MailTags 2.0 Manual PDF

MailTags 2.
0
Add meaning to your messages
indev Software inc.

web • http://www.indev.ca
email • mailto: info@indev.ca
MailTags 2.0 Users Guide Page 2
Introduction
Thank you for using MailTags 2.0.
MailTags 2.0 is the premium enhancement for Apple’s

Mail 2.1 in OS X 10.4 (Tiger). MailTags lets you take
control of your messages by tagging them with metadata
that is meaningful to your organizational system,
including keywords, projects, deadlines, notes and more.
Once messages are tagged, they can be located via
Mail’s built-in Smart Mailboxes and search technologies.
MailTags also extends Mail’s Applescript ability and
integrates with numerous other organizational
applications such as DevonThink Pro Office, and iGTD.
System Requirements
Mailtags 2.0 is compatible with both Intel and PPC Macs
running OS X 10.4.8 or later. MailTags 2.0 requires that
Spotlight be enabled and set to index mail (this is the
default setting for Spotlight).
Purchasing MailTags 2.0

MailTags 2.0 is distributed as time-limited trialware. For
continued use, a registration code is required. You are
free to test MailTags for 21 days with no limitations.
Following this trial period, existing tags can be viewed
and searched, but not created, edited, or deleted.
Purchasing a MailTags’ registration code, however, will
reactivate all of its features.
For large volume, institutional, non-profit and educational

purchases, please contact us at info@indev.ca.
Installation and Configuration
The MailTags installer will configure Mail for using third

party plug-ins (if not already so configured) and install
the MailTags.mailbundle in ~/Library/Mail/Bundles and
the MailTags Spotlight plugin in ~/Library/Spotlight.
MailTags Configuration
MailTags is configured to work with locally stored
messages, such as those in POP mailboxes and local
mailboxes, with no additional configuration.
IMAP Accounts
In order to use Mailtags with messages stored on IMAP
servers, each IMAP account must be configured to
locally cache mail messages. To do this, open Mail’s
preferences, choose Accounts, then select the
Advanced tab. Set the following option to:
Without this setting, MailTags will neither be able to

search IMAP messages for keywords and other tags, nor
find those messages from this account in MailTags-
based Smart Mailboxes.
Spotllght
MailTags makes use of Tiger’s Spotlight engine to index
and find tags. To get full functionality from MailTags,
make sure that Spotlight is turned on in OS X System
Preferences so files are indexed in the Library directory
of your home folder. If Spotlight is turned off, MailTags’
data can be stored and read, but Smart Mailboxes and
ad hoc finds will not work.
For first-time users, a number of suggested keywords

and projects have been preconfigured.
Uninstalling Mailtags
If MailTags does not meet your needs, an uninstaller is
included on the disk image. We recommend deleting or
altering all the MailTags’ smart mailboxes and rules
created prior to the uninstall, as they may have
unexpected results once MailTags is no longer installed.
Any tagged data set in MailTags will be preserved until
either mailboxes are rebuilt or messages are moved.
Any data saved to IMAP message Headers will be
preserved after uninstalling.
To manually uninstall MailTags, remove the

MailTags.mailbundle file located in
/Users/yourUserName/Library/Mail/Bundle folder. Also,
remove the MailTags.mdimporter file located in
/Users/yourUserName/Library/Spotlight folder.
Getting Started with MailTags
The MailTags interface is designed to be inconspicuous,

providing the ability to view and edit message tags when
needed, and to be hidden when not needed.
MailTags adds a small tag icon to the top right corner

of each message view. When a message has tags, the
interior of this tag will appear dark blue. When a The Tag icon in the
message has no tags, it will appear light grey-blue. message view
Clicking on this tag will show and hide the MailTags

panel. (See the next section for more information
about the Tags Panel.) Alternatively, the tag panel
can be shown or hidden via the View menu (View >
Show MailTags Panel). A MailTags button can also
be added to Mail’s toolbar by control-clicking the
toolbar and selecting “Customize Toolbar…”
MailTags actions in the

message contextual menu
Tagging Your Messages
The MailTags panel is the main interface for setting and

reading tags associated with messages. To access this
panel, click on the MailTags icon in the top right of the
message window or select Show Mail Tags Panel from
the View menu.
Messages can also be tagged via the Mail’s Message

menu or by the contextual menu (control-click on
messages).
The panel is organized into four sections: Tags,

Deadline, To Dos and Events, and Notes. The disclosure
arrow on the left side of each section header reveals or
hides that section. If MailTags’ information is obstructed,
simply close some sections to show tags in other
sections. Use MailTags’ preferences to set which
sections are shown by default (see page 16).
Tags Section Flag Checkbox

