If I delete an email message on the iPad is it deleted on the MacBook?

Question

Level 1

41 points

If I delete an email message on the iPad is it deleted on the MacBook?

New to the iPad. I have an IMAP email account. If I delete a message on type iPad will it be deleted on the server and on my MacBook?

Thanks,

Posted on Jan 1, 2013 6:01 AM

Reply

Answer 1

Best reply

Demo

Level 10

166,494 points

Jan 1, 2013 8:50 AM in response to EricWeir

I responded to your other thread as well with this same answer.

With an IMAP account, whatever you do on one device should be reflected on all of your other devices. I have 3 IMAP accounts. If I delete an email on my iPad, it is deleted on the server and on my MacBook. That's the way that IMAP email works.

I often compose emails on my iPad at home and then save the draft for sending when I get to work. Sometimes I need to send an attachment with the email that I don't have on the iPad so when I get to work, I can open the draft on my iMac, add the attachment and send the email. That's is the beauty of having IMAP email. You can start an email on one device, save it and send it from another device.

I can save a draft in my POP account, but I can only access that draft from the device that the draft was saved on.

A personal note ...when we moved into out first house 53 years ago, we were one of only 2 houses on the street at the time and we bought farmland from a rather well known family in the community that owned all of the land in the neighborhood in which we moved .... The Morrow family.

Reply

Answer 2

EricWeir Author

Level 1

41 points

Jan 1, 2013 9:52 AM in response to Demo

As expected. I think I'm going to be using the iPad mostly for reading---news, PDF files. I guess I'll try dong all the management on the MacBook. In that connection, I have modestly elaborate folder system in Mail on the MacBook. (Though starting today it's going to get simpler. I retired a in July and there's just not that much correspondence now.) I'm not planning to replicate that on the iPad.

What happens on the iPad when I move Message into a folder on the MacBook that doesn't exist on the iPad. (Actually, I guess a little experimenting will tell me.)

Sounds like we're somewhat similar vintage re: Penn Hills. We moved there in 1955. I graduated in 1959. We lived part of the time in the Verona hilltop area. There was an extensive wooded area behind it. I spent a lot of time there---exploring, hunting, camping. Even tried my hand at trapping. Important part of my education for which I am very grateful.

Reply

Answer 3

Demo

Level 10

166,494 points

Jan 1, 2013 10:27 AM in response to EricWeir

The folders that you create in Mail.app on the Mac are for local storage which I think that you realize. I wasn't real sure what would happen myself, so I did a quick experiment.

I moved an email from my Comcast POP account into a new mailbox that I created on the Mac - the email that I received about this response from you. When I went to my iPad and launched the mail app, it was still in the Comcast InBox. I sent myself an email to one of my IMAP accounts and moved that to the same new mailbox in the Mail app on my Mac. When I went to InBox of that account on the iPad, it was not showing. So then I moved it from the new mailbox on the Mac back to the InBox of the IMAP account and then it was in the InBox of the IMAP account on the iPad mail app.

This showed me that moving a POP message did not affect being able to access it on the iPad, but it was inaccessible in the IMAP account on the iPad. And it was what I expected to see in not accounts.

Since I bought my original iPad over two years ago I gradually got away from using the mail app on my MacBook. After I bought my iPad 3 in March, I almost never check mail in my Mac. I really only use the mail app on the Mac to delete old emails from my POP account just to try to clean it up a bit.

Penn Hiils just opened a brand new high school that the students will move into tomorrow after the Christmas break ends. State of the art, $58 million school with all the bells and whistles. If I'm not mistaken the old high school that is now officially closed, was built the year that you graduated. I graduated in 1971 so you have a few years on me. I also have some years left in the work force before I can retire. I'm self employed and have been for 30 years now.

I was actually born in the Homewood section of Pittsburgh and we moved to Penn Hills when I was in first grade.

