Import Thunderbird Mails to Apple Mail

No, it's not a choice. It's a PITA. Apple mail actually embeds the image, and does not send it in a way that allows some receiving PCs to save as JPG. I've googled the problem extensively, tried all the so-called fixes. Its something to do with the way that Apple Mail handles attachments - trying to turn them into HTML emails or something. When they are received by some PCs, the attachments are no longer attachments and cannot be saved as separate JPGs. If I click show as icon, then it simpy makes the problem worse.

I've tested this extensively, googled it, and have come to the conclusion that until Apple fixes this problem, I have no option but to go with a different mail client. Thank heavens Thunderbird doesn't do this.

r.p.thomas wrote:

No, it's not a choice. It's a PITA. Apple mail actually embeds the image, and does not send it in a way that allows some receiving PCs to save as JPG.

You are wrong, you do not have to embed (see below)

But you can believe whatever you choose

It would be wonderful if I was wrong. I'd be really grateful to you for pointing it out. But please credit me with some intelligence. I wouldn't have posted the issue here if I hadn't thoroughly tested out the problem.

Your screen shot simply shows the image as an Icon. I can do that too. It's easy. But when the person receives the email, the Icon has been embedded, and there's no way it can be extracted as a JPG. If I attach as a JPEG, the image is embedded and the recipient can't extract it.

You can follow the discussion in this very forum here: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3748251?start=0&tstart=0

There is a real problem with Apple Mail. For me, it has only started occuring (or maybe I have only been alerted to it) in the past few days. As I work in PR, it is vital that I can send images as attachments that can be saved separately by the recipient.

It's not a matter of faith, either. I have tested my issue, using my mac and my pc. There is a real problem here.

I send images too, often to Outlook users, I can't replicate your issue, sorry.

It has almost always required sending only in Plain Text when sending to the MS email client users. The problem with Lion, and later Mountain Lion is that sending the email that was first prepared in RTF, then changed to Plain Text, is that Mail changes it back to RTF, and problem on the receiving end happens.

If you set Mail Preferences/Composing to use Plain Text, and drag the attachments onto the Mail icon to open a New Message, it will stay Plain Text and not be problematic to the recipients so incumbered by those other email clients.

But those messages that are automatically prepared in other apps - iPhoto, Aperture, Word for example - the initial message is RTF, and changing the Format to Plain Text will not survive the sending.

But adding an empty attachment prepared as Plain text to be the last attachment will trick Mail into going ahead and sending as Plain Text.

If a recipient is using a web interface for their Mail, such as that of Gmail, what Mail sends either way is not problematic.

Ernie

Btw. I corresponded with Apple Engineering on this, and the changing back to Rich Text was a deliberate change they said, that was needed with certain Exchange Account issues. They are not as caring about the problems caused by MS Outlook and Outlook Express, which can't even understand each others Rich Text.

Thanks, Ernie, for your helpful response. I just tried dragging the attachment to the mail icon to open a new message. Sadly, on my machine, it changes back to Rich Text and I'm stuffed.

I can understand Apple's irritation with Microsoft. Its the same reason that caused me to switch to Mac. But the real world needs me to be able to provide attachments, and I simply can't take the risk of irritating people, so I have no choice but to switch to Thunderbird.

Thanks.

I just made the same test with a JPEG, and like you it switched to RTF when sent. However, messages I sent that were composed in Aperture, where I let a Signature with an emtpy text attachment get added, stayed as Plain Text.

There may have been a change since last tested to close the door on the drag to simple message. But the trick with the text attachment seems to still be working.

Ernie

~~ EDIT: I think you may have already tried this without success. Hope you find a solution sooner than later! ~~

@ r.p.thomas - I had the issue with images and pdfs not being received, but I found something that works (at least for me):

In the Mail App, when you attach your file (by cllicking on the paperclip icon) and the attachment shows as an image:

1. Right-click the image

2. Choose "View As Icon"

That will change the attachment from an image to an actual (and deliverable) attachment.

