Notification alert

[hmfobi]

I use QuickFolders and Filters. Could you implement the following function in FiltaQuilla: After a new email arrives (even in a subfolder), a notification pops up (you should choose how long it stays open). If you click on the windows, you end up directly in the directory.

Previously I used the Thunderbird add-on "Mailbox Alert" (https://addons.thunderbird.net/de/thunderbird/addon/mailbox-alert/), which to my regret is no longer updated.

[RealRaven2000]

quick question - how does the email arrive in the folder? If it is via a filter, can we use that to send the notification / play the sound from there? I am asking because you can only run filters automatically from the Inbox (by design of Thunderbird, you cannot make a filter run automatically on another folder than the inbox)...

[hmfobi]

The email comes from the inbox into the folder via QuickFilters.

[RealRaven2000]

The email comes from the inbox into the folder via QuickFilters.

ok, note that (even if the filters were created using quickFilters) - this is just using the standard filtering mechanism of Thunderbird. When the filtering process happens it is being called by Thunderbird from the back-end (C++ layer) and quickFilters is not involved at this stage. But FiltaQuilla can add new actions (you can already play a tone with it) to the filters if you like.

I understand you would like to see something like an OS notification (in Windows 10, it pops up at the bottom right of the screen for a period of time and is then automatically close, just like a "new mail" notification)... Or do you need something like a message box that needs to be closed by clicking "OK" for each of these?

[hmfobi]

Ich würde ein Meldefeld benötigen, wo man darauf klickt und zum betroffenen Ordner mit der neuen E-Mail weitergeleitet wird.

[hmfobi]

I would need a notification box where you click on it and you are redirected to the affected folder with the new email.

[RealRaven2000]

I would need a notification box where you click on it and you are redirected to the affected folder with the new email.

ok, what about if you get 10 notifications, will be have 10 boxes on screen until you click them all? Just wondering how "Mailbox Alert" solved the problem of multiple messages...

[hmfobi]

The notifications were arranged one after the other and were significantly smaller than those in Windows 10

[RealRaven2000]

The notifications were arranged one after the other and were significantly smaller than those in Windows 10

sorry when you say "arranged one after the other" if you had 3 notifications, the 2nd notification would not show until you clicked on the 1st notification, or were they just 3 windows stacked on top of each other (with the latest on top or earliest on top?)

Also if they were shown sequentially one after the other were they grouped by folder (if you get 2 mails for the same folder, do you always get 2 notifications, or will they be grouped as in you got 2 new emails in folder X) ?

[hmfobi]

The notifications were stacked on top of each other: the oldest at the bottom, the youngest at the top. No matter which folder they came from.

[RealRaven2000]

I asked on the last developers call and there is a notifications API which I might use for a test version. notifications are handled by the OS, so I have to see whether the feature of clicking a button / link on the notification to display the message is supported. I assume you also have the option of closing the message without navigating to the email?

[hmfobi]

Yes

[RealRaven2000]

I asked about possibilities to use the notifications API for this, but they do not allow a link or action, only close window - unfortunately Firefox (Thunderbird) is one of the few browsers that doesn't support a bunch of stuff such as buttons, isClickable, items and onButtonClicked.

https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Mozilla/Add-ons/WebExtensions/API/notifications#browser_compatibility

which would mean they can only be implemented with experimental methods at the moment, maybe with alert or something, but much more work and not future proof.

[hmfobi]

Am I correct in assuming that there is no solution to my problem?

[RealRaven2000]

Am I correct in assuming that there is no solution to my problem?

possibly not (easily) unless I re-invent the wheel and make a complete new window. It would need some carefulness because you could potentially end up with 100s of windows. We cannot use the notification API so it's a lot of work to implement.

[hmfobi]

I don't want to expect you to have to reinvent the wheel again. But thank you for your effort!

[viking2]

I am also very interested in a solution for this! I am currently using Outlook but would like to transfer to Thunderbird if the E-mail alert issue could be solved.

In outlook there is only one window, and successive alerts are shown in the same window. Each E-mail can be opened by clicking on each alert line.

The window stays open until I close it.

p.s. I have setup a rule to send an alert when I receive a SMS via Google Voice, which forwards it as an E-mail. However, this alert window also shows alerts from other regular E-mails that have other rules..

[RealRaven2000]

In outlook there is only one window, and successive alerts are shown in the same window. Each E-mail can be opened by clicking on each alert line.

I actually prefer a solution where it is a single window (with a list) - it could have a richer interface with subject and preview (1st 250 chars) when clicked. Does it also allow deleting items from the list without opening the message? I could imagine that with emails it would also set the status to "read". I know that the OP wants one alert per email but I am afraid of flooding / wasting resources in case the filter is defined wrong or the email address is attacked by spam etc. - a single window with list would be a lot safer.

[viking2]

Does it also allow deleting items from the list without opening the message? I could imagine that with emails it would also set the status to "read".

In Outlook, it is not possible to delete individual items from the list. The E-mail status is set to read after opening the E-mail. I need to close the window to remove all the items from the list.

I do not like the old E-mail Alerts add-on because the individual windows disappear after a short time. I may be away from the computer and miss the Alerts.

[hmfobi]

With the Thunderbird add-on “Mailbox Alert” you could set the display duration. If I remember correctly, up to one hour

[RealRaven2000]

With the Thunderbird add-on “Mailbox Alert” you could set the display duration. If I remember correctly, up to one hour

I will have to think about how best to package such parameters, normally actions can only have one single parameter, but maybe it could be combined via a "flags" field. The duration could be a global parameter (the same timeout duration for all alerts) that you set in FiltaQuilla settings, but [x] "automatically clear after timeout" could be one possible flag. so you could enable / disable this depending on the filter.

[viking2]

Personally, I would be happy if I there was just a manual button to close the window, like in Outlook. It would be so great if this could be implemented!

A lot of users have been looking for a replacement for the Mailbox Alert add-on since it is not working with the latest Thunderbird versions.

[viking2]

How likely is it that some form of notification will be implemented in FiltaQuilla in the next 1-2 months? (I am trying to decide if I should switch from Outlook to Thunderbird; but only if there is a notification system.)

[OlehRA]

I hope the add-on author will be able to write this script. I'm using over 350 filters and more than 50 folders, and the internal notifications are not working properly. Some notifications about new messages are showing up, while others are not.