http://blog.bounceweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/thunderbird.jpgOPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE OUTFIT Mozilla has released its Thunderbird 3 email client. The software is available for download now and comes with a number of new features. Mozzarella said today that Thunderbird 3 has been in development for two years. Available as a free download, the new version includes features like tabbed email and improved search and organisation tools.

Accompanying material adds, “If you like Firefox’s tabbed browsing, you’re going to love tabbed email. Thunderbird 3’s tabbed email lets you load emails in separate tabs so you can quickly jump between them. Search results open in a new tab too. New tools like our timeline and filtering tools will help you pinpoint the email you’re looking for, whether it’s the one from yesterday, last month, or several years ago.”

Archiving is simple, according to Mozilla, and requires little more than a pressing of the A key, or selecting the Archive button. Once archived, emails are easily searchable, and overall the whole experience should be a lot faster. Any tabs open when you close the application will still be there when you sign back in, while the main toolbar has been simplified.

So-called Smart Filters and a one-click address book should further improve the user experience. In addition a new user set up process removes the bothersome requirement to know a lot of POP type information, letting you create access to an existing email account simply by adding in your name, email address and password.

Perhaps most useful for overworked emailers is the Attachment Reminder, which works something like a backseat driver, looking for the word ‘attachment’ in text and reminding you to add the relevant document before you hit send. We know that’s going to save us occasional embarrassment.

Source: Inquirer