" keyboard shortcut is instantly switching to address #1, cmd +2 is switching to address #2 and so on...
Bnshsysjab 7y ago
Many, I split topics logically over multiple gmail addresses which allowed me to isolate spam. I’ve also used throwaway sims for things like gumtree.com.au - there was a bunch of phone spam that hit the burner number so I’m glad I did that one. Now I use two dedicated domains with catchalls which seem to work everywhere but gmail which should allow me to attribute and blackhole spam much more effectively. I really wish large providers (o365, aws) would provide low volume accounts for cheaper - having my company sales or procurements associated with my personal company email is silly, but the alternative is $4/month/account which really adds up but running your own mail server has it’s own time costs.
- chdaniel 7y ago
  So how many do email addresses would you need to access if, say, you're on a vacation and you're using the hotel iMacs (or whatever desktops they have there). When you get a new phone/laptop/work computer/etc, do you set up all these 2/3/4 email addresses you actually use, making sure the display names and signatures are synced?
  - Bnshsysjab 7y ago
    > hotel iMacs I would never authenticate to an account I care about from a host I don’t trust. > new laptop Copy my .thunderbird and offlineimap user profiles to my new host
    - chdaniel 7y ago
      > Copy my .thunderbird and offlineimap user profiles to my new host Would you be paying for a web-based email client for all your email accounts, in order to avoid this transfer?
truro 7y ago
Five. I use them all. Three are not tied to my identity and I use them for secure communications. The other two are for family and friends. Only one is a paid-for service and I've used that service for fourteen years, which permits unlimited ad-hoc addresses.
- chdaniel 7y ago
  Would you use a web-based email client where, with one login, you can access all 5 addresses? Not in a unified inbox, but have them as separates. Say the "cmd+1" keyboard shortcut is instantly switching to address #1, cmd +2 is switching to address #2 and so on...
__d 7y ago
1 professional (Fastmail, own domain) 1 personal (POBox alias, forwarding to iCloud) 1 employer-provided (Google Business) 1 GMail (er ... GMail) 1 iCloud (not publicly used, but collects from POBox) 1 Yahoo (still!) I use all accounts from Mail on my iPhone; all except my employer's account via Mail.app on my MBP; and my employer's GMail via the GMail web on my work laptop. I use +-suffixes extensively for signups, etc, so I can blackhole spam when my address gets leaked ...
- chdaniel 7y ago
  When you're on a computer, do you access all these individually from the browser? If you'd switch your phone, does the need to sync the display names and signatures bother you? That, and the need to log in manually to all these 6 addresses?
  - __d 7y ago
    On my laptop, I use Apple's Mail.app, rather than a browser. When I switch to my phone, also using the iOS Mail application, it's all synced up. I seldom need to log in: the Mail apps use my keychain to sign me in to all the accounts transparently. I have at least one signature for each account, and several for some. When sending a new email, I select the correct source address (two taps/clicks), and signature (another two clicks) if the default isn't correct. Replies set the account automatically, so I just need to choose the signature there.
  - __d 7y ago
    When I get a new phone, my email (and calendar, and contacts) settings migrate seamlessly. I've upgraded 3 times over the last decode (iPhone3GS, iPhone5S, iPhone6S) with no issues. Same with a new laptop (4 times in about 15 years) -- I just transfer all the settings over, and I haven't ever needed to redo anything.
lcall 7y ago
Hundreds. Having my own domains with all email coming to me lets me give arbitrary (i.e., numbered) addresses when requested, so I can track them when I want, and for example see which ones later to auto-delete, etc. Or for whatever need arises. Edit: my recollection from some time ago is that pobox.com was useful for the same thing, if one doesn't have one's own domain. I used them before I got mine. There are probably similar services. I liked their attitude and approach, at the time. (no other affiliation.) Edit again: the above plus some rules in mutt (or thunderbird maybe...), have been really helpful for me. The rules & macros could get rather complex if one wanted I suppose. (Edit: I've liked pair.com for domain/hosting for a long time: have had good prices/service, helpfulness, no silliness for many years; also no other affiliation but customer.) (Edit: that email system at my hosting provider also works well for, say, groups like various extended family subsets, so it works something like a mailing list to everyone.) Edit (sorry, I didn't answer the OPs 2nd question): For most, I use mutt (or thunderbird) to POP (download) them from my hosting provider to my own pc (so, not a business...sorry if not helping), and then do good backups. For some, as mentioned in my previous paragraph, they are auto-forwarded by the hosting provider to whomever, per rules I put in their web UI for my account. It is also possible to create many extra mailboxes (which I used to do ) so other individuals can POP (or view with IMAP) their own email to their own pc. For a business...would have to think whether we need a centralized Exchange-equivalent or if storage on multiple PCs, or IMAP (leave it on the hosting provider's server, but manage from a PC, etc) is OK in a limited situation, given the backups, storage, and specific business needs. I would probably not prefer gmail since Google already has enough centralized power (as discussed in other HN postings about Chrome vs. firefox etc).
- AlchemistCamp 7y ago
  Sounds exhausting and a bit of a pain for people who correspond with you. What's the point?
  - lcall 7y ago
    I'm not sure how so. I just give someone an email address (x122@example.com) and they just use it, and everything to "example.com" (or, my domain in practice) always comes to me. I've never yet had to tell a person (other than some online automated system (edit: rarely there but happened and i was glad I could)) to change the address they use for me. Works well especially when businesses require one. Then if they spam me too much later, I just can auto-delete email to that address at either my email client or using the web tools of pair.com who hosts the domain. But, did I misunderstand you?
john_moscow 7y ago
I use an open-source helpdesk system to manage business emails. Works like a charm - lets you assign deadlines, priorities, categories, have canned replies, sorting rules, leave internal comments, search previous replies, etc. It's also super-convenient to have 1 interface to multiple emails & signatures (support/sales/per-product addresses) and I would recommend setting one up once you hit 5-10 incoming emails per week. Aside from that, I have 1 personal address on my main business domain, the name@surname.com (redirects to the 1st one) and a @gmail.com one for people with overzealous spam filters.
- svd4anything 7y ago
  Wow that is such an interesting idea to me. one of those “that was obvious why didn’t I think of that” type reactions. What help-desk system is your favorite?
- chdaniel 7y ago
  If you say open-source I believe it's safe to assume it's a fully free helpdesk system, right? So do you access this system through the browser? If you change the device, there's no initial time investment to set all these up, right?
zzo38computer 7y ago
Fourteen, all on my own server. Each one is used with a different service or person that I communicate with. I access it with Heirloom-mailx; all of the messages go into the same mailbox file, and the /etc/aliases file is used to add or remove email addresses. This helps to avoid spam.
- chdaniel 7y ago
  If you change devices or get a new device, do you need to set everything you've set up in Heirloom again? Or it's all synced?
  - zzo38computer 7y ago
    If I get a new computer, I can simply copy the files, I think. (These are not only the mailbox file for Heirloom-mailx, but also the configuration files for Exim, and the /etc/aliases file, which would be copied.) (I don't use my email from multiple devices at the same time.)
morpheuskafka 7y ago
Don't have any business use, so not sure if this is of any interest to you. 1. Personal domain, currently hosted with Office 365 but I will probably move after the year is up. 2. Student email (.edu, G Suite). Used for all school business, school-related apps, and some things I haven't bothered to move to #1 yet. 3. Gmail account for spammy/annoying websites and signups. 4. Gmail account used for public records/FOIA requests, nothing else. 5. iCloud account (basically used for nothing except iTunes receipts). 6. ProtonMail account--used for my VPN accounts only. On my Mac mini and iPhone, I use Apple Mail with 1, 2, and 5 added. On my Windows laptop, I access 1 and 2 through webmail (I have Outlook installed for 1 but rarely use it). Anything else, I just sign in to webmail as needed. I also have access to a few team/shared Gmail/G Suite accounts, I don't have these added to Mail b/c I don't want their unread statuses messing up my unread badges. Only 1/2 are generally used for IRL stuff or accounts that I care about. I follow inbox zero and turn off email notifications for all but the most important stuff (ex security alerts, receipts, eBay auction results) and email analogs (ex. Canvas messages).
- chdaniel 7y ago
  You've given me a lot of info (thanks for that) so I can ask you a question that would usually come "down the line". Especially since you're cross-platform (mac mini, windows, iphone), would you use a web-based email client where, with one login, you can access all these 6? Not in an unified inbox, but have them as separate. Essentially Apple Mail Client but in the browser.
akho 7y ago
No online businesses. 1) work email (access from the office or through blackberry work, ugh) 2) personal (that’s actually two addresses on similar domains, but I only actually send from one) — google hosted, read through iOS mail or mail.app or win10 mail or web interface 3) a more professionally-sounding personal, which I don’t use much, forwarded to 2) 4) spam hole for random website registrations, read through web interface when I need to confirm an email for some business’ enjoyment 5) one for newsletters, which I convert to a feed to read in miniflux I guess I also have a Microsoft account from my office 365 subscription, but I never actually opened it.
- chdaniel 7y ago
  Thanks for clarifying everything — because of the info you've given me, I can ask you a question that would usually come after some back-and-forth: Would you use a web-based email client where, with one login, you can access the relevant ones? Not in an unified inbox, but have them as separates. Say you add all of them but disable notifications on address #4 and set notification rules for #5. As a consequence, you wouldn't need to forward #3 to #2.
  - akho 7y ago
    Gmail already allows to easily switch between accounts.
    - chdaniel 7y ago
      Are you using Gmail? I did try that personally but the fact that it was POP3 and not IMAP put me off... I believe they do that because they sell G Suite and you'd have to get that if you'd want IMAP and easy-switch
      - akho 7y ago
        I have the old free g suite. You mention keyboard shortcuts. That’s trivial to replicate with Firefox’ MAC with any web interface. Web clients are not important.
deleted 7y ago
[deleted]
davchana 7y ago
@gmail.com, moving all those to personal domain; few catchalls@domains
- chdaniel 7y ago
  When you switch devices, do you set these addresses all over again? How do you deal with syncing display names, signatures etc, if so?
nottorp 7y ago
2 to 7. One personal/work email on my own domain, one catchall on gmail, mostly for signing up to public services that will spam me (sadly their spam filter is much better than what I can run on my server). 5+ legacy email addys on various non-gmail free services, that i don't sign up with any more but have some of my old accounts.
- chdaniel 7y ago
  So you're mainly using... 2 to 4 if I counted that right? What do you do when you get a new device? Do you have to sync the signatures and display names again manually?
  - nottorp 7y ago
    I regularly use only 2, so the others aren't configured in any email client, i just open the web interface when i (rarely) use them.
Eavolution 7y ago
About 7. I require 3 for personal use (one main, 2 junk for accounts for websites that I don't care about but need an account), one school one, one for my scanners smtp scan to email function and the other 2 are just old ones.
- chdaniel 7y ago
  Would you use a web-based email client where, with one login, you can access all email addresses you care about? Not in an unified inbox, but have them as separates. Say cmd+1 is quickly switching to address #1, cmd +2 is switching to address #2 and so on...
mattlondon 7y ago
Work, personal Gmail, and more recently a personal burner domain that has hundreds. The burner domain is great for random website signups. Anything serious is done via Gmail (with two factor), but for the burner domain I use a unique address for every site that needs a sign-up (so if whatever.com needs a sign up then I use whatever@burner, other.org becomes other@burner etc etc - all addresses are directed to one inbox via a catchall) but typically the same password. So I remember one password instead of one email address, and the address I can work out from the domain. Not exactly secure, but at least slightly resistant to leaked email lists if a site gets hacked (since every site has a unique address and common password, rather than common address and password). I am working on the assumption that people are just automatically trying leaked user-passwd pairs and won't "crack" my system... but if they do no harm done since anything important is on Gmail (I generally trust Google to not get hacked, for better or worse) and I can start again with another burner domain. For important passwords I of course use decent passwords and a password manager, but life is too short for that with websites you might only use once or twice a year and you don't really care about. I use Zoho for the burner domain. Cheap and reliable. I tried fastmail, proton mail, and tutonova but I preferred zoho's web interface, app, and price (for the features I needed)
- chdaniel 7y ago
  Would you use a web-based email client where, with one login, you can access all three addresses? Not in a unified inbox, but have them as separates. Say the "cmd+1" keyboard shortcut is instantly switching to address #1, cmd +2 is switching to address #2 and so on...
  - mattlondon 7y ago
    No that sounds like something I'd really want to avoid. Partly for security, but mostly just for segmentation of my brain/attention span. The different emails are all for different purposes and are never really used at the same time or same context. Plus also I don't have a Mac so no CMD key. If you are building a product, please don't do a mac-only release. Lots of developers don't use Macs despite what people seem to think
jamestomasino 7y ago
I use between 4 & 6 primary email "blocks" with each using several hundred aliases. I keep access to most, but not all of these blocks in Thunderbird on my two laptops. One of the email accounts I only access from a dedicated device while VPN'd. I fetch mail over POP3, wiping the server data, and then move the files to an airgapped machine to read. I have a Protonmail & Tutonota account which I connect to via their apps or websites. I also maintain several small public access servers which handle mail. I use Alpine for that, or Mutt in a pinch. Friends get one email address from one domain. Work gets aliases from a second domain. Businesses get an alias from a third domain. These are either whitelisted domains where any address will get to me, or I can create the alias on the fly in the moment. I like to know not only if a mailbox is getting spam so I can block the alias, but also so I can stop doing business with companies that sell my data (looking at you, Bank of America). Is it overkill? Oh yeah, big-time.
blaser-waffle 7y ago
Four (4) - Work, run through the company's IT team - Personal (via gmail) - Private personal (custom domain) - Volunteer group email
Rerarom 7y ago
Roughly four. The 'personal' email address (although I have some work-related emails on it) which is on Gmail, so I have push notifications on my phone. I also use webmail. The work address from the institution I'm currently at and the address from the one where I'm currently on leave. These I check daily (or four times a day if I'm bored) on their webmail interfaces. The old personal address (also on Gmail) which I've discontinued in 2014. This I check once a week.
tendencydriven 7y ago
I use three emails. I have my personal email, which is in gmail I have my website email, which is in gmail for business And I have my work email, which is also in gmail for business. I add all three to my laptop and only the first two to my phone. I use the + feature a lot, for example tendencydriven+github@workdomain.com - they still get arrive in my regular inbox but I can easily see who is sharing my email, and block certain ones if I start getting spam on them.
arthurwilliams 7y ago
I actively used 3 Do you want to search person's email address, phone number and address? Like Arthur Williams https://www.checkpeople.com/search/name/arthur-williams https://www.checkpeople.com/search/name/arthur-williams

21 points by chdaniel 7y ago

I'm addressing this question especially to those who have multiple businesses online. Also, how do you access them?

I tried to limit as much as possible switching between email addresses. Because of there is no central authority to bind an email to a person, you cannot really ever delete an address. I used to have a gmail address, and then I switched to a custom domain + email provider when I started to want some emancipation from Google. My gmail address still exists but redirects emails to my new address. I refrained from creating aliases to that address for the very reason that I wouldn’t be able to delete them.

chdaniel 7y ago
When you say email provider, is that an Exchange account? Or just roundcube/free thing from your custom domain? What do you use to read/send emails? And did I get it right that you only have two now i.e. custom domain and the gmail one?
- thibaultamartin 7y ago
  Yes I have two addresses, the custom (actively used) and the gmail (legacy, forwards everything to my custom). I registered my domain at Gandi.net, which offers access to their smtp and imap servers when you do so. They are my provider atm, but since I own the domain I could switch to self hosting anytime.
  - chdaniel 7y ago
    What do you do if you get a new device? Is it painful to set these things up across your devices? They'd need to have the same signature, display name etc.

stzup7 7y ago

As a customer I use one email address per service, using a catch-all on my domain name. As a business, I have about 3 or 4 email addresses for each business and all of them are managed through a single fastmail.com account

chdaniel 7y ago
If you get a new device, do you just login with your fastmail.com and everything is synced (display names, signatures etc) or do you need to set up these things again?

ahuth 7y ago

1 work, 1 personal, 1 professional (for recruiters and domain stuff)

chdaniel 7y ago
Would you use a web-based email client where, with one login, you can access all 3 addresses? Not in an unified inbox, but have them as separates. Say the "cmd+1" keyboard shortcut is instantly switching to address #1, cmd +2 is switching to address #2 and so on...

Wowfunhappy 7y ago

Three: 1. My work email 2. My "personal" email, with a silly-sounding address (see my username). 3. A professional-sounding, but non-work-affiliated email (firstname.lastname@gmail.com) I would love to combine 2 and 3. Unfortunately, I came up with my email/username when I was 12 and didn't know any better, and I don't want it seen in professional correspondence. I add all three to Apple Mail on my various devices, and access them from a unified inbox. The exception is my work computer (an iMac), where I could add my personal accounts but have chosen not to.

chdaniel 7y ago
You're the perfect person I can asked an "advanced" question since you're using a unified inbox. Would you see an improvement in having a web-based mail client where, with one login, you can access and quickly switch between all these addresses' inboxes?
- Wowfunhappy 7y ago
  Yes it would be an improvement, but I use web-based email so rarely I don't know if I'd bother setting up such a thing. The only time I use web-based email is when I'm on a public computer and need a very specific message. When that happens, I know intuitively which account it's in.
  - chdaniel 7y ago
    Oh? I assumed web-based email is superior to a client installed on your machine since it's... in the cloud as opposed to local. I can see you're not thinking of it that way. What's your underlying thought on web-based email vs local client?
    - mici 7y ago
      Not OP, but I'm in a similar situation, so I though I'd share my insight, in case you're interested. I prefer a desktop client because it's more lightweight than a web browser, I can keep it running indefinitely, I don't have to worry about accidentaly closing it and not receiving notifications afterwards. I can also have a dedicated icon in the tray that shows the number of new messages.

darrmit 7y ago

I have one personal domain at Fastmail that I use nearly always, but it’s a .me domain and I’ve ran into weird issues with certain services thinking it’s a fake email address or just general unexplained delivery issues over the years, so I fall back to a fastmail.com address in those cases. I also have iCloud and GMail addresses I rarely ever use. I forward everything into Fastmail and use their web interface and mobile apps. I have a work address I keep entirely separate.

agustif 7y ago
ditto on fastmail and .me. Also hate the did you mean me@domain.de?
chdaniel 7y ago
If you switch devices, do you just login with Fastmail once and everything is synced? Or do you have to sync details such as display name+signatures again?

menzoic 7y ago

3: Work, personal, independent business

chdaniel 7y ago
I see. How do you manage access them? Mail client or browser?

lucasverra 7y ago

5 : - 3 personal (of them 2 personal domains) - 2 pro/project based

chdaniel 7y ago
When you switch devices, do you set these addresses up all over again? How do you deal with syncing display names, signatures etc, if so?

TheMog 7y ago

I've got several - one gmail (aka the "refuse collection" that I use mostly for email registrations for website I suspect will send me more email I care for), one protonmail I use as a backup business email where I'm the customer, plus my main personal email address a handful for side projects that I all run via an email server I host myself on a VPS. Oh, and a work email address.

chdaniel 7y ago
Would you use a web-based email client where, with one login, you can access all three addresses? Not in a unified inbox, but have them as separates. Say the "cmd+1" keyboard shortcut is instantly switching to address #1, cmd +2 is switching to address #2 and so on...

away_throw 7y ago

Three Emails: - accounts@domain.tld - Catch All for emails for services (account/<service>@domain.tld) - handle@domain.tld - Personal Email - first@domain.tld - Work/Professional Email

chdaniel 7y ago
Would you use a web-based email client where, with one login, you can access all three addresses? Not in a unified inbox, but have them as separates. Say the "cmd+1" keyboard shortcut is instantly switching to address #1, cmd +2 is switching to address #2 and so on...

Bnshsysjab 7y ago

Many, I split topics logically over multiple gmail addresses which allowed me to isolate spam. I’ve also used throwaway sims for things like gumtree.com.au - there was a bunch of phone spam that hit the burner number so I’m glad I did that one. Now I use two dedicated domains with catchalls which seem to work everywhere but gmail which should allow me to attribute and blackhole spam much more effectively. I really wish large providers (o365, aws) would provide low volume accounts for cheaper - having my company sales or procurements associated with my personal company email is silly, but the alternative is $4/month/account which really adds up but running your own mail server has it’s own time costs.

chdaniel 7y ago
So how many do email addresses would you need to access if, say, you're on a vacation and you're using the hotel iMacs (or whatever desktops they have there). When you get a new phone/laptop/work computer/etc, do you set up all these 2/3/4 email addresses you actually use, making sure the display names and signatures are synced?
- Bnshsysjab 7y ago
  > hotel iMacs I would never authenticate to an account I care about from a host I don’t trust. > new laptop Copy my .thunderbird and offlineimap user profiles to my new host
  - chdaniel 7y ago
    > Copy my .thunderbird and offlineimap user profiles to my new host Would you be paying for a web-based email client for all your email accounts, in order to avoid this transfer?

truro 7y ago

Five. I use them all. Three are not tied to my identity and I use them for secure communications. The other two are for family and friends. Only one is a paid-for service and I've used that service for fourteen years, which permits unlimited ad-hoc addresses.

chdaniel 7y ago
Would you use a web-based email client where, with one login, you can access all 5 addresses? Not in a unified inbox, but have them as separates. Say the "cmd+1" keyboard shortcut is instantly switching to address #1, cmd +2 is switching to address #2 and so on...