The Flag checkbox provides an additional way of setting
Mail’s built-in message flag. This is included to centralize
all ways of tagging or flagging messages for later
actions.
Keywords
Single or multiple keywords can be added to a message.
To add a keyword to the current message, type it into the
token field. Keywords will auto complete after two letters
with suggestions from the preferred keywords list, which
is set and stored in both the MailTags Keywords panel
and in MailTags’ preferences. Separate keywords with a
comma. Editing, adding, or deleting keywords can all be
accomplished by control-clicking (right-clicking) the
keyword token that appears in the Keywords field (see
@followup in image to the right). Control-click any
keyword to see a menu of existing options.
Alternately, select a keyword from the list of preferred

keywords by clicking the down arrow to the right of the
token field. Keywords listed in italics indicate keywords
that are not in the preferred list.
Project
Messages can be assigned a project. The list in the
popup menu represents the preferred projects created
and found in MailTag’s preferences. To set a project that
is not in the preferred projects, select “Other…” and type
the desired project in the dialog box.
Deadline section
The Deadline section is used to set simple message
deadline dates and priorities. Smart mailboxes can also
be created based on these deadlines and priorities.
Deadlines set here are not associated with iCal to dos or
events but provide a simple reminder that this message
requires action by a certain date. These deadlines do not
have alarms. A smart mailbox based on deadlines works
well as a “tickler” mailbox. See the section on Smart
Mailboxes for more details.
To set a deadline date, click the checkbox to the left of

the date and set the date, or click on the calendar button
to the right of the date. Set the priority of the message in
the pop up. Only a message’s author can assign
deadline priorities. A recipient cannot change this
priority.
To Dos and Events Section

While a message might only have a single deadline, it
can have multiple to dos and events. These items are
linked to iCal and can have alarms. Add new to dos and
events by clicking the appropriate buttons within this
section. Edit to dos and events by clicking on them
directly, or by clicking on the action button that
appears to the right of each item’s name. Clicking this
button also reveals a “View To Do in iCal option.
New Event items are created automatically in iCal via

AppleEvents. If ICal is not open, MailTags will open iCal
to set this data. Additionally, if an item is altered in iCal,
MailTags will update its data every time the related
message is opened.
Editing iCal items is done in popup HUDs (Heads Up

Displays). Most iCal data can be set within these HUDs.
Currently, in MailTags 2.0, only Message and Sound
alarms or recurring dates for events alarms can be set.
View the item in iCal to edit this data. MailTags will
respect and preserve these changes.
Close HUD windows either with the escape key or with

the close button in the top left corner. Any changes will
be automatically saved and synchronized with iCal.
Notes Section
The notes field assigns arbitrary notes to a message.
Entire message searches and smart mailbox criteria
includes notes’ content or data.
Show as Subject Check Box

This check box displays the contents of the notes as the
subject of the message, allowing alternate email subject
lines. Such subject lines are displayed in list view in italic
text to clearly indicate that this is an alternate subject.
Also, although alternate subject lines can be displayed
this way, Mail will not search these alternate subjects in
a subject based find.
Other actions
IMAP Save
By default tags will be saved to the IMAP
server for IMAP messages. Turn this default
off or set a message size limit in MailTags’
preferences. If an IMAP message has tags
that have not been saved to the server, the
“IMAP Save” button will appear in the bottom section.
Clear All
The Clear All button will delete all the message tags and
delete any linked to dos and events in iCal.
Register MailTags
While MailTags is unregistered, the purchase button
appears at the bottom of the MailTags’ panel.
Tagging Outgoing Messages

Tags can be set on outgoing messages both for the
sender’s reference and as pre-sets for the recipient of a
message if they also have MailTags installed.
When composing a message, the MailTags panel

includes two additional controls: the Tag Original button
and the Include in sent mail check box.
The Tag Original option will be available if the current

message is a reply or forwarded message. This
button will apply chosen tags to the original message.
When the “Include in sent mail” option is selected, the
tags will be saved in the X-MailTags header of the
outgoing message so that the recipient has access to
your tags. When the recipient views the message, the
tag panel will show a confirmation in the tag panel
asking them to accept or reject the proposed tags.
Tagging using MailTags Menus

Tags can also be set via contextual menus and the
MailTags submenu in the Mail’s Message menu.
These menus are particularly useful for tagging more
than one message with the same tags.
Tag Message
This action will display the Tag panel with the
Keyword token field in focus.
Add MailTags Keywords >

Setting tags via this menu item will add the chosen
keyword to the selected message or messages. If a
selected keyword already exists for the message(s), it is
not added a second time.
Remove MailTags Keywords >

Setting tags via this menu item will remove the chosen
keyword from the selected message(s). If a selected
keyword does not exist for the message, it will ignore the
request for that keyword. Choose “All Keywords” to clear
all the keywords from the message(s)
Set MailTags Keywords…

This item displays a dialog to add or remove multiple
keywords in one step. Alternatively, this menu item can
be used to rename existing keywords.
Set MailTags Project >

This menu sets the project for the selected messages.
Set MailTags Priority >

This menu sets the priority for the selected messages.
Set MailTags Deadline…

This item displays a dialog for setting a deadline for the
message. Use the first tab to turn off the deadline or set
it to a specific date. Use the second tab to move the
deadline of the selected message ahead or back by a
number of days.
Set MailTags Note…

This item displays a dialog for adding a note to the
selected message. Use the placement menu to place the
note’s text before or after a message’s existing notes, or
to replace an existing note altogether.
Clear All MailTags

This menu item will clear all the tags from the message.
If the message has linked iCal items, it will delete those
items as well.
Copy / Paste MailTags (Edit Menu)

These items will make a copy of all the tags within the
current message and paste them to a different message.
The copy will not affect current items on the clipboard.
Copy Message URL (Edit Menu)

MailTags provides the extra convenience of referring to
mail messages by creating a message:// url schema.
When this menu item is selected, the message’s id (from
the message-id header) is copied to the clipboard and
can be pasted into other applications. Many applications
will recognize this as a url that can be requested,
prompting Mail to open the corresponding message.
Show/Hide MailTags Panel (View Menu)

This menu item provides an alternate way of showing
and hiding the tags panel.
Tagging by using MailTags Rule Actions

Tags can also be set as result of rule actions. See the
section on MailTags Rules for more information.
Finding Your Tagged Messages
Having message tags is limited if there is no way to

search and find the messages with this tagged data.
There are several ways of viewing tags and finding
messages with specific tags. The first is to activate the
MailTags columns and colors in Mail’s list view and to
visually scan for tags. The second is by using Mail’s
Search field to narrow or limit a search to only tags. The
last is to create Smart Mailboxes based on MailTags
criteria. This section will explain these three ways of
finding tagged messages.
List View
MailTags adds extra columns to Mail’s list view in the

message viewer. Activate these columns via the
Columns submenu of the View menu to see your tag
data. Alternatively, MailTags columns can be displayed
or hidden by control-clicking the column headers.
Reposition columns by dragging the column headers.
And, sort by MailTags columns by clicking on the
respective column headers.
MailTags Column
The Mailtags column displays a blue tag icon when
messages have tagged data. The icon turns red
when the tag data for IMAP messages has not been
saved to the IMAP server. Control clicking the message
and selecting “Save Tags To IMAP” or clicking the “IMAP
Save” button in the MailTags panel will save these tags
to the server.
Keyword Column
All the keywords will be displayed in this column in a
comma-separated list.
Deadline Column
The displayed deadline is the earliest valid or incomplete
due date for the message. For example, if a message
has three to dos, with the first having a due date of June
1, the second a due date of May 30, and the third a due
date of May 25, then May 25 will be displayed. When
this third task is marked complete, then May 30 will be

displayed.
Status Column
MailTags also adds a contextual menu to the status
column (the column showing unread, reply and
forwarded status). When clicking this column with the ctrl
key down (or right clicking), you will be able to view the
reply or the originating messages if this is a reply. The
originating message is the message you sent and your
correspondent replied to.
Thread Headers
When you have View Message threads turned on, the
“Thread Header “message will show all projects and
keywords for all messages in the thread. For Deadline, it
will show the earliest valid and incomplete due date for
all messages in the thread.
Colors in List View

Colors provide an immediate way to draw your attention
to important items. MailTags extends the way that
messages can be colored in mail by associating colors
with various tags. Unlike Mail’s message colors, these
colors are dynamic: change a tag’s color, and the color
of any associated message will also change. Colors and
their importance are set in MailTags’ preferences.
Project Colors
Each project can be assigned a color. This color is used
when messages are tagged with the project’s name.
Priority Colors
Each level of priority is assigned with a different color.
Due Date Colors

The Due Date colors are time dependent. As the due
date approaches, the color will gradually darken to the
color set in MailTags’ preferences. For example, if the
due date color is vibrant yellow, the message will appear
pale yellow three days prior, medium yellow two days
prior, saturated yellow the day before, and vibrant the
day of. If the due date is past, the past due color is used.
Color Priority
With several determiners of color, it is necessary to
specify what actual color is used. The Color Priority
preference controls this. Drag the color source to the
order of priority. The color source at the top gets highest
priority. For example, if the color priority is Due Date,
Project, Priority and Message color, then the Project
color will only be used if a Due Date color does not
apply.
Searches
MailTags augments Mail’s built in search functions and
Smart Mailboxes to provide fast, easy ways of accessing
all of your tagged email. When searching for a term in
the Mail Search field, Mail will add a “search bar” to help
narrow the search. With MailTags installed, this search
bar will now have four extra options: Dialog, Keywords,
Project, and Notes. Dialog is a quick way to see dialogs
(To and From) with a specific person or email, similar to
GMail’s “Conversation” feature. The remaining three
items (Keywords, Project, and Notes) will search the
indicated tag field for the search term. Additionally, the
Entire Message option adds keywords, projects, and
notes tags as search criteria.
Boolean Searches
MailTags also extends the search field to handle simple,
logical searches for keywords and projects. If keywords
are separated with the & (AND) operator, Mail will find
those messages with both keywords. If keywords and
projects are separated with the | (OR) operator, Mail will
find those messages tagged with either.
MailTags currently does not provide ad hoc searches for

due date, priority or iCal items.
Smart Mailboxes
Smart Mailboxes add significant power to Mail 2.1 for

organizing messages in flexible ways. MailTags 2.0 adds
even more power to Smart Mailboxes by including
MailTags’ data as criteria for finding messages. By
configuring Smart Mailboxes with both “Any” and “All”
logic, Mail’s built-in criteria are combined with MailTags’
criteria.
MailTags Keywords, MailTags Project

