Can anyone help me disable the annoying 'responded to' feature in Gmail?

[Evo]

I know a lot of you use it, so maybe one of you can help me get rid of a feature that makes me crazy. When I open an e-mail, at the top is every e-mail that has been responded to. I WANT THIS TO STOP! I don't want to see these and I can't find a way to make them disappear, other than creating a new e-mail instead of responding. I went to the "tutorial" but they act like this bunch of crap at the top of every e-mail is a great thing. In other email clients, the preious e-mails are at the bottom, out of the way and you can simply highlight and delete them.

TELL ME HOW TO MAKE THIS GO AWAY!

Since yahoo has unlimited e-mail storage, gives you a much bigger window in which to type and read (seriously twice the size), has no annoying ads taking up the entire right hand side of the page, I'm seriously considering shutting down gmail permanently.

 

[ank_gl]

gmail sucks

 

[Evo]

Here are screen shots of yahoo mail and gmail.

http://img502.imageshack.us/img502/268/yahoovb4.jpg

http://img253.imageshack.us/img253/8773/gmailkg6.jpg

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

Well I usually need to look back at previous emails so I love the threaded view and gmail.

 

[Kurdt]

I just download them through outlook. Saves all the agro and you can manage them yourself in a uniform environment.

 

[Evo]

Well I usually need to look back at previous emails so I love the threaded view and gmail.

Yeah, but it gets to the point that you have to scroll down two pages just to see the current e-mail. They need to have an option to turn this off. Or at least put it at the bottom, out of the way.

 

[dontdisturbmycircles]

I am fairly confident that there is no way to turn it off. Gmail uses 'conversations' where each reply just adds a new tab so you can view what was said before easily. If you want to start a new conversation you would have to just compose a new email to that person with the subject Re:whatever. That's the only work around I can think of for really long 'conversations'. Could always complain to G-mail and see if they will add an option. I am sure there are others that don't like it as well :-).

It is also possible the gmail limits the number of conversation tabs in a conversation but I am not sure whether this is true or not.

 

[Moonbear]

I don't think you can make it go away. I actually like the feature, which is why I use gmail, because I'm horrible at keeping track of a conversation if someone doesn't quote the previous message, so I can just skim through the last message I sent to them and see what they're responding to, and I like that the whole conversation is kept together in a single thread rather than emails scattered around everywhere. They basically have structured it like a forum thread more than a typical email. If that's something that drives you crazy, then, yeah, one of the other free email providers is probably better suited for you.

Though, I never have to scroll to get to the newest message...or don't notice if I do. Usually I have to scroll up if I want to see messages above. Maybe I just don't go so long without changing subject lines.

 

[Moonbear]

Or at least put it at the bottom, out of the way.

Could always complain to G-mail and see if they will add an option. I am sure there are others that don't like it as well :-).

That would be a good suggestion to make to them...at least the option that the display order is reversed so all the older messages appear in reverse order below your most current message instead of above it. That configuration would work for me too.

 

[FrancisZ]

I know a lot of you use it, so maybe one of you can help me get rid of a feature that makes me crazy...

Sorry friend, not sure how to help in this regard.

Since yahoo has unlimited e-mail storage, gives you a much bigger window in which to type and read (seriously twice the size), has no annoying ads taking up the entire right hand side of the page, I'm seriously considering shutting down gmail permanently.

I will say though: you're right: a lot of folks seem to have jumped on the gmail bandwagon; although I am not sure why.

I already feel like I have way too many e-mail accounts as is; and adding another just for the novelty of it doesn't seem to make sense to me.

Is gmail the best there is? Yahoo is pretty good, but I just prefer to use my regular work or school account.

I just can't stand the spam--people keep trying to sell me watches, which I know is totally bogus--and I use Outlook; but it still won't go away entirely.

 

[Moonbear]

I will say though: you're right: a lot of folks seem to have jumped on the gmail bandwagon; although I am not sure why.

I already feel like I have way too many e-mail accounts as is; and adding another just for the novelty of it doesn't seem to make sense to me.

I used to think the same thing...who needs yet ANOTHER email account. Then I gave it a try, just to see what the hype was all about. It's set up completely differently than other email accounts (apparently that's what Evo doesn't like about it, but is the reason I now prefer it). I also get very little spam on that account compared with hotmail and yahoo, and it's not broken so often as hotmail is (I've given up on that as anything but a spam-catcher account, because the service is down so much). At first I thought it was just because of the new-ness of the account and it would eventually catch up to all the others, but I've had it a while now, and still only the occassional spam finds it's way there.

