i deleted thunderbird
While I did switch over to a TUI mail client, I did keep Thunderbird on my computer just in case I wanted to switch back to it.
After using NeoMutt for a couple of weeks, I did the deed and deleted Thunderbird. A backup was made first, then I deleted both the program and user data folders Thunderbird used.
Before the deleting, I thought about switching back to it. Twice.
Both times, I launched the program and got annoyed with it almost immediately.
In the first instance, there were JavaScript crash errors. This wasn't Thunderbird's fault, but rather from a buggy regex plugin because I need regex searching. More on that in a minute.
In the second instance, I got annoyed from all the hoops I had to jump through just to adjust things, since Thunderbird doesn't know how to get out of its own way.
A few NeoMutt limit view examples to explain what I mean
"Show me emails in the inbox that have arrived in the past 3 days"
l
~d<3d
"Show me emails in the inbox that have arrived in the past 3 days from bob@example.com"
l
~d<3d ~f bob@example.com
"Show me emails in the inbox that have arrived in the past 3 days from bob@example.com and joyce@example.com"
l
~d<3d ~f "(bob|joyce)@example.com"
"Show me emails in the inbox that have arrived in the past 3 days from bob@example.com and joyce@example.com with the word report in the subject line"
l
~d<3d ~f "(bob|joyce)@example.com" ~s report
"Show me emails in the inbox that have arrived in the past 3 days from bob@example.com and joyce@example.com with the word report in the subject line and office party in the message body"
l
~d<3d ~f "(bob|joyce)@example.com" ~s report ~b "office party"
"I'm using an IMAP folder, don't download all the messages first to search, and search by string instead"
l
~d<3d ~f "(bob|joyce)@example.com" ~s report =b "office party"
"Show me emails in the inbox that have arrived in the past 3 days from bob@example.com and joyce@example.com with the word report in the subject line and office party in the message body, but NOT the words balloons or clown in the message body"
l
~d<3d ~f "(bob|joyce)@example.com" ~s report =b "office party" !=b balloons !=b clown
"Okay, I'm done. Show me all the messages again"
l
all
Another example
"Show me emails from Big Ass Bank"
l
~f "Big Ass Bank"
"Show me emails from Big Ass Bank received only in March 2025"
l
~f "Big Ass Bank" ~d 1/3/2025-1/4/2025
(Mutt/NeoMutt requires dates in day/month/year format when filtering like this. The date range shown is 2025-Mar-1 to 2025-Apr-1. I could have used 2025-Mar-31 as the date range end but it's just easier to do first-of-month from one to the next; doing this means I don't have to remember if the month ends in 30 or 31.)
"Show me emails from Big Ass Bank received only in March 2025 that has the phrase 'account balance' in the message body"
l
~f "Big Ass Bank" ~d 1/3/2025-1/4/2025 =b "account balance"
"Okay, I'm done. Show me all the messages again"
l
all
And if I want to set that up as a macro so it runs whenever I hit F6 on my keyboard, that's doable in muttrc with this:
macro index <F6> "<limit>~f 'Big Ass Bank' ~d 1/3/2025-1/4/2025 =b 'account balance'<enter>" "View Big Ass Bank account balances for 2025-Mar"
Okay.
To do everything I just said in stock Thunderbird is technically doable using a Saved Search, except no regex.
The way Thunderbird does search is that everything is a drop-down menu. Using AND or OR is not an option. If you want to find messages containing or not containing certain things, multiple fields have to be configured. If for example I want to find messages not containing red, green or blue in the message body, that means I have to set up three separate "body doesn't contain" fields. One for red, one for green, one for blue.
With regex, if I want to find messages not containing red, green or blue, that's just a NOT with (red|green|blue). Easy. The pipe acts as the OR.
Regex is a godsend for searching through emails because it's written short and operates fast.
Now about that buggy regex plugin I formerly used in Thunderbird...
One regex search plugin exists for Thunderbird, and it sucks. The only saving grace of it is that you can use it with filters and Saved Search, sort of. Since it's a buggy mess, if it encounters even one email it can't parse through for whatever reason, a JavaScript pop-up happens with a crash error. Thunderbird itself doesn't crash, but you have to click off that pop-up or wait until it goes away. Until it does, search is effectively locked until the plugin "resets" or do whatever it does to recover.
I had to use that stupid plugin because there was no other option. For those Bob and Joyce examples above, the longest one would take SEVEN fields configured using a stock Thunderbird search. With the buggy regex plugin, it's technically doable with one line, if it decides not to crash and burn on the attempt.
You either have to deal with the arduous, tedious process of stock Thunderbird internal search, or use a plugin where it's a dice toss whether it will work or crash every time you use it.
If you're wondering why Thunderbird doesn't have regex, join the club. Thunderbird users have been screaming at the devs to put in regex for years. Possibly well over a decade by now if not longer. They absolutely won't do it. No matter how many users have said HEY, PUT IN REGEX FOR SEARCH AND FILTERS, nope, not happening. Enjoy the Thunderbird search that hasn't changed in 20 years. Thanks for playing.
Then there's stock Mutt and NeoMutt. You never have to touch the mouse, and there are no fields to configure. Type your oneliner, and it will work on the first try. And you can macro it.
NeoMutt really is an upgrade
The oneliner search/filter capability in NeoMutt is something I took to very quickly. Going back to Thunderbird, losing that and having to click-click-click with the mouse all over the place to do simple stuff... no.
It wasn't just the oneliner stuff that convinced me to delete Thunderbird, but it was one of the major reasons.
Another major reason is I don't want graphics in my email anymore, which includes the interface itself. I didn't realize how much a GUI mail client annoyed me until I used NeoMutt for a bit and then did two short stops into Thunderbird later. I saw the window panes, the folder icons, menus sprawled all over the place, etc.. All of that left me with a feeling of blah, and wanted nothing to do with it.
The only GUI thing about my email now is that one small titlebar change whenever a new message arrives that I talked about before, and that's it. Everything else is 100% text.
Again, I don't want to go TUI-everything, but graphics have no place in email, and arguably never did.
Think of TUI as the black PC steel case of email, i.e. everything you need, nothing you don't, and the best thing to use to get the job done.
✅ Like this post? Leave a tip
Published 2025 Dec 11