OUTBOX HELP

Question

OUTBOX HELP

Hi, I posted something about this back in July but got no responses. I hope someone can help me.
I do not have an outbox. It never appears, even if I'm offline, if I have messages waiting to be sent or if something gets stuck in the "outbox." When the latter happens, or whenever I have messages waiting to be sent, my "Sent" box is renamed "sending." There is never an outbox. When I go the user/library/mail/mailboxes, I see a box there called outbox, but if I try to import it is created under the heading "Import," and doesn't function as an outbox. I would like an outbox, particularly when an outgoing server isn't working and it is "sending" for a long time before offering me the option of choosing other servers, I would like to get in there and reassign the message myself.

How can I get an Outbox?

Thanks

Macbook Pro, Mac OS X (10.5)

Posted on May 27, 2008 10:41 AM

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Answer 1

May 27, 2008 12:23 PM in response to Rex Oppenheimer

The Outbox mailbox does not appear in the mailboxes drawer when a message is being sent, but it should appear if a message cannot be sent for whatever reason. Importing the Outbox.mbox doesn't accomplish anything but importing any messages available in the Outbox mailbox.

I would try creating a new Outbox.mbox.

Quit Mail first and using the Finder, go to Home > Library > Mail > Mailboxes > Outbox.mbox.

Delete the Outbox.mbox and empty the Trash.

Launch Mail and a new Outbox.mbox will be created automatically in the Mailboxes folder - if not right away, when sending the next message.

If this doesn't work, the next step is probably targeting the Mail.app preference file.

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Answer 2

May 27, 2008 12:43 PM in response to Allan Sampson

Thanks, I tried that, but it didn't work. What do you mean by targeting the Mail.app preference file?

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Answer 3

May 27, 2008 6:25 PM in response to Rex Oppenheimer

Creating a new Mail.app preference file.

Quit Mail first, and using the Finder, copy the entire Mail folder located at Home > Library > Mail, and place the copy on the Desktop for backup purposes.

Using the Finder, go to Home > Library > Preferences > com.apple.mail.plist. Move the com.apple.mail.plist file to the Desktop.

This will require re-entering all email account information when re-launching Mail.

Launch Mail and decline any prompt to import mailboxes. After re-entering all email account information the same as before, the Mail.app should rediscover all existing account named folders and account mailboxes within, along with any user created mailboxes.

After confirming all mailboxes were successfully rediscovered and are available in the mailboxes drawer, you can delete the copy of the Mail folder and the old com.apple.mail.plist file from the Desktop.

Test if this resolves the problem - when sending a message without an internet connection, is the Outbox mailbox made available in the mailboxes drawer.

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Answer 4

May 28, 2008 3:07 PM in response to Allan Sampson

I tried resetting the Mail.app preference file exactly as you outlined, but it didn't work. After I had created the "new" Mail, there was still no outbox. I took all mailboxes offline to test it, created a message, but an outbox did not appear. Furthermore, it did not repopulate all of the mailboxes I had previously created in my "old" mail. Since it didn't work, I deleted the new Mail and reinstalled the old, which at lease contained all of my mailboxes and their contents.

So, I am still without an outbox.

Rex

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Answer 5

Aug 7, 2008 1:35 PM in response to Rex Oppenheimer

Greetings.

I have experienced the same problem for quite some time. (I could go on at length about the stupidity of this design, not to mention the business of the Send mailbox turning into "Sending...", and a zillion other things in Mail, but I'll spare you.)

I've found this behavior to be pretty random. I go through stretches where Outbox is always there even when there's nothing in it, and other times when it's never there whether there's something in it or not.

Here's a suggestion for something that's mostly worked for me, but it requires a little prefatory explanation. I normally keep all my accounts offline. Another random weirdness of Mail that I've found is that when I'm offline and I send something, sometimes it stays in the Outbox (as I believe it should), but sometimes it sends right away even though I'm offline. I accidentally discovered that if there's something in my Outbox when Mail starts, that the Outbox seems to stay visible all the time after that, even when there's nothing in it (which is how I want it to be). So if I start Mail and Outbox isn't showing, I send myself a little dummy email and cross my fingers that it won't send right away, but stay in the Outbox. If it does send right away, I just have to keep trying until it doesn't (I think that going online and then back off may help with this). When I'm pretty sure that there's something in the Outbox (even though it's not visible and, as far as I can tell, the is NO WAY to verify this), I quit Mail and restart it. That has always made the Outbox show up, at least so far.

Good luck.

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