See More (or less) of Your Inbox
December 12th, 2007
(14 votes, average: 3.93 out of 5)
Loading ...In today’s tip I wanted to draw your attention to a feature of the all-new Yahoo! Mail that – by reading through your feedback – you either love or you find a real pain ;-). Today’s topic is the reading pane.
What is it?
The reading pane allows you to preview messages without having to double-click on them to open them in a new tab or window. When you log into the all-new mail for the very first time, it’s turned on by default. Most people really like it, however there is a small number of your fellow users that think is takes up too much screen real-estate.
Do you love the reading pane?
If you do, here are two tips to help you get the most out of the reading pane.
First you can resize the preview pane to make it suit the size of your screen. Just put your mouse over the dividing line between your message list and the preview pane. When your mouse pointer turns into an up-and-down arrow, click and drag the line to make the pane bigger or smaller. Just like in the screenshot to the right.
Second, for a little more advanced tip for the reading pane, click on the “Options” menu in your Inbox (hint: it’s the link labeled “Options” in the picture below for those folks who aren’t favourable about the reading pane). Then click on “Mail Options”. On that screen you’re going to see this option that let’s you set what happens to the mail message when you look at it in the reading pane:
So if you don’t want the message to get marked as read when you’re viewing it in the reading pane, just select “Never” from the pick-list.
Do you hate the reading pane?
If you do, and I know there is a small minority out there that really doesn’t like the reading pane. Here’s a quick tip I know you’re going to love. Take a look at this picture of the “view menu”. See that “v” next to the menu item “Reading Pane”. That’s a short cut key to show or hide the reading pane at the touch of a key. Try it out. When you’re in your Inbox, just hit the “v” key and see what happens.
Love it or hate it. Those are some quick tips to help you use it the way that suits you best. If you love it, which is most of you, those tips should really come in handy. If you don’t love it, use that “v” key tip to hide and show the preview pane. I think if you use the reading pane more, you might just grow to love it.
Happy emailing,
Andrew – Yahoo! Mail Team
Entry Filed under: reading pane, yahoo mail tips
9 Comments Add your own
1. Rod Fuller | December 17th, 2007 at 5:01 am
Too muchof the screen is taken up by options including tool bars at the top of the sceen.
Advertisements on the right hand side of the screen leave about one quarter of the screen left for messages.
I would like to see the top half of the sceen for Input and the bottom half for actual messages,
Tool bars and advertisements should be selected when required and not taking up so much space all the time.
2. wyn mcnamara | December 17th, 2007 at 8:06 pm
I hate what you’ve done to yahoo. once over it was so easy to use now I don’t even know how to check my mail. Why don’t you leave things alone. Once I find my mail and contacts I shall be moving my account to Hotmail!.
Such a shame - I’ve really enjoyed using Yahoo.
3. Robina | January 7th, 2008 at 9:44 pm
By mistake I asked Yahoo to show a full address at the beginning of my emails. What a mistake. I now have to scroll through acres of unnecessary information to get to the message. Please, how do I get it back to the brief address?
4. Rutha | January 26th, 2008 at 2:32 am
It is great, i really love the new mail. It is easy to operate. If someone doesnt like it, he can always go back to the old one. No need to waist your time by waiting for the mail will be open or closed. Great update!
5. Sid | February 3rd, 2008 at 8:06 pm
I really like the reading pane …. for me it makes it easier and faster for me to check my mails …. I was using hotmail before this … but now the ease of yahoo mail is making me shift to yahoo !!!
good work !!
6. Fujitsu | February 13th, 2008 at 11:38 pm
I loath the new language of Yahoo. “Got your eye on one of those messages up there?” Yuk. Worse than Yahoo for Dummies. If you must use this sort of patronizing rubbish then allow us to customize it and use our own words.
7. Anne Luxton | March 1st, 2008 at 2:26 pm
Why oh why does the advertising pane come beside your viewing pane, it makes the pane look smaller and litterally is a real pain, please remove this or will have to go back to the old setup
8. Leslie Hayden | March 2nd, 2008 at 4:10 pm
Is it neccesary for the ads to be there all the time ie everytime you go from one Email to another on comes the ads
9. ellie | March 6th, 2008 at 9:35 am
Its getting over complicated. Despite a colour change I am still trawling everywhere to find simple instructions and the advertising is too big and should be optional to view. I waste time every time I log on moving the damned ad again and again… I note several other complaints. As for ‘got your eye …’ get rid of it!!
Leave a Comment
Subscribe to the comments via RSS Feed