I think it just comes down to personal preference...a free account is a free account...if you don't like it, don't use it, you haven't lost any money trying it if you decide you can't stand it.

 

[Evo]

If you haven't tried yahoo lately, you should, it's never down. No spam, easier to use, more intuitive, not as cluttered, full page for your e-mail - not a tiny space, easy e-mail search, personal folders. Plus it has unlimited storage unlike g-mail, although I can't imagine needing unlimited storage, nice never to have to worry about it.

Moonbear, all of your related e-mail messages are at the bottom of your e-mail, unless they're deleted.

 

[Moonbear]

I just looked back at an email thread in gmail that has a LOT of back and forth replies. It collapses all those headers down so you don't see all of them when you get more than about 10. You see the top one, some lines (not enough for all the emails, just to indicate there are more in between) and then the next to last header, followed by the last email. I don't need to scroll at all to view the most recent email. Of course, if you click on the middle, it'll expand the headers, and then open the emails. If you managed to do that, you can collapse them again (that "expand all" link in the top right turns into "collapse all"), but it'll leave up all the headers until you return to the inbox and reopen the thread.

 

[Simfish]

I really like Gmail, but I sometimes worry about the possibility (however remote) of the servers crashing (this worry I hold for most other e-mail clients). One issue is that I really like the threaded view, but have no way to transfer it to outlook. =(

 

[Evo]

That's just so weird to me that some like that clutter at the top of their e-mail, wouldn't you prefer that to be hidden until you need it? Does it have to be right in your face? Do you need to open them that often? Would you need to open them at all if they were at the bottom of your e-mail like other services?

To each his own. I'll take the better format and read the e-mail trails at the bottom of my e-mails if I need them.

 

[GeorginaS]

It is also possible the gmail limits the number of conversation tabs in a conversation but I am not sure whether this is true or not.

Every time a friend and I reach 100 post tabs in a gmail thread, gmail starts a new thread for us.

I really like the threaded e-mails. They're much more conversational. Then again, I only enjoy that feature with certain people. That's why I also have a Yahoo account, although I'm not fond of Yahoo's new interface.

 

[Mk]

Well jeez Evo, that's my favorite part of Gmail! Maybe you should use a client like Apple Mail, or Microsoft Outlook, or Mozilla Thunderbird, being the most popular.

 

[Evo]

Every time a friend and I reach 100 post tabs in a gmail thread, gmail starts a new thread for us.

I really like the threaded e-mails. They're much more conversational. Then again, I only enjoy that feature with certain people. That's why I also have a Yahoo account, although I'm not fond of Yahoo's new interface.

I refused to download the new Yahoo version.

I'm going to stop using g-mail, I don't need that feature and the clutter is really annoying.

MK, I use Outlook at work and have several personal e-mail accounts on different services.

 

[Moonbear]

That's just so weird to me that some like that clutter at the top of their e-mail, wouldn't you prefer that to be hidden until you need it?

I guess I just don't see it as clutter, but a nice way to keep my email organized. I'm bad about moving email to specific folders, and then they get lost in the 700 other read emails in my inbox. This way, it keeps the clutter down to just a few threads instead of a bunch of individual messages in the inbox, and I can keep track of the whole conversation quickly, and at least the last response I got from that person. This works equally well for me with people with whom I correspond infrequently (i.e., by the time I get a reply, I don't remember what I had originally written to them or where that email might be saved anymore) and for those with whom I converse often (i.e., we talk about so many things that when they send me a message saying, "I agree, we should do that," I don't have to write back, "What are you agreeing with?" because I can't remember the most recent thing I mentioned to them).

 

[moe darklight]

send them an e-mail. gmail is still in beta, which is why it's not quite there yet. and they're more likely to listen now than once 1.0 is released.

I like gmail. I haven't tried yahoo, but it's MILES away from hotmail... I don't see myself switching again; I'm pretty happy with gmail... plus, it sounds cool. "g-mail." I feel gaingstuh.

 

[Thrice]

I'll look into the email feature, but ads go away if you use firefox /w adblock

Update: yeah, no way to turn it off.

