Email Standards Project Blog
Monday, August 18, 2008
.Mac becomes Mobile Me
Last month, Apple replaced it's .mac webmail service with a shiny new web application called Mobile Me. We gave it a try to see whether it did any better on our email ACID test that it's previous incarnation. Read on to find out. Read more »
Monday, August 11, 2008
IBM to release Lotus Notes for iPhone
Our testing with different versions of Lotus Notes has turned up mixed results so far, so we were interested to see that an iPhone version of the widely used software was in the works. Read more »
Wednesday, August 06, 2008
Want to test your own email client?
We've tested the major market email clients with our acid test so far, the ones we get the most complaints and questions about. There are plenty of other email programs out there though, on the web and on desktops. We've received a lot of requests for people to be able to test their own preferred email client, so here's your chance. Read more »
Friday, June 20, 2008
Yahoo! Mail acknowledges spacing issues
We've posted about recent changes in paragraph spacing that many people have noticed in Yahoo! Mail. An update on the Yahoo! Mail blog confirms they are aware of some problems.
Read more »
Friday, May 23, 2008
Novell Groupwise passes with flying colors
With the Email Standards Project we've tended to concentrate on the major email clients, but especially the ones which could charitably be said to have room for improvement. Today we're applauding a product that has got it right, Novell Groupwise. Read more »
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Yahoo! drops paragraph spacing
Not long after we celebrated Yahoo! Webmail meeting all of our Acid test requirements, it seems a change has been made. We received several reports of paragraphs suddenly having no space between them, and Email Standards Project team member Diana Potter investigated. Read more »
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Outlook 2007 doesn’t show image borders
We've updated the report for Outlook 2007 based on an email from Email Standards Project supporter Carl Russell, and testing from the team here. Outlook 2007 apparently does not support border styles on images at all. Read more »
Monday, April 14, 2008
Gmail Appeal Update - We have contact!
Only a few days after the release of our 2008 Gmail Appeal video, we have had some success! A Google engineer has offered to help - read on for more.
Read more »
Friday, April 11, 2008
Make your own Gmail Grimace video
As promised, you can download all the Gmail Grimace photos and put together your own video to keep reaching out to the Gmail team. We've also included the Email Standards Project logo for you. Read more »
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
Project Gmail Grimace video live
Thanks to the fantastic (and at times horrifying!) collection of faces sent in to our Gmail Grimaces group, we've put together a short video appeal to the Gmail team. We'd love it if you could check out the video, and then start plugging it however you can.
Blog about it, send it to your web design group, re-enact it in the foyer of your office building...anything you can do to get this video seen as many times as we can, so that we can eventually reach the right people. We'll also be uploading all the images so you can make your own video very soon. Watch the 2008 Gmail Appeal.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Email Standards Project in .net Magazine
UK web design print monthly .net magazine (not the framework) has just published their April edition, which contains an opinion piece I wrote for them titled 'Better HTML emails'. I give the Email Standards Project a big plug. Read more »
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Last call for Gmail Grimaces
We've collected over 50 photos of people showing just how Gmail makes them feel, when they try do create HTML emails, but we think there are some more great grimaces out there! The deadline is fast approaching, so get your grimaces in by Friday, March 14th and we can start working on the video. Read more »
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Yahoo! Mail Update: Now in Full Compliance of Acid Test
The Yahoo! Mail team was not satisfied with their acid test results, even though they only lacked support for a single item on our list. So they went off and remedied the bug and are now in 100% compliance. Read more »
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Getting some Gmail attention
Does coding HTML emails for Gmail drive you mad? Ever found yourself tempted to shout at your computer in depair? Us too! The Email Standards Project wants to let Google know that Gmail can be very frustrating. Following on from Google's own collaborative videos, we're going to make one of our own. Read more »
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Hotmail Converts HTML to ASCII
Some recent tests have lead to a discovery about how Windows Live Hotmail (Hotmail) processes and delivers HTML in emails. We explored the how and why, and present our findings herein. Read more »
Monday, December 24, 2007
Lotus Notes 8 Update — IBM responds
Our initial results with Lotus Notes 8 were not great - problems like a lack of support for background-color caused serious readability problems. We've been in contact with an IBM representative, and we have a clarification and some encouraging signs to mention. Read more »
Friday, December 21, 2007
Email Standards Project on the BoagWorld podcast
From Paul Boag and Headscape in the UK comes the weekly web design podcast, Boagworld. This week Mat Patterson was on the show to talk about the Email Standards Project. Read more »
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Yahoo! Responds!
I find it truly amazing how responsive the folks at Yahoo! have been to many of the articles/posts I have written. They are actively involved in community discussions and receptive to notes about how things can be improved. This time, they respond to our call for standards-based email clients. Read more »
Monday, December 10, 2007
Is it time for a Gmail intervention?
Gmail is the web application poster-child, the email client that proved webmail did not have to suck. Web designers love it, but when it comes to HTML email, Gmail is decidedly behind the pack. Read more »
Thursday, December 06, 2007
Would you wear this shirt?
Email Standards Project supporter and talented designer Doug Neiner has answered the call for some Email Standards Project bling with a great t-shirt design. Read more »
Wednesday, December 05, 2007
Yes, you should get plain text too!
Apparently we have not made this clear enough yet, so I wanted to say it explicitly:
Everybody should get the choice to receive HTML or plain text
If you personally prefer text-only email, you should always be able to set your email client to show plain text, and all your newsletters should a have plain text alternative for you to read. We totally agree! The Email Standards Project is trying to improve the rendering of the HTML portion of the email, not to get rid of the text portion, so there is no need to worry.
Tuesday, December 04, 2007
Email Standards Project — answers to common questions
Since the Email Standards Project launched last week, we've had a ton of great, supportive feedback, a fair amount of healthy scepticism and some toasting warm flaming. With a topic like HTML in email, it was inevitable that there would be some controversy surrounding it. Read more »
Monday, December 03, 2007
An interview about the Email Standards Project
The fantastic email industry resource Email Marketing Reports has posted their interview with Dave Greiner, Freshview founder and a founding member of the Email Standards Project. David goes into a little more detail about the background to the project, and gives a little hint to what's been happening since launch day. Check out the interview, and also a ton of other great resources for understanding how businesses use email.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
A flying start
One day in and the Email Standards Project has taken off with a bang. Thanks to the fantastic work of a great many designers, we've attracted a lot of attention across the web already. I wanted to take a moment to say thanks, and point out just a few of the great posts we have seen. Read more »
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Email Standards Project: Bring the Bling
Now that we've officially launched the Email Standards Project, we want to spread the word as far as we can, so the right people hear about it. Every person who believes that email standards are important needs a way to show it on their site or brochure or forehead. Read more »