I've had luck with the attachments going through successfully that way, and hopefully that works for you too (if you haven't already found a solution).

No need to switch to Thunderbird 🙂

Message was edited by: M_Smith

Thank you SO MUCH, M_Smith!!! I've been driving myself nuts with the Gmail app on my iPad Minis! For some crazy reason, though, SOME pics I send from Apple Mail that are "embedded" will be able to be saved to my Camera Roll. Who the **** knows. What a major PITA. Anyway, right-clicking and choosing "View As Icon" has consistently worked for me, now! THANK YOU!

Looks like we got a little off topic here

What Denys said does work. But you need to do a few things first.

1) Make all hidden files readable.

http://www.mactricksandtips.com/2008/04/show-hidden-files.html

2) Use finder to copy the Thunderbird folder onto your desktop. You can find the folder here: /Users/"YOUR USER NAME"/Library.

""Denys_B

I found I could transfer emails from Thunderbird on the Mac to Mac Mail as follows.

1. In Mail, use Import... Choose from Thunderbird (obviously)

2. In the dialog select the folder Library/Thunderbird/Profiles in your home folder. Mail will then come back with a list of files which it proposes to import. (I left them all checked, even the Trash, Spam etc)

3. Mail creates a folder On My Mac called Import containing the file, and confirms this.

4. Go down the directory tree until you find the emails you want to transfer. In principle you can now select them and drag them to e.g. your Inbox and Sent folders. In practice, I found that it was better to transfer no more than 500 emails at a time, because the process is quite slow without necessarily indicating when it is complete, so it looks as if only some of your emails have successfully transferred. Interrupting the process seemed to lose emails in transit. So...

5. Create some new Mailboxes On My Mac reflecting the mailbox structure you want.

6. Select the emails you want to move and drag them (no more than 500 at a time) into your newly created Mailboxes, or the Inbox and Sent trays. Wait for the transfer to complete!

7. Once you have transferred them all, select the Import folder and delete it.

Downside of all this is that all the emails come across as Unread, so you don't know which ones you have replied to.""

Importing all your mailboxes at one time will take a long long time and MAIL will probably hang or crash if it comes across some corrupted data. I suggest importing 25 or less boxes at a time especially ones with emails containing large attachments. You can monitor the disk activity with activity monitor during the process to see if it has hung. Hint - click on the small dot above the check marked boxes to uncheck them all.

Select all all your new mail boxes, right click or control click, select mark all as read.

I imported about 100 local folders and mail box settings this way and now have all my saved emails in MAC Mail. I too started from Linux using Thunderbird. But after being attack by a malicious web sight and having to restore my Mac mini from the time machine backups, I have decided to remove all programs that use a windows emulation software and all the windows emulation software like WIne, WIn32 etc. I was running Parallels which I now know is a BAD idea. I am waiting for Apple to abandon in Intel processor in favor of the ARM processor like the iPhone and iPad. This will eliminate any windows viruses infecting our MAC's, just like the old days.

Hi there,

Have you found a proper solution for this, because I have the same problem, when I import from TB profiles (from PC to Mac) I end up with merged folders and accounts and missing emails.

Thanx

Why not just install Thunderbird on the Mac and then you can copy over your profile and nothing will be lost.

Loulica wrote:

Hi there,

Have you found a proper solution for this, because I have the same problem, when I import from TB profiles (from PC to Mac) I end up with merged folders and accounts and missing emails.

Thanx

I work for a corporation that wanted everyone using the same software. so its outlook for PC or macmail for Macs.

that being said i realized that thunderbird was working. but it still seemed like we were missing thousands of emails because Mac Mail was "combining emails subjects" so a thread of 10 emails (all same people on it, cc, etc) were being listed as 1 email when searching emails.

so in the end i did outlook to Thunderbird. moved those files to Mac and did thunderbird to Mac Mail and i believe it worked.