HOWTO: Enable Zimbra filtered message folders on Blackberry w/ BES service

Thanks to the folks at my IT helpdesk for this tip on how to enable your BB to get mail from within Zimbra folders:

1. Go to your Messages folder, hit menu key and select Options.
2. Go to Email Settings. Hit menu button, select Folder Redirection.
3. You will see your mailbox which can be expanded. Expand your inbox and select the folders you want to be sync'd (on my device they're blue instead of grey). Hit menu button, select Save.

Any NEW messages routed to those folders will now be located in the folders on the device as well. As new messages, they'll appear in your Messages folder along with SMSs, MMSs, BBIMs, and other email. Once read, they'll disappear into the appropriate folder(s).

E-Fail

It's taken a while, but I've managed to get some metrics for how much mail I actually process.

Here's my inbox 3 weeks ago before I went on vacation for a week, then went without VPN access for a few days. The xkcd strip is particularly appropos.

Here's that same inbox today, sporting a newer version of Thunderbird. Note the pileup of over 1,000 emails in three weeks, in just ONE of the mailing list filter/folders I monitor.

So, other than filtering by sender & subject, automatically marking my own mailing list replies read, colourizing emails to make the more important ones stand out, and using "Show Unread Threads" view filtering ... what else can one do to manage the deluge?

Does anyone have any good, realistic strategies for dealing with 1000s of emails a month?

Oops, I'll read it again!

Apparently at some point in the last month or so I set a filter to mark all inbound mail from Eclipse Bugzilla as already read. If I've been completely ignoring your comments in Bugzilla, I do apologize. Please ping me via those bugs - I've fixed the filter, so I'll now see your comment as unread and will respond.

I also discovered yesterday that since January about 80 emails to my Red Hat address had been incorrectly marked as Junk. I am now tracking that box too, just in case more gets incorrectly categorized.

On the plus side, this gives me an opportunity to use a Children of Bodom cover tune, in keeping with Britney Month. :)

Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah
Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah



I think I did it again
I made you believe
I just didn't care
Oh baby
It might seem like a slight
But it doesn't mean that I'm serious
'Cause to misfile my email
That is just atypically me
Oh baby, baby

Oops! ...I did it again
I filtered your mail,
Ignored and prescreened
Oh baby, baby
Oops! ...Hundreds of notes a day
Gotta prioritize
With filters and labels

You see my problem is this
I'm reading away
'Bout UK lottos, that do not exist
I cry, four one nine, yeah
"Don't you see I'm a prince, from Nigeria!"
But to miss so much email
That is just atypically me
Baby, oh

Oops! ...I did it again
I filtered your mail,
Got lost in the trash
Oh baby, baby
Oops! ...Bayes thought that you were spam
Not sent here as pure ham
No, not so innocent

Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah
Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah

Oops! