Help With Evolution Email Attachments

[zenarcher]

A couple of years ago, I used Evolution email and was quite happy with it. Then, I began having some issues and switched to Thunderbird and have used it since without problems.

Now, I'm helping a newbie, who really likes Evolution and wants to use it. He's encountering some of the same problems I had, as I recall, when I made the switch, but he would like to resolve them, if possible. I'm trying to find some answers for him. He's using the latest version of Evolution with Karmic 9.10 (64 bit) Kubuntu. The problem is with attachments when receiving an email in Evolution.

Here are some examples:

When receiving a .jpg attached to an email, he can see the attachment, but unlike Thunderbird, the picture does not just appear in the email. As it is, he has to save the attachment, say to the desktop and open it with gwenview or some other application.

The same happens with an attached sound or video file...say a .wmv. With Thunderbird, he can click on the attachment and a box will open, allowing him to choose a specific application (say kmplayer) to always open that type of file. After that, merely double clicking on the attachment automatically will open and play the .wmv. Not so, with Evolution. He must save it to the desktop, then open with KMPlayer. The same with a .pps file. Save to desktop, then open with soffice. Meanwhile, with Thunderbird, the first time one is received, one merely clicks on the .pps attachment, when the box opens, choose to always open with soffice and in the future, that just happens.

I'm not sure how to get certain attachments to "just open" with Evolution, as can be done with Thunderbird. Or, how to have something as simple as an attached .jpg to just appear in the received email, rather than having to save it and then open it with another application.

I guess this sounds like a rather long and confusing question, but summed up, he just wants Evolution to always open a particular type of attachment, merely by double clicking on the attachment, rather than being forced to first save it, then find an application to open it from the desktop.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks,
zenarcher

[callan79]

I'm helping a newbie, who really likes Evolution and wants to use it. He's encountering some of the same problems I had, as I recall, when I made the switch, but he would like to resolve them, if possible. I'm trying to find some answers for him. He's using the latest version of Evolution with Karmic 9.10 (64 bit) Kubuntu. The problem is with attachments when receiving an email in Evolution.

Hi zenarcher,

I'm not sure if I can fix your problem, but I thought I'd throw a few ideas around for you.

1. Regarding evolution not automatically showing images, there is a reason for that. I've described this in another thread, but basically it depends if the email is a HTML messages with inline images, OR if the images are attachments. If they are inline images they will be displayed on screen as you'd expect. But if they are attachments, you have to specifically open them. This is the way things are designed to work, however I do agree that Thunderbird is very cool how it just displays attached images automatically. Perhaps some day evolution will do the same, maybe via a plugin.

2. Regarding the opening of attachments - I'm using evolution with karmic, and I don't have any problems - I just click it, and it opens as I would expect. This is just an idea, but have you tried starting GNOME instead of KDE, and seeing if the same thing happens? Reason I suggest this is because evolution (I think?) is offially a GNOME application, and hence may rely on some GNOME features for working out which program to use for which file. In KDE, I think kontact is the default? So anyway, if you have GNOME on the system too, start that, see if the problem is fixed.


Good luck!

Cheers
Callan

[zenarcher]

Thanks for the tips on Evolution. I'm inclined to agree with your assessment. I just can't remember, myself, as it's been a couple of years ago that I gave up on Evolution, due, as I recall, to these same annoyances, which do not occur with Thunderbird. I recently switched my friend from GNOME to KDE, as he wanted to try it, since I've always used and preferred KDE. Likewise, he's not real proficient yet, due to not having the time to really research out problems and configuration, so I generally talk him through issues as he learns. Therefore, KDE is much easier, since I'm much more familiar and can even send him screenshots and such, as to what to do.

I appreciate the response and tips!

Thanks,
zenarcher