 

[Evo]

I guess I just don't see it as clutter, but a nice way to keep my email organized. I'm bad about moving email to specific folders, and then they get lost in the 700 other read emails in my inbox. This way, it keeps the clutter down to just a few threads instead of a bunch of individual messages in the inbox, and I can keep track of the whole conversation quickly, and at least the last response I got from that person. This works equally well for me with people with whom I correspond infrequently (i.e., by the time I get a reply, I don't remember what I had originally written to them or where that email might be saved anymore) and for those with whom I converse often (i.e., we talk about so many things that when they send me a message saying, "I agree, we should do that," I don't have to write back, "What are you agreeing with?" because I can't remember the most recent thing I mentioned to them).

Your e-mail client doesn't keep all of your previous messages in chronological order at the bottom of the current e-mail? All of mine do, gmail is the only one that pollutes my current e-mail with all of the previous e-mails at the top. I have a complete history of all e-mails within a chain of responses with other e-mail services, but they are at the bottom, out of my way. I don't have to see them unless I want to refer back to them.

 

[hypnagogue]

One neat thing you get with gmail more than other kinds of accounts is its malleability. There are tons of nifty extensions in Firefox that you can use to customize and improve your gmail account. For instance:

http://lifehacker.com/software/lifehacker-top-10/top-10-unofficial-gmail-apps-and-add+ons-279556.php

Of course, if you decide that ultimately you don't like your gmail account for using email, you can always use it as a free 3GB FTP server using the gspace add-on to firefox.

http://www.getgspace.com/

 

[Moonbear]

Your e-mail client doesn't keep all of your previous messages in chronological order at the bottom of the current e-mail? All of mine do, gmail is the only one that pollutes my current e-mail with all of the previous e-mails at the top. I have a complete history of all e-mails within a chain of responses with other e-mail services, but they are at the bottom, out of my way. I don't have to see them unless I want to refer back to them.

I've never seen that with any email, not even Yahoo that you keep saying does this. Unless someone actually keeps quoting the whole correspondence (which is really annoying because it's IN the same message), I have no history of the conversation unless I go hunting for previous emails sent and received.

 

[neutrino]

I've never seen that with any email, not even Yahoo that you keep saying does this. Unless someone actually keeps quoting the whole correspondence (which is really annoying because it's IN the same message), I have no history of the conversation unless I go hunting for previous emails sent and received.

I think what Evo is referring to is the stuff that is (automatically) quoted in your reply box, which you can select and delete. This is available in all services and even programs like Outlook Express and Thunderbird. Gmail has the previous messages both at the top (in tabs) and in within your reply (at the bottom.)

 

[Moonbear]

I think what Evo is referring to is the stuff that is (automatically) quoted in your reply box, which you can select and delete. This is available in all services and even programs like Outlook Express and Thunderbird. Gmail has the previous messages both at the top (in tabs) and in within your reply (at the bottom.)

The automatic quoting requires that the person you correspond with quotes your email though, if that's what you mean. Personally, I find that more irritating because it clutters up the response, unless there's a need to go through and comment line-by-line (sometimes needed in work correspondence, but not for friends, which is what I use the free accounts for). I don't need each email reply to be 10 pages long because everything is quoted within it (even worse is the crappy email I'm forced to use at work that attaches the quoted email instead of quoting it...it's like the way AOL would do it, which is horrid).

 

[Evo]

I wouldn't mind the gmail feature if it could be turned on only as needed, since I've never needed it, it's just clutter. Sounds like you have crummy e-mail at work.

I gave the only person remaining on my gmail my yahoo account, problem solved.

 

[ank_gl]

maybe emailing the gmail boss would work;))

 

[Moonbear]

I wouldn't mind the gmail feature if it could be turned on only as needed, since I've never needed it, it's just clutter. Sounds like you have crummy e-mail at work.

Well, I know I have crummy email at work...that's a given...I complain to IT about it all the time. But, I've still never seen ANY email other than gmail that threads conversations to keep them all together without me having to do something special to tag them or put them in folders, or in some other way link them myself.

I think the idea of having the option to show or hide the conversation would be a reasonable request to make of the gmail powers-that-be.

 

[GeorginaS]

As I said, I really enjoy the gmail format for conversations with friends for all of the reasons Moonbear cites. And their search function is fantastic.

Another interesting feature I discovered about gmail -- that I'm not sure any other e-mail service does -- is they deliberately do not show IP addresses in the headers. I checked on their site, and they block them on purpose. That can have both up and downsides, but it's interesting to note.