__d 7y ago

1 professional (Fastmail, own domain) 1 personal (POBox alias, forwarding to iCloud) 1 employer-provided (Google Business) 1 GMail (er ... GMail) 1 iCloud (not publicly used, but collects from POBox) 1 Yahoo (still!) I use all accounts from Mail on my iPhone; all except my employer's account via Mail.app on my MBP; and my employer's GMail via the GMail web on my work laptop. I use +-suffixes extensively for signups, etc, so I can blackhole spam when my address gets leaked ...

chdaniel 7y ago
When you're on a computer, do you access all these individually from the browser? If you'd switch your phone, does the need to sync the display names and signatures bother you? That, and the need to log in manually to all these 6 addresses?
- __d 7y ago
  On my laptop, I use Apple's Mail.app, rather than a browser. When I switch to my phone, also using the iOS Mail application, it's all synced up. I seldom need to log in: the Mail apps use my keychain to sign me in to all the accounts transparently. I have at least one signature for each account, and several for some. When sending a new email, I select the correct source address (two taps/clicks), and signature (another two clicks) if the default isn't correct. Replies set the account automatically, so I just need to choose the signature there.
- __d 7y ago
  When I get a new phone, my email (and calendar, and contacts) settings migrate seamlessly. I've upgraded 3 times over the last decode (iPhone3GS, iPhone5S, iPhone6S) with no issues. Same with a new laptop (4 times in about 15 years) -- I just transfer all the settings over, and I haven't ever needed to redo anything.

lcall 7y ago

Hundreds. Having my own domains with all email coming to me lets me give arbitrary (i.e., numbered) addresses when requested, so I can track them when I want, and for example see which ones later to auto-delete, etc. Or for whatever need arises. Edit: my recollection from some time ago is that pobox.com was useful for the same thing, if one doesn't have one's own domain. I used them before I got mine. There are probably similar services. I liked their attitude and approach, at the time. (no other affiliation.) Edit again: the above plus some rules in mutt (or thunderbird maybe...), have been really helpful for me. The rules & macros could get rather complex if one wanted I suppose. (Edit: I've liked pair.com for domain/hosting for a long time: have had good prices/service, helpfulness, no silliness for many years; also no other affiliation but customer.) (Edit: that email system at my hosting provider also works well for, say, groups like various extended family subsets, so it works something like a mailing list to everyone.) Edit (sorry, I didn't answer the OPs 2nd question): For most, I use mutt (or thunderbird) to POP (download) them from my hosting provider to my own pc (so, not a business...sorry if not helping), and then do good backups. For some, as mentioned in my previous paragraph, they are auto-forwarded by the hosting provider to whomever, per rules I put in their web UI for my account. It is also possible to create many extra mailboxes (which I used to do ) so other individuals can POP (or view with IMAP) their own email to their own pc. For a business...would have to think whether we need a centralized Exchange-equivalent or if storage on multiple PCs, or IMAP (leave it on the hosting provider's server, but manage from a PC, etc) is OK in a limited situation, given the backups, storage, and specific business needs. I would probably not prefer gmail since Google already has enough centralized power (as discussed in other HN postings about Chrome vs. firefox etc).

AlchemistCamp 7y ago
Sounds exhausting and a bit of a pain for people who correspond with you. What's the point?
- lcall 7y ago
  I'm not sure how so. I just give someone an email address (x122@example.com) and they just use it, and everything to "example.com" (or, my domain in practice) always comes to me. I've never yet had to tell a person (other than some online automated system (edit: rarely there but happened and i was glad I could)) to change the address they use for me. Works well especially when businesses require one. Then if they spam me too much later, I just can auto-delete email to that address at either my email client or using the web tools of pair.com who hosts the domain. But, did I misunderstand you?

john_moscow 7y ago

I use an open-source helpdesk system to manage business emails. Works like a charm - lets you assign deadlines, priorities, categories, have canned replies, sorting rules, leave internal comments, search previous replies, etc. It's also super-convenient to have 1 interface to multiple emails & signatures (support/sales/per-product addresses) and I would recommend setting one up once you hit 5-10 incoming emails per week. Aside from that, I have 1 personal address on my main business domain, the name@surname.com (redirects to the 1st one) and a @gmail.com one for people with overzealous spam filters.

svd4anything 7y ago
Wow that is such an interesting idea to me. one of those “that was obvious why didn’t I think of that” type reactions. What help-desk system is your favorite?
chdaniel 7y ago
If you say open-source I believe it's safe to assume it's a fully free helpdesk system, right? So do you access this system through the browser? If you change the device, there's no initial time investment to set all these up, right?

zzo38computer 7y ago

Fourteen, all on my own server. Each one is used with a different service or person that I communicate with. I access it with Heirloom-mailx; all of the messages go into the same mailbox file, and the /etc/aliases file is used to add or remove email addresses. This helps to avoid spam.

chdaniel 7y ago
If you change devices or get a new device, do you need to set everything you've set up in Heirloom again? Or it's all synced?
- zzo38computer 7y ago
  If I get a new computer, I can simply copy the files, I think. (These are not only the mailbox file for Heirloom-mailx, but also the configuration files for Exim, and the /etc/aliases file, which would be copied.) (I don't use my email from multiple devices at the same time.)

morpheuskafka 7y ago

Don't have any business use, so not sure if this is of any interest to you. 1. Personal domain, currently hosted with Office 365 but I will probably move after the year is up. 2. Student email (.edu, G Suite). Used for all school business, school-related apps, and some things I haven't bothered to move to #1 yet. 3. Gmail account for spammy/annoying websites and signups. 4. Gmail account used for public records/FOIA requests, nothing else. 5. iCloud account (basically used for nothing except iTunes receipts). 6. ProtonMail account--used for my VPN accounts only. On my Mac mini and iPhone, I use Apple Mail with 1, 2, and 5 added. On my Windows laptop, I access 1 and 2 through webmail (I have Outlook installed for 1 but rarely use it). Anything else, I just sign in to webmail as needed. I also have access to a few team/shared Gmail/G Suite accounts, I don't have these added to Mail b/c I don't want their unread statuses messing up my unread badges. Only 1/2 are generally used for IRL stuff or accounts that I care about. I follow inbox zero and turn off email notifications for all but the most important stuff (ex security alerts, receipts, eBay auction results) and email analogs (ex. Canvas messages).

chdaniel 7y ago
You've given me a lot of info (thanks for that) so I can ask you a question that would usually come "down the line". Especially since you're cross-platform (mac mini, windows, iphone), would you use a web-based email client where, with one login, you can access all these 6? Not in an unified inbox, but have them as separate. Essentially Apple Mail Client but in the browser.

akho 7y ago

No online businesses. 1) work email (access from the office or through blackberry work, ugh) 2) personal (that’s actually two addresses on similar domains, but I only actually send from one) — google hosted, read through iOS mail or mail.app or win10 mail or web interface 3) a more professionally-sounding personal, which I don’t use much, forwarded to 2) 4) spam hole for random website registrations, read through web interface when I need to confirm an email for some business’ enjoyment 5) one for newsletters, which I convert to a feed to read in miniflux I guess I also have a Microsoft account from my office 365 subscription, but I never actually opened it.

chdaniel 7y ago
Thanks for clarifying everything — because of the info you've given me, I can ask you a question that would usually come after some back-and-forth: Would you use a web-based email client where, with one login, you can access the relevant ones? Not in an unified inbox, but have them as separates. Say you add all of them but disable notifications on address #4 and set notification rules for #5. As a consequence, you wouldn't need to forward #3 to #2.
- akho 7y ago
  Gmail already allows to easily switch between accounts.
  - chdaniel 7y ago
    Are you using Gmail? I did try that personally but the fact that it was POP3 and not IMAP put me off... I believe they do that because they sell G Suite and you'd have to get that if you'd want IMAP and easy-switch
    - akho 7y ago
      I have the old free g suite. You mention keyboard shortcuts. That’s trivial to replicate with Firefox’ MAC with any web interface. Web clients are not important.

deleted 7y ago

[deleted]

davchana 7y ago

@gmail.com, moving all those to personal domain; few catchalls@domains

chdaniel 7y ago
When you switch devices, do you set these addresses all over again? How do you deal with syncing display names, signatures etc, if so?

nottorp 7y ago

2 to 7. One personal/work email on my own domain, one catchall on gmail, mostly for signing up to public services that will spam me (sadly their spam filter is much better than what I can run on my server). 5+ legacy email addys on various non-gmail free services, that i don't sign up with any more but have some of my old accounts.

chdaniel 7y ago
So you're mainly using... 2 to 4 if I counted that right? What do you do when you get a new device? Do you have to sync the signatures and display names again manually?
- nottorp 7y ago
  I regularly use only 2, so the others aren't configured in any email client, i just open the web interface when i (rarely) use them.

Eavolution 7y ago

About 7. I require 3 for personal use (one main, 2 junk for accounts for websites that I don't care about but need an account), one school one, one for my scanners smtp scan to email function and the other 2 are just old ones.

chdaniel 7y ago
Would you use a web-based email client where, with one login, you can access all email addresses you care about? Not in an unified inbox, but have them as separates. Say cmd+1 is quickly switching to address #1, cmd +2 is switching to address #2 and so on...

mattlondon 7y ago

Work, personal Gmail, and more recently a personal burner domain that has hundreds. The burner domain is great for random website signups. Anything serious is done via Gmail (with two factor), but for the burner domain I use a unique address for every site that needs a sign-up (so if whatever.com needs a sign up then I use whatever@burner, other.org becomes other@burner etc etc - all addresses are directed to one inbox via a catchall) but typically the same password. So I remember one password instead of one email address, and the address I can work out from the domain. Not exactly secure, but at least slightly resistant to leaked email lists if a site gets hacked (since every site has a unique address and common password, rather than common address and password). I am working on the assumption that people are just automatically trying leaked user-passwd pairs and won't "crack" my system... but if they do no harm done since anything important is on Gmail (I generally trust Google to not get hacked, for better or worse) and I can start again with another burner domain. For important passwords I of course use decent passwords and a password manager, but life is too short for that with websites you might only use once or twice a year and you don't really care about. I use Zoho for the burner domain. Cheap and reliable. I tried fastmail, proton mail, and tutonova but I preferred zoho's web interface, app, and price (for the features I needed)

chdaniel 7y ago
Would you use a web-based email client where, with one login, you can access all three addresses? Not in a unified inbox, but have them as separates. Say the "cmd+1" keyboard shortcut is instantly switching to address #1, cmd +2 is switching to address #2 and so on...
- mattlondon 7y ago
  No that sounds like something I'd really want to avoid. Partly for security, but mostly just for segmentation of my brain/attention span. The different emails are all for different purposes and are never really used at the same time or same context. Plus also I don't have a Mac so no CMD key. If you are building a product, please don't do a mac-only release. Lots of developers don't use Macs despite what people seem to think

jamestomasino 7y ago

I use between 4 & 6 primary email "blocks" with each using several hundred aliases. I keep access to most, but not all of these blocks in Thunderbird on my two laptops. One of the email accounts I only access from a dedicated device while VPN'd. I fetch mail over POP3, wiping the server data, and then move the files to an airgapped machine to read. I have a Protonmail & Tutonota account which I connect to via their apps or websites. I also maintain several small public access servers which handle mail. I use Alpine for that, or Mutt in a pinch. Friends get one email address from one domain. Work gets aliases from a second domain. Businesses get an alias from a third domain. These are either whitelisted domains where any address will get to me, or I can create the alias on the fly in the moment. I like to know not only if a mailbox is getting spam so I can block the alias, but also so I can stop doing business with companies that sell my data (looking at you, Bank of America). Is it overkill? Oh yeah, big-time.

blaser-waffle 7y ago

Four (4) - Work, run through the company's IT team - Personal (via gmail) - Private personal (custom domain) - Volunteer group email

Rerarom 7y ago

Roughly four. The 'personal' email address (although I have some work-related emails on it) which is on Gmail, so I have push notifications on my phone. I also use webmail. The work address from the institution I'm currently at and the address from the one where I'm currently on leave. These I check daily (or four times a day if I'm bored) on their webmail interfaces. The old personal address (also on Gmail) which I've discontinued in 2014. This I check once a week.

tendencydriven 7y ago

I use three emails. I have my personal email, which is in gmail I have my website email, which is in gmail for business And I have my work email, which is also in gmail for business. I add all three to my laptop and only the first two to my phone. I use the + feature a lot, for example tendencydriven+github@workdomain.com - they still get arrive in my regular inbox but I can easily see who is sharing my email, and block certain ones if I start getting spam on them.

arthurwilliams 7y ago

I actively used 3 Do you want to search person's email address, phone number and address? Like Arthur Williams https://www.checkpeople.com/search/name/arthur-williams https://www.checkpeople.com/search/name/arthur-williams