Joshua Bryant has mocked up a image on flickr which shows how Mail.app would look if it featured Outlook’s full-length preview pane on the right.

Looks very sweet to me.

[Via a sidenote on hicksdesign.co.uk]mail.app, apple mail, preview pane, Outlook, Apple GUI

For those times when the spirit of “live and let live” is not enough, Hawk Wings presents a Special Limited Edition “Hasta la Vista” Junk and Trash icon replacement set.

The set’s large Junk icon features a well-known email client and browser peeking out in a jaunty manner over the top of Junk’s brown paper bag.

On its large Trash icon a future operating system release nestles in the bin at peace like a rudderless ship that has found safe harbour at last.

The small trash icon throws all pretence at subtlety to the wind.

In fact, while it may seem like gloating, the Hasta la Vista icon set is perfect for those Mac users who are tempted to arrogance by their enjoyment of a computer that “just works”.

Through its gentle visual reminders of those who are less fortunate, it promotes compassion and staves off hubris of any kind, helping to make the world a better place.

The set contains five icons – junkmail.tiff, junkMailFlag.tiff, TB_Junk.tiff, TrashMailbox.tiff. TrashMailboxLarge.tiff – to replace the defaults in the Resources folder of Mail.app.

Probably the best thing here is to enjoy the idea for a minute and then move on. But if you want to try it out… Make copies of the original files first. Then follow the same instructions for replacing Apple Mail’s new mail badges.

Or better still, if you (unlike me) actually know what you are doing in Photoshop, knock out a decent set and share it.

You can download these exceptional artworks here for a limited time, until I think better of it.mail.app, apple gui, apple mail, tips, hacks, humour, tips, windows, vista, outlook

As well as changing Mail.app’s Dock icon, you can change the little red “unread mail” bubbles.

The result looks like this screenshot below, sporting my own very elegant blue bubble.

Here’s how:

1. Quit Mail.
2. Open up your Applications folder in Finder and locate Mail.app.
3. Command-Click on Mail’s icon, and select “Show package contents”. Open the “Contents” folder and then the “Resources” folder.
4. Locate the four badge files – newmailbadge1&2.tiff, newmailbadge3.tiff, newmailbadge4.tiff and newmailbadge5.tiff – and make copies by Option-Dragging them to the Desktop (just in case and to return things to the default state if you want to later).
5. Replace them with four identically named files of your own.

   I’ve knocked up two quick and dirty sets in blue and green. You can probably roll your own nicer ones in Photoshop. Apple’s originals have a light shading in the bottom right-hand corner. There’s also a multi-coloured set on ResExcellence.

6. All done. Launch Mail and enjoy.

apple gui, apple mail, mail.app, notification badges, hacks, interface

The “Mail-like look” is all the rage. Have you noticed how it is creeping over your entire interface? First, came the new iTunes. Not quite the same look; it was a little darker, but the trend was set.

A hack soon appeared (iTunes Unified) to make the new iTunes look more like Mail 2.0. Then there was one for Safari – Unify Safari. Then I noticed that NetNewsWire already had the new look.

Today I stumbled across an open source notebook/organizer app called Forest (screenshot here) in which the developer has striven to get “the Mail look”. Now that I type this, I see that the latest version of ecto (2.3.9) has the Mail-look as well (although buff instead of “baby blue”). It’s everywhere.

This weekend, Docktopus hit the blogs and news sites. This nifty utility brings Mail’s unread messages badge to all the apps in your Dock, letting you access real-time information about, and control over, your Dock apps. It boasts a variety of badges for various Dock apps, all of which serves to increase – in a small way – Mail’s creeping interface imperialism.

To me, the most interesting thing about this trend is that it is not driven by Apple. Apart from iTunes, the rise and rise of the Mail-like look is all user- and developer-initiated.

Whether it is a distaste for Brushed Metal (who is tired and grumpy as the Daring Fireball revealed) – and so a negative thing – or a more positive delight in the new, lighter look, the enthusiasm of the user community for the new look is something that Apple can’t fail to see.

So, what about that prediction that the next revision of iLife will see more Mail-like looks? I’d bet on it.

UPDATE: Try UNO for a complete Mail-like look makeover on your own Mac.brushed metal, Apple GUI, Apple interface design, Mail.app, apple mail, aesthetics, unified toolbar, iLife

When Tiger was released, Mail’s new interface was a shock to many people. New lozenge-shaped buttons appeared in the toolbar, which some thought were not only ugly in themselves, but out of step with the rest of Tiger’s interface. They wanted to wind back the clock, and return to the look of Apple Mail in Panther.

If the new look bugs you, three applications can return you to the Panther look. Mail Stamps will replace the lozenge-shaped buttons with the icons from Panther. An uninstaller painlessly returns Mail to the new look if you want to later. Running Mail Stamps turned my Mail’s appearance from this:

to this:

Cagefighter and Debuttonizer are two other apps that will do the same job. Both are freeware.

Mail Stamps 2.0.1 was released on 15 September 2005.
Mail Stamps 2.1 was released on 5 December 2005.

Updated 5 December 2005icons, mail.app, apple mail, lozenge-shaped buttons, panther, apple GUI, hack, interface