Reply

Answer 4

EricWeir Author

Level 1

41 points

Jan 2, 2013 6:11 AM in response to Demo

Thanks for sharing the results of your experiment. I'm clear that if I delete anything from one inbox it's deleted from the other. Not clear what happens on the iPad if I simply move a message on the MacBook into another folder. I have filtering to mailboxes set up on the MacBook, but messages filered into mailboxes on the MacBook remain in the inbox on the iPad.

Is that because I don't have corresponding mailboxes set up on the iPad, yet? [And am unlikely to. I started, but I saw there's no folding in the mail box list on the iPad, so I abandoned it.] Or would messages moved into folders on the MacBook remain in the inbox on the iPad even if I did have corresponding folders set up there?

A related question: If I delete a message in a mailbox other than the inbox on the MacBook that has a duplicate in the inbox of the iPad, will it be deleted on the iPad?

Still leading toward managing my messages from the MacBook. If my mailbox structure were simpler, or if Mail on the iPad coul do filtering, I might do it the other way. But since neither is the case managing from the MacBook seems the simplist thing now.

Almost my entire Penn Hills High School career was spent at the old school, the one before the one just abandoned. We literally spent about one month in the new building before graduating. I don't know why they bothered. Most hhave had something to do with contracts and financing.

Self-employed 30 years! That's impressive.

The last ten years or so of my employment were self-employment. I managed, but I did not thrive. It was a choice to leave salared work----to see if I could apply my experience and skills a different field about which I am passionate. I learned a lot. Developed completely new relationships. Wrote about stuff I never imagined myself writing about. But I moved from a field flush with money---education---to one that is largely money-poor---the environment. I'm very fortunate to be able to afford retirement. I am not affluent, but I am comfortable.

Regards,

Eric

Reply

Answer 5

Demo

Level 10

166,494 points

Jan 2, 2013 4:48 PM in response to EricWeir

Sorry Eric, I didn't see your response this morning and I just now found it.

From what I saw with my experiment, only emails from my IMAP account were affected by moving them from the inbox to the local mailbox on my Mac. The POP email messages that I moved to the Mac mailbox remained in my InBox on the iPad. The IMAP message disappeared from my iPad InBox when I moved it to the Mac mailbox.

Only IMAP messages are affected by the move to the Mac mailbox and the local Mac mailboxes are not seen at all on the iPad, the only mailboxes that can be created, used and seen on the iPad are IMAP mailboxes. Local marbles are not possible on the iPad without IMAP.

Thirty years of self employment sounds more impressive than it is. I am making a living - most of the time anyway. I hope to be able to last another 3 (absolute minimum) to 6 (ideal situation) years in this and then maybe I can move on - probably not totally retire - but leave the 8-4:30 daily grind behind!

Reply

Answer 6

EricWeir Author

Level 1

41 points

Jan 3, 2013 6:33 AM in response to Demo

No problem, Demo. It seems I've hired you as my pro bono tech consultant for the iPad, so I can't complain about slow responses. -;) I wouldn't anyway.

My experience so far is consistent with what you report. Glad to find out that moving stuff out of the inbox on the MacBook takes them out of the inbox on the iPad.

One more question: I have a MacBook running Snow Leopard. Is it possible to sync calendars with the iPad? Not asking for how---I hope it doesn't necessitate using iCloud---just whether it's possible. It's not urgent and I can take my time figuring out how to do it---if it doesn't require iCloud.

Couple of interesting things that have happened since going live with the iPad: Lots of junk mail and posts to facebook from outfits that I've not friended.

All in all, I am grateful for the income that self-employment provided me, but I never managed to build the "rep" that just brought work to me, so along with the satisfaction there was a lot of frustration. I would've been a lot happier with the variety of kinds of support that go with a salaried position in an established organzation.

It would have to have been the rightorganization, but there were plenty of them. I stuck with my "career change" decision too long and broke my connection with the field I had been in previously. The work there was plenty interesting. I just wanted to try this other thing, and as I say, I stayed too long.

Grateful, though, that I'm afforded a modestly comfortable retirement.

Regards,

Eric

P.S. I bought my iPad on New Years Eve. I still have 25 percent left on my first charge of the battery. Amazing.