This criterion will find messages that contain, do not
contain, are equal to, or not equal to particular keywords
or project. For example, you can create a mailbox that
lists all the messages that have been tagged with the
“@followup” keyword.
MailTags Priority
This criterion will show messages equal to, not equal to,
less than or greater than a particular priority.
MailTags Deadline
The MailTags’ Deadline criterion is useful for creating
tickler mailboxes, which contain messages that need to
be handled by a specific date.
Qualifiers include “within __ days” showing messages

between today and a specified number of days into the
future. A second useful qualifier is “past due,” showing
all messages whose Deadlines are prior to today.
MailTags will search the deadline date tag and all the
due dates of iCal items in determining which messages
to include. If, for example, a message has three iCal to
dos, and only one of the to dos has a due date in the
specified time, the message will appear in the smart
mailbox.
For due dates in iCal To Do items, MailTags will include

the message even if all the to dos have been marked as
completed. Use this criterion in combination with the “To
Do is Incomplete” criterion to find messages that have
both incomplete tasks and a due date.
MailTags Note
This criterion will find messages with notes that include
or do not include the phrase or word entered into the
MailTags Note rule field.
Message Has To Do
Message Has No To Do
To Do is Incomplete
To Do is Complete
These four criteria will find messages based on the
status of associated To Do items. If a message has
multiple To Do items, MailTags determines
completeness according to the maximum inclusion
principle. That is, it will include the message if any To
Dos are incomplete in the first case and if all to do’s are
complete in the second.
Note: MailTags To Do items are synchronized with iCal

when messages are viewed. If To Do items are changed
in iCal, messages found by Smart Mailboxes will reflect
the older status until the message is viewed in Mail.
IMAP Tags are/are not saved to server.

This criterion is useful if tags are not automatically saved
to the server (a default in the preferences) Set “IMAP
Tags” to “are not saved to server” to create a smart
mailbox of messages that need to be saved if these tags
are to be available to other MailTags’ clients.
MailTags and Mail Rules
MailTags extends Mail’s built in rule criteria and actions.

Tags can be added automatically upon receiving
messages or can be managed using indev’s Mail Act-on
plug in. Most of MailTags’ metadata can be set or altered
using the following MailTags actions. iCal Events and To
Dos, however, cannot be automatically set due to their
complexity. Though most of the actions are self-
explanatory, the following details are provided.
The Clear All MailTags action will remove all existing

tags from the message. If the message has iCal To Do
items or events, this action will both remove these from
the message, and delete these items from iCal.
The Set MailTags Keyword action will add or remove

the specified keyword from a message’s keywords list. If
the keyword does not exist in the list, removing it will
have no effect. The Clear All MailTags Keywords
action will only remove all keywords from the message
but will not remove any other tags.
The Set MailTags Project and Set MailTags Priority

actions will set the respective tag to the value selected.
The Set Deadline action will turn off a deadline or set it

to a specific date. The Adjust Deadline action will move
a deadline relative to an existing deadline or relative to
today. If a message does not have a deadline, this
action will have no effect.
The Set MailTags Notes action will append, prepend or

replace the current note for a message with the text of
the action. Additionally, the action will replace all
occurrences of the string “$date” with the current date.
The Accept Tags in Headers/Reject Tags in Headers

actions will automatically accept or reject proposed tags
that a sender might have included in the message. This
action can increase efficiency when sharing tags within a
small workgroup that uses MailTags.
MailTags Preferences
MailTags adds an extra preference panel to Mail’s
preferences in which the default behaviors are set. To
access this, open Mail’s preferences and MailTags’
preferences will appear on the right in the list of
preferences at the top.
If MailTags’ preferences are not visible, click the >>

image that indicates there are more preferences and
select MailTags.
Use the Register tab to check the MailTags’ version

number and to register MailTags.
After purchasing MailTags from our online Kagi Store,

you will receive an email with the e-mail used to register
MailTags and your registration code. Enter this
information in the fields provided and click the register
button. If there are any problems with your registration
information, email us at info@indev.ca.
Defaults related to the MailTags interface are found in

the Panel Tab.
The Show/Hide Tags Panel options set defaults for the

visibility of the MailTags panel. If Show is automatic, the
panel will reveal itself if there are any tags present. If
Hide is automatic, the panel will hide itself when there
are no tags present.
If the Show MailTags Icon in message window option

is off, the tag will not appear in the upper right of the
message. You can still show and hide the panel by
using the “Show MailTags Panel” item in the View menu
or using the “Show MailTags” in the toolbar (customize
tool bar to add this to the toolbar)
The Always expand options allow you to select which of

the sections in the tags panel will be open when you
view tags. If a second has a set tag, it will be displayed
regardless of these settings.
Defaults related to how to handle tags on incoming and

outgoing messages are found in the Messages tab.
Copy tags from originating message when receiving

replies.
When this option is selected, MailTags will look for an
“In-Reply-To:” header on incoming mail. If it finds one, it
will look for that originating message in your Mail Library.
If the originating message exists and it has tags (project,
keyword, priority, or notes) it will add those tags to the
incoming message before processing rules. Note that it
will not use these newly adopted tags in determining
whether a rule should be processed on the message.
The Outgoing Messages option determines default

settings when composing new messages.
Re-index Tags
If smart mailboxes do not include expected messages
that have been tagged, these messages might not have
been indexed. Click this button to re-index all MailTags’
data with Spotlight. If this does not resolve this issue,
consult the troubleshooting section of this manual.
The IMAP tab controls settings related to how tags are

saved to IMAP servers.
The IMAP Client Name is a label assigned for each

computer that shares one or more IMAP accounts. This
name is used to keep track of which computer has seen
the tags on an IMAP message. This label should be
unique on each computer.
The Automatically save tags to IMAP server setting is

by default on. On slow or intermittent IMAP connections,
MailTags may experience performance issues and other
difficulties when saving tagged messages to the server.
Messages that have not been saved to the server will
have their tags saved with the cached messages on the
computer, but these tags will not be available to other
computers that share the IMAP account. Additionally,
these messages will display the “IMAP Save” button
within the MailTags Panel and be identified in the list
view with a red tag icon when the MailTags column is
displayed.
The Store tag data as clear text header setting will

save the tag data as human readable JSON (Javascript
Object Notation) string for the X-MailTags header.
Additionally, keywords and projects will be stored in X-
keywords and X-Projects headers. This can improve
interoperability between MailTags and other Mail Clients.
The Keywords and Projects tab allows the

management of keywords and projects.
Keywords and projects can be added, removed,

renamed, and reordered. To rename, simply double click
on the keyword or project name to highlight it, then type
the new name. To reorder, drag the keyword or project
into the desired position.
Changing the color associated with projects will

automatically change the colors of the messages tagged
with the project name.
Removing or renaming keywords and projects in these

lists will not affect messages already tagged. To change
tags on existing messages, find those messages,
remove the old tag and add the new tag using either the
contextual menu in list view or the MailTags panel.
Additionally, keywords and tags can be imported and

exported for backup or to transfer to a different
computer.
When the “Automatically add new keywords to preferred

list” option selected, new keywords not on the list will be
added when they are entered in the keyword field on the
MailTags panel.
The Color tab controls the colors a message will have in

the list view.
Color Priority determines which tag controls the color of

the message in list view. The tags at the top of the list
are considered more important than the tags below
them. Using the example in the screenshot above, if
DueDate (deadlines and To Do due dates) is set and the
color is not white, then it is used first. If DueDate is not
set, then MailTags checks Priority, then Message Color
(as set by the color picker or rule), and, finally, Project to
determine which color is assigned.
The Due Date colors indicate the color for a message

when due today or when past due. As the message
approaches the due date, it will gradually change color
over four days and end at the chosen color.
The Calendar tab controls how MailTags interacts with

iCal for synchronizing To Do and Event items.
In order for MailTags to send items to iCal or to update

changes from iCal, iCal must be open and running.
Accessing MailTags via AppleScript

MailTags also extends Mail’s Applescript ability, allowing
MailTags data to be retrieved and set from other
applications.
When creating an applescript, the using terms from

application “MailTagsScriptingSupport” block must
be added to the code.
For example, the following script will retrieve the

keywords for the first 20 messages from the inbox of my
first account.
tell application "Mail"

activate
using terms from application "MailTagsScriptingSupport"
keywords of messages 1 thru 20 of mailbox "inbox" of account 1
end using terms from
end tell
MailTagsScriptingSupport is a helper application that

augments the dictionary for Mail. MailTags will start this
application when Mail launches and quit it when Mail
quits.
MailTagsScripting support adds the following terms to

Mail Applescript abilities.
Keywords (List)
Project (Unicode Text)
Priority (Integer)
Due Date (Date)
Note (Unicode Text)
iCal events (List, R/O)
Returns a list of the UUIDs of the events in iCal.
ICal todos (List, R/O)
Returns a list of the UUIDs of the to dos in iCal.
Note, any MailTags data added to IMAP messages will

update with the server immediately. Because updating a
message replaces the original message with a new one,
the same message reference cannot be used for future
actions. To work around this, retrieve the message id via
apple script, make the changes and then retrieve the
new message by getting the message which matches
the message id.
To update multiple tags, retrieve the properties of a

record, make the changes to this record, and then set
the properties of the message to the altered record.
Frequently Asked Questions

Is my data safe in MailTags 2.0?
indev takes data integrity very seriously. MailTags has
undergone extended beta period to ensure that it is
reliable and stable. Data in MailTags is stored in each
message’s cache file. IMAP messages also store data in
the headers of each message. As with any valuable
data, make and maintain regular backups.
What happens when Mail rebuilds a mailbox?

MailTags will read the data prior to the rebuild and then
write the data back to the new cache files while
rebuilding a mailbox. The tag data is preserved during
this process.
Will MailTags 2.0 work on my IMAP server?

MailTags has been tested on numerous IMAP servers,
including Dovecot servers, Eudora Internet Mail Servers,
Courier IMAP servers, MS Exchange servers and
FirstClass IMAP servers. To the best of our knowledge,
MailTags works with all IMAP servers, even those that
do not support IMAP permanent flags.
How do MailTags 2.0 differ from IMAP permanent

flags?
Many IMAP servers have the ability to apply keywords
(or flags) to messages. These flags work differently than
MailTags in several ways. First and foremost, MailTags
will write its data to the headers of the message. While
this involves more interaction with the server, indev
believes that most messages are small enough and
most connections with IMAP servers are fast enough to
minimize performance issues. By having data in the
headers, MailTags can store and organize data much
better, separating keywords from projects, allowing for
dates, notes and keywords that include Unicode text.
Will my Smart Mailboxes work even though I may

have tagged my message on another computer?
When Mail opens a Mailbox on the IMAP server, it will
check to see if there are any tag updates to messages.
If there are updates, MailTags will download the new
version of the message and index the data with
Spotlight. Once this is done, MailTags will be able to find
the message in searches and smart mailboxes.
Is MailTags 2.0 compatible with other Mail.app

Plugins?
MailTags should be compatible with most other Mail
plugins. Compatibility problems, however, might arise. If
you think there is a problem between MailTags and
another plug-in, please contact both indev and the other
plugin author. Chances are, one of us can fix this

quickly.
Is MailTags 2.0 compatible with application ….?

MailTags doesn’t have any direct compatibility with other
applications. However, because MailTags extends Mail’s
Applescript capabilities, MailTags’ data can be accessed
and set from other applications. Additionally, MailTags
uses standard ways of storing data in the cache files,
spotlight indices, and headers. Several applications will
recognize MailTags’ data for archival or organizational
purposes. The following is a list of applications known to
support MailTags 2.0 as of its final release.
Mail Archival Systems

MailSteward, (http://www.mailsteward.com/) powerful
email archiving software that also archives tags.
Task Managers/Organizers
iGTD (http://bargiel.home.pl/iGTD/index.html) reads
keyword data when sending a message from Mail
to iGTD.
Actiontastic (www.kaboomerang.com) detects
references to Mail messages by synchronizing
with iCal.
Information Managers
Devon Think Pro Office (http://www.devon-
technologies.com) adds keywords and projects to
an items comment field when importing email
message from Mail.
Eagle Filer (http://c-command.com) reads keywords
when importing email messages from Mail.
Spotlight/Search Utilities
Tag Bot (http://bigrobotsoftware.com/) reads
keywords from messages and sets a matching
keyword list.
Google Desktop for the Mac
(http://desktop.google.com/mac) indexes
MailTags’ data
Will MailTags 2.0 work with other Mail Clients?

MailTags is not available for other Macintosh or
Window’s mail clients. Nor are there immediate plans to
bring MailTags to a different client. It is possible to set
MailTags to save keywords, projects and its data as
clear text for use of other mail clients. For example,
Thunderbird can create a saved search on the X-project
header. As messages are tagged by MailTags, they will
be included in Thunderbird’s saved search folder.
Additionally, if a mail client or mail processor is able to

alter headers, (such as Proc Mail), it is possible to set
tags that MailTags will read.
Is MailTags 2.0 compatible with Leopard?

Currently, MailTags 2.0 is not compatible with Leopard.
indev will release a Leopard compatible version when or
shortly after Leopard ships.
Will future updates to Mail break MailTags 2.0?

MailTags plugs into an application that is controlled by
Apple. Apple might release a system update that breaks
some of MailTags’ functionality. In such a case, indev
will make every effort to make sure a fix is released at
the same time as or shortly after any update that
introduces problems.
Leopard Mail 3.0 promises notes and to do items.

What does MailTags give me that Leopard does not?
Mailtags provides a much more comprehensive system
for organizing email. While Leopard provides notes,
MailTags provides notes, keywords, project, deadlines,
priorities and iCal events. Additionally, MailTags
integrates with Smart Mailboxes and Rules in a more
significant way. indev anticipates that MailTags’
functionality will not be superceded by Leopard. Rather,
MailTags will be an excellent addition to Mail 3.0 in
Leopard.
What about MailTags 1.2.2?

indev plans to update several features in MailTags 1.2.2
and release it as freeware MailTags 2.0 lite.
Credits
MailTags 2.0 was designed and developed by Scott Morrison.
JSON support © 2006 by Blake Seely

“iCal Calendar” code by Matt Gemmell
Special thanks to Jonathan Paisley for code contributions and his outstanding
OCDisasm application.
Thanks to Beta Testers who endlessly provided bugs, suggestions, and support:
Tim Gaden, Adrian Smith, Alan Schmitt, Andre Bonhote, Vicky Stanton,
David Levy, Enrico Franconi, Friedrich Vosberg, Gunnar Bjornsson,Guido
Hucking, James McConnell, Jeffrey Frabutt, Jeremy Bernstein, John Crosby
John Rowe, Ulrich Kortenkamp, Ken Young, David Chartier, Matthew Shields,
Neil Lee, Rob Burns, Robert Howard, Russell Finn, Rui Carmo, Runar Dankel,
Glenn Henshaw, Tony Stinson, Bill Northlich, William Reising, Zach Rosen,
Legal Information
LICENSE AGREEMENT
(MailTags 2.0 Mail Plugin)
THIS IS A LEGAL AGREEMENT between you (either an individual or an entity) and Indev Software, Inc.
("Indev"). By clicking installing the software, you are agreeing to be bound by the terms and conditions of
this License Agreement. If you do not agree to the terms and conditions of this License Agreement, do not
install the software.
1. Grant of Limited License.
Indev grants to you the non-exclusive right to use Indev software program, MailTags 2.0 (the "Software").
2. Copyright.
The Software is owned by Indev and is protected by Canadian copyright laws and by international treaty
provisions. You should therefore treat the Software like any other copyrighted material (such as for example,
books or musical recordings). Among other things, copyright laws prohibit you from making derivative works of
the Software. You may, however, make copies of the Software, provided that you not copy the Registration Key
(see Section 3(a) below).
3. Other Restrictions.
(a) You may register your copy of the Software by purchasing a Registration Key at http://
http://store.indev.ca. The Registration Key will enable full usage of the Software beyond the trial period. You
may not copy the Registration Key.
(b) You may modify, reverse-engineer, decompile, or disassemble the Software. However, you may not do so
for the purpose of disabling the feature of the Software that enforces the trial period of your copy of the Software
(i.e. circumventing the Registration Key system) or for the purpose of circumventing any of the terms of this
License Agreement or any other provision of law.
(c) You may not claim that the Software is yours, and you may not use the name Indev to endorse or
promote products derived from the Software without prior written permission.
(d) You must use the Software at all times in a manner that is consistent with the software licenses granted to
you by other companies that have provided software for your computer. For example, MailTags 2.0 is
designed to be used with the Mac OS X operating system, and so you may not use MailTags 2.0 in a
manner inconsistent with the Mac OS X license agreement between you and Apple Computer, Inc.
4. Disclaimer of Warranties and Limitation of Liability.
THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS," WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND. INDEV FURTHER
DISCLAIMS ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES
OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NONINFRINGEMENT. THE ENTIRE
RISK ARISING OUT OF THE USE OR PERFORMANCE OF THE SOFTWARE REMAINS WITH YOU. SHOULD
THE SOFTWARE PROVE DEFECTIVE, YOU (AND INDEV) ASSUME THE ENTIRE COST OF ALL
NECESSARY SERVICING OR REPAIR.
IN NO EVENT SHALL INDEV OR ANYONE ELSE INVOLVED IN THE CREATION, PRODUCTION,
MARKETING, DISTRIBUTION, OR DELIVERY OF THE SOFTWARE, BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES
WHATSOEVER; INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF BUSINESS PROFITS, FOR
BUSINESS INTERRUPTION, FOR LOSS OF BUSINESS INFORMATION, OR FOR OTHER MONETARY LOSS,
ARISING OUT OF THE USE OF THE SOFTWARE OR THE INABILITY TO USE THE SOFTWARE, EVEN IF YOU
HAVE BEEN NOTIFIED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.
IN NO EVENT SHALL INDEV BE LIABLE FOR ANY SPECIAL, INDIRECT, OR CONSEQUENTIAL
DAMAGES, OR FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER, WHETHER IN A CONTRACT ACTION, NEGLIGENCE
OR OTHER TORT ACTION, OR OTHER CLAIM OR ACTION, ARISING OUT OF, OR IN CONNECTION WITH,
THE USE OR PERFORMANCE OF THE SOFTWARE OR DOCUMENTS AND OTHER INFORMATION
PROVIDED TO YOU BY INDEV, OR IN THE PROVISION OF, OR FAILURE TO PROVIDE,
SERVICES OR INFORMATION.
Because some states of the United States and some countries do not allow the exclusion or limitation of the
liability for consequential or incidental damages, the above disclaimer may not apply to you. Any warranties
that by law survive the foregoing disclaimers shall terminate ninety (90) days from the date you downloaded or
otherwise received the Software.
5. Your Warranty to Indev.
You warrant that all individuals having access to the Software will observe and perform all the terms and
conditions of this License Agreement. You shall, at your own expense, promptly enforce the restrictions in this
License Agreement against any person who gains access to your copy of the Software (i.e. the copy you
download upon agreeing to this License Agreement or any other copy you have made from that copy) with your
permission or while your employee and who violates such restrictions, by instituting and diligently pursuing all
legal and equitable remedies against him or her. You agree to immediately notify Indev in writing of any misuse,
misappropriation or unauthorized disclosure, display or copying of the Software that may come to your
attention.
6. Terms of Service.
When you download the Software, Indev servers will automatically log certain non-personal information from your
computer, information such as your IP address. If you decide you wish to purchase a Registration Key, we
may require that you provide us with certain billing information that is personal to you ("Personal Information"). That
Personal information includes your name, address and email. After we have received your payment from Pay
Pal or Kagi, we save only the transaction id. Indev does not keep any credit card information whatsoever.
To the extent Indev may access Personal Information, Indev will not transmit Personal Information voluntarily to any
third party without your express consent. Your Personal Information remains in your full control.
Indev may, on occasion, use your IP address to help diagnose problems with our server and to administer its
website. Indev may provide aggregate statistics about our customers, traffic patterns, and related site information
to reputable third-party vendors. In this process, the information that Indev collects remains anonymous to third
parties. Indev may derive general information from your Personal Information and Indev web site usage. Indev will
not voluntarily disclose, sell or trade your Personal Information to any third party without your consent.
7. Export Control Laws.
You agree to comply with all laws, rules and regulations applicable to the export of the Software. Specifically,
you shall not export, re-export or transship the Software, or the direct product thereof, in violation of any
Canadian laws and regulations which may from time to time be applicable. By downloading or using the
Software, you are agreeing to the foregoing.
8. Injunctive Relief.
Because of the unique nature of the Software, you understand and agree that Indev will suffer irreparable injury in
the event you fail to comply with any of the terms of paragraph 3 of this License Agreement and that monetary
damages may be inadequate to compensate Indev for such breach. Accordingly, you agree that Indev will, in
addition to any other remedies available to it at law or in equity, be entitled to injunctive relief, without posting a
bond, to enforce the terms of this Agreement.
9. Termination.
You may terminate this Agreement at any time. Indev may immediately terminate this License Agreement if you
breach any representation, warranty, agreement or obligation contained or referred to in this License
Agreement. Upon termination, you must dispose of the Software and all copies or versions of the Software by
destroying the Software. The provisions of Sections 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 10 of this License Agreement shall
survive termination of this Agreement.
10. Miscellaneous.
If any litigation is brought to enforce this License Agreement, or arises out of this License Agreement, the
prevailing party shall be awarded its reasonable attorneys' fees together with expenses and costs incurred in
such litigation. This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the Province of Ontario, but not including the
1980 United Nations Convention on Contracts for International Sale of Goods. Venue for any action under this
Agreement shall be in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. You consent to the personal jurisdiction of the courts of
such venue. This License Agreement is the complete agreement between Indev and you and supersedes all
prior agreements, oral or written, with respect to the subject matter hereof.
COPYRIGHT NOTICE. Copyright (c) 2006-2007 Indev Software Inc., 2342 Wilson Avenue, Montreal, Quebec, H4A 2T3.
All rights reserved. Any rights not expressly granted in this License Agreement are reserved.

