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Have you reached out to Fastmail about the things you don't like? I use them and like the UI, but anytime Ive had an issue and have contacted their support I g

by ProAm 7y ago

Have you reached out to Fastmail about the things you don't like? I use them and like the UI, but anytime Ive had an issue and have contacted their support I got a quick response from a human. They love their product and making it better so I think constructive criticism is welcomed there.

deleted 7y ago
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zzzeek 7y ago
their UX is still really really good, compared to every other web UX I've ever used.....except for google's. I'm not sure how much better it can get unless they had google-amounts of resources to put into it. There are few fundamental assumptions in the gmail UX that make certain things possible that couldn't work in Fastmail's design, like being able to read messages while I'm selecting them, expanding / contracting threads at once, having drafts inline with the thread that I can leave and return to seamlessly, all using keyboard controls. I have a very specific email reading style and I also have to deal with folders that have hundreds of new messages daily.
- nmjenkins 7y ago
  > being able to read messages while I'm selecting them You can do this in Fastmail (presuming you don't have the reading pane turned on, i.e. are in the same layout as Gmail). > expanding / contracting threads at once Shift-click a message header to apply to all at once, or "Shift-E" kb shortcut to expand all. > having drafts inline with the thread that I can leave and return to seamlessly We take a slightly different approach, but using Cmd-Shift-S will toggle you instantly between your draft and the thread you are replying to, preserving your scroll position in both.
  - zzzeek 7y ago
    > You can do this in Fastmail (presuming you don't have the reading pane turned on, i.e. are in the same layout as Gmail). EDIT: this message alerted me to the fact that there is a "hide reading pane" option so I am experimenting with that to see if this solves my problem. Also it would be SUPER helpful if the arrow keys would navigate through the message list like gmail does, J/K continues to be less comfortable for me. If I check one of the messages/threads in the messages pane, such that I'm selecting it for being marked as read or deletion or something like that, in the right hand "read" pane, the message/thread on the right side turns into a single bar that is unreadable. in gmail I can select as many messages as I want and move back and forth between the "messages" and "Read thread" panes, using the enter key to read, semicolon to expand thread, and "u" to return to the message list, and the selections remain. I have not been able to identify any similar flow in Fastmail; it forces me to deal with only one thread at a time, and I cannot read a message/thread that is also selected; clicking on it deselects it. So I can't select a series of messages and also read them, it would take a rethink of Fastmail's UX architecture for it to be possible. > Shift-click a message header to apply to all at once, or "Shift-E" kb shortcut to expand all. OK, Gmail's semicolon / colon toggle is much easier to use and also includes collapsing the thread also can this be added? > We take a slightly different approach, but using Cmd-Shift-S will toggle you instantly between your draft and the thread you are replying to, preserving your scroll position in both. OK, that is definitely more awkward. in gmail I can just scroll up to read the other messages in the thread, which is important because I often have to go back and read messages I'm responding towards. In fastmail, this would mean the "edit draft" button would give me an inline composition window that scrolls with the thread. This could be added to Fastmail with a lot of work but the UX at least does not prohibit this from being graphically feasible.
- ProAm 7y ago
  Google's UX is the reason why I switched to Fastmail. Gmail became unusable on the web, even with a gigabit fiber connection it was impossibly slow, I was waiting 10 seconds+ for things to happen. And Gmail on android still doesnt have darkmode. For sure to each their own and no app is perfect. (I would love Fastmail on android to have offline functionality for instance)

by ProAm 7y ago

deleted 7y ago

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zzzeek 7y ago

their UX is still really really good, compared to every other web UX I've ever used.....except for google's. I'm not sure how much better it can get unless they had google-amounts of resources to put into it. There are few fundamental assumptions in the gmail UX that make certain things possible that couldn't work in Fastmail's design, like being able to read messages while I'm selecting them, expanding / contracting threads at once, having drafts inline with the thread that I can leave and return to seamlessly, all using keyboard controls. I have a very specific email reading style and I also have to deal with folders that have hundreds of new messages daily.

nmjenkins 7y ago
> being able to read messages while I'm selecting them You can do this in Fastmail (presuming you don't have the reading pane turned on, i.e. are in the same layout as Gmail). > expanding / contracting threads at once Shift-click a message header to apply to all at once, or "Shift-E" kb shortcut to expand all. > having drafts inline with the thread that I can leave and return to seamlessly We take a slightly different approach, but using Cmd-Shift-S will toggle you instantly between your draft and the thread you are replying to, preserving your scroll position in both.
- zzzeek 7y ago
  > You can do this in Fastmail (presuming you don't have the reading pane turned on, i.e. are in the same layout as Gmail). EDIT: this message alerted me to the fact that there is a "hide reading pane" option so I am experimenting with that to see if this solves my problem. Also it would be SUPER helpful if the arrow keys would navigate through the message list like gmail does, J/K continues to be less comfortable for me. If I check one of the messages/threads in the messages pane, such that I'm selecting it for being marked as read or deletion or something like that, in the right hand "read" pane, the message/thread on the right side turns into a single bar that is unreadable. in gmail I can select as many messages as I want and move back and forth between the "messages" and "Read thread" panes, using the enter key to read, semicolon to expand thread, and "u" to return to the message list, and the selections remain. I have not been able to identify any similar flow in Fastmail; it forces me to deal with only one thread at a time, and I cannot read a message/thread that is also selected; clicking on it deselects it. So I can't select a series of messages and also read them, it would take a rethink of Fastmail's UX architecture for it to be possible. > Shift-click a message header to apply to all at once, or "Shift-E" kb shortcut to expand all. OK, Gmail's semicolon / colon toggle is much easier to use and also includes collapsing the thread also can this be added? > We take a slightly different approach, but using Cmd-Shift-S will toggle you instantly between your draft and the thread you are replying to, preserving your scroll position in both. OK, that is definitely more awkward. in gmail I can just scroll up to read the other messages in the thread, which is important because I often have to go back and read messages I'm responding towards. In fastmail, this would mean the "edit draft" button would give me an inline composition window that scrolls with the thread. This could be added to Fastmail with a lot of work but the UX at least does not prohibit this from being graphically feasible.
ProAm 7y ago
Google's UX is the reason why I switched to Fastmail. Gmail became unusable on the web, even with a gigabit fiber connection it was impossibly slow, I was waiting 10 seconds+ for things to happen. And Gmail on android still doesnt have darkmode. For sure to each their own and no app is perfect. (I would love Fastmail on android to have offline functionality for instance)