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K-9 Mail is looking for funding

k9mail.app

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Re: K-9 Mail is looking for funding

#31

Post by distances »

Aachen wrote: post #29
richardwhiuk wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In order to release a new version to the appstores, both Google and Apple require a certain minimum version for the app to be compiled against. Historically, Apple gives you about a year before you have to compile against the latest SDK, and Google gave you a lot longer. However, recently, both have become more aggressive about requiring new versions to be compiled against the latest SDKs. Thus you can't do a "proper…

Does this also mean older devices are forced into obsolescence? Since this is minsdk and not maxsdk it sounds like it, but there's still many apps that run on my 2018 device with Android 7 (and even 2012 device with 4.4) so that can't really be.

No it doesn't. It's about targetSdk, not minSdk.

Re: K-9 Mail is looking for funding

#32

Post by Krasnol »

rjzzleep wrote: post #7
mahmoudhossam wrote: post #3

I'm surprised there's no work being done on the UI on the roadmap, K-9 looks like an app from the "Ice Cream Sandwich" days of Android. With that being said, K-9 is the best Android app I've seen for mail that isn't made by Google. edit: it seems the work has already been done, thanks for the correction.

I mostly agree, but I'm quite liking Fairemail [1] [1] https://github.com/M66B/FairEmail

Tried to install it from F-Droid, didn't work.

Installed it from Github, it wanted me to pay for putting a colour on my account(??) and it will remind me of something something.

Nah man...don't do that if you actually want to sell a pro version. Just state it upfront and I will consider it. putting it in while I'm already adding an account and letting me read some long list of features I won't have if I continue right in the middle of the configuration is a dark pattern to me.

They lost a potential customer here.

Re: K-9 Mail is looking for funding

#34

Post by g_p »

Aachen wrote: post #30
Black101 wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I like FairEmail too... it also supports PGP. https://f-droid.org/en/packages/eu.faircode.email/

I didn't know of this one, that looks really nice! Do you know why they chose to start over when K9 already existed for a long time (it says copyright 2018-2021 on the website), or is it a fork?

FairEmail was made from scratch, and has modern (from the ground up) sync logic, that works well with modern battery saving measures in Android. Push mail by default, and low power consumption during sync. I believe it actually works better than Gmail (which has the advantage of Google's push infrastructure) - FairEmail just uses IMAP idle (where possible).

K9 originated in the old android AOSP email app, and I think the developer of FE wanted to cut loose from that and build it according to newer design patterns.

Re: K-9 Mail is looking for funding

#35

Post by cketti »

richardwhiuk wrote: post #18
BubuIIC wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Have you looked at the beta versions yet? The UI was overhauled over basically the last 1.5 years and the points mentioned in the blog post are the bits missing to release that as a stable version (IMAP IDLE mostly): https://github.com/k9mail/k-9/releases I've been running the betas since more than a year without any problems whatsoever. (If you don't need push obviously)

I struggle to understand why there hasn't been a release for 1.5 years, especially with a ~full time dev. I definitely struggle to udnerstand why IMAP IDLE is critical for a release. Edit: Oh, probably a minSDK force - i.e. the cost of standing still in mobile development.

> I definitely struggle to understand why IMAP IDLE is critical for a release.

The functionality is present in the latest stable version, but needs to be reimplemented in the new version. As a user I would be upset if the app was updated and that feature taken away, even if it was only temporary.

Re: K-9 Mail is looking for funding

#36

Post by jqpabc123 »

pabs3 wrote: post #23
jqpabc123 wrote: post #21

How to create one super successful email client. - Support IMAP IDLE - Support all the major business platforms: Web, Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android. - Support email encryption on a one off basis as needed. Nothing fancy just encrypt the email with AES256. Don't worry I'll get the key to the reipient. Why this would be super successful. 1) It would eliminate instant messaging for most business use. 2) Consistency, si…

I think support for IMAP NOTIFY scales better, since it is per-connection instead of per-folder.

IDLE and NOTIFY kinda work together don`t they? In any case, all I really need is "instant" notification of new messages.

Re: K-9 Mail is looking for funding

#37

Post by freebuju »

Krasnol wrote: post #32
rjzzleep wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I mostly agree, but I'm quite liking Fairemail [1] [1] https://github.com/M66B/FairEmail

Tried to install it from F-Droid, didn't work. Installed it from Github, it wanted me to pay for putting a colour on my account(??) and it will remind me of something something. Nah man...don't do that if you actually want to sell a pro version. Just state it upfront and I will consider it. putting it in while I'm already adding an account and letting me read some long list of features I won't have if I continue righ…

Fairmail is not meant to be a free-to-use product. I very well remember checking their readME and almost immediately recognizing this fact.

OTOH the "free-tier" is what attracts your interest as bait, probably accounts for the number of app installs visible on the store too etc.

Re: K-9 Mail is looking for funding

#38

Post by jqpabc123 »

cketti wrote: post #26
jqpabc123 wrote: post #21

How to create one super successful email client. - Support IMAP IDLE - Support all the major business platforms: Web, Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android. - Support email encryption on a one off basis as needed. Nothing fancy just encrypt the email with AES256. Don't worry I'll get the key to the reipient. Why this would be super successful. 1) It would eliminate instant messaging for most business use. 2) Consistency, si…

Probably not the right app for your use cases, but check out Delta Chat for an example of how unobtrusive email encryption can be: https://delta.chat/

Delta Chat has a lot of good stuff.

What I need and what I think most businesses need is Delta Email instead of Delta Chat.

Re: K-9 Mail is looking for funding

#40

Post by ocdtrekkie »

I used K-9 back in my Android days (5+ years ago). It's biggest weakness was, and to my knowledge, still is, inability to support modern OAuth authentication schemes that Google and Microsoft have largely switched to. Sometimes I get a notification from a comment on the GitHub issue still.

It used to be able to connect to Exchange servers, but hasn't been able to for nearly a decade.

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