Reply

Answer 7

Demo

Level 10

166,494 points

Jan 3, 2013 7:13 AM in response to EricWeir

Sure you can sync the calendar from your Mac. You don't have to use iCloud at all for anything at all - if you don't want to use it.

I assume that you are using iCal, the OS X calendar application. You sync the calendar the same way that you sync any content in iTunes. The calendar option is located in the Info Tab of iTunes. The is article covers the basics of syncing with iTunes and I assume that you probably know this, but here it is anyway.

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1296

Not sure what version of iTunes you are using, but if you are using the latest iTunes - version 11 - it helps if you show the sidebar and you can do that by going to the iTunes menu .... View>Show Sidebar. You may know this already as well, but I wanted to make sure just in case. Apple decided to make this an optional look (showing the sidebar) rather than the default view because they want to unify the way that apps look across all of their devices - as much as they can anyway.

I'm sure there is no connection whatsoever, but I have had more junk mail in two of my email accounts than I have gotten in ages. I just went onto my POP account on the server in Safari and made another adjustment to my Spam and Junk filters. I hope that helps.

I'm glad that you are able to enjoy your retirement. That is part of the American dream after all, isn't it? We work for years and years and hope that we can retire comfortably and enjoy our lives in the post-employment world!

The iPad battery is incredible. I have to charge my iPad every night because it has become my device of choice (using it right now) and I use it all day long at work. I get about 10 hours a day out of a full charge. That is remarkable IMO.

Reply

Answer 8

EricWeir Author

Level 1

41 points

Jan 3, 2013 7:35 AM in response to Demo

Thanks for the info on syncing calendars. Yes, I have the latest iTunes. I may venture out to iCloud eventually. Just not right now, till I get more comfortable with the iPad and learn more about Cloud.

I take it you use a keyboard. Got one you like?

I'm definitely not a techie, but I have have become enamored of the Vim editor over the past couple years. Unfortunately, since iOS has no file system and the iPad keyboards don't have an escape key---critical for Vim---it appears it's simply not possible to run Vim on the iPad.

If you do any writing---text or code---do you have a favorite editor?

Regards,

Eric

Reply

Answer 9

Demo

Level 10

166,494 points

Jan 3, 2013 8:23 AM in response to EricWeir

I don't use any keyboard except for the virtual keyboard on the iPad. I am so comfortable with this keyboard now, I struggle a bit with my MacBook keyboard at home and my iMac keyboard at work.

I know my way around the iPad a bit, but I am not techie either, at least not like many of the users that post on the ASC forum. I don't write code - over my head and not ashamed to admit it - and don't really have the inclination to give it a shot.

Obviously I have never used this - but you can see what you think about this app.

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/vim/id492668168?mt=8

I assume that a keyboard would be an absolute must with this app. Just post another question asking for opinions about bluetooth keyboards in the forum. You will most likely receive lots of responses.

Reply

Answer 10

EricWeir Author

Level 1

41 points

Jan 4, 2013 3:10 AM in response to Demo

I'm impressed that you use only the virtual keyboard. Maybe I should stick with it. Maybe if I do I'll get used to it. One thing I really miss: up/down/left/right keys, navigation using control keys, e.g., by word, end of line, etc.

I am aware of the Vim app. Native Vim is powerful. Almost an operating system if you're capable of using it that way, which I'm not. It is also extremely versatile, adaptable, extensible. Tons of options for configuring commands to your liking, e.g., remapping frequently used key combinations to a simpler command, e.g., a single key. There are also tons of nifty plugins to do all kinds of things.

Unfortunately, without a file system none of these features can be used on an iPad. Eg., configuration is done in a file kept in the main directory. Plugins are in subfolders of the main app folder, and often have several subfolders.

That said, taking a second look at it after your suggestion, I may give it a try, just to see what's possible. I imagine that because I've set up a fairly large number of command configurations for my installation on the MacBook the native commands, which I assume will be what the Vim app for iPad uses, will be completely foreign to me now. It will be interesting to see whether remapping is possible with the iPad app.

I'll let you know what I find after giving it a try.

Regards,

Eric

Reply