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Can you make it possible for a user to choose and set default display columns in Thunderbird?

  • 2 replies
  • 1 has this problem
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  • Last reply by Argie2945

Argie2945
Argie2945
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I would like to be able to choose and set my own default display columns, make it apply universally and make it permanent for me, even when upgrading to a newly released version. Currently not possible. My default columns to display would be attachment, subject, correspondents, date, size, account. But other users would choose different columns to be their default. Then, if something gets messed up, you just click "reset columns to my selected defaults" and everything is back to the way you want it. For me it would save having to manually choose my columns 79 different times only to have it get messed up a few days later for some unknown reason.

I would like to be able to choose and set my own default display columns, make it apply universally and make it permanent for me, even when upgrading to a newly released version. Currently not possible. My default columns to display would be attachment, subject, correspondents, date, size, account. But other users would choose different columns to be their default. Then, if something gets messed up, you just click "reset columns to my selected defaults" and everything is back to the way you want it. For me it would save having to manually choose my columns 79 different times only to have it get messed up a few days later for some unknown reason.

All Replies (2)

Toad-Hall
Toad-Hall
  • Top 25 Contributor
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You can choose the column headers and then apply them to other folders. Use the 'Apply columns to' option. you can choose individual folders or all the folders on a particular account etc.

Default is the preset default as auto applied when you initially use Thunderbird.

They would change if you manually altered anything.

If you use a product that can clean up files then it is possible that product is deleting files like session files, password files etc. CCleaner is an example of a program that cleans up files; do not allow CCleaner to have access to any thunderbird file or folder. Some AV products can also offer that kind of cleaning up.

Argie2945
Argie2945 Question owner
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Thanks for your reply. In theory that's the way it should work and once I manually set everything the way I want it nothing would change. In practice, without running any cleaning programs, some of the views that I have manually set revert to Thunderbird's default setting for columns to display. It seems to happen randomly and so I haven't been able to find the cause. It doesn't take too long to manually reset it, so it's not a deal-breaker. Just a little frustrating. Thanks again for your help.