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MailTags 2.

indev Software inc.

MailTags 2.0 is the premium enhancement for Apple’s

Purchasing MailTags 2.0

For large volume, institutional, non-profit and educational

Installation and Configuration

The MailTags installer will configure Mail for using third

Without this setting, MailTags will neither be able to

For first-time users, a number of suggested keywords

To manually uninstall MailTags, remove the

Getting Started with MailTags

The MailTags interface is designed to be inconspicuous,

MailTags adds a small tag icon to the top right corner

Clicking on this tag will show and hide the MailTags

MailTags actions in the

Tagging Your Messages

The MailTags panel is the main interface for setting and

Messages can also be tagged via the Mail’s Message

The panel is organized into four sections: Tags,

Tags Section Flag Checkbox

Alternately, select a keyword from the list of preferred

To set a deadline date, click the checkbox to the left of

To Dos and Events Section

New Event items are created automatically in iCal via

Editing iCal items is done in popup HUDs (Heads Up

Close HUD windows either with the escape key or with

Show as Subject Check Box

Tagging Outgoing Messages

When composing a message, the MailTags panel

The Tag Original option will be available if the current

Tagging using MailTags Menus

Add MailTags Keywords >

Remove MailTags Keywords >

Set MailTags Keywords…

Set MailTags Project >

Set MailTags Priority >

This menu sets the priority for the selected messages.

Set MailTags Deadline…

Set MailTags Note…

Clear All MailTags

Copy / Paste MailTags (Edit Menu)

Copy Message URL (Edit Menu)

Show/Hide MailTags Panel (View Menu)

Tagging by using MailTags Rule Actions

Finding Your Tagged Messages

Having message tags is limited if there is no way to

MailTags adds extra columns to Mail’s list view in the

this third task is marked complete, then May 30 will be

Colors in List View

Due Date Colors

MailTags currently does not provide ad hoc searches for

Smart Mailboxes add significant power to Mail 2.1 for

MailTags Keywords, MailTags Project

Qualifiers include “within __ days” showing messages

For due dates in iCal To Do items, MailTags will include

Note: MailTags To Do items are synchronized with iCal

IMAP Tags are/are not saved to server.

MailTags and Mail Rules

MailTags extends Mail’s built in rule criteria and actions.

The Clear All MailTags action will remove all existing

The Set MailTags Keyword action will add or remove

The Set MailTags Project and Set MailTags Priority

The Set Deadline action will turn off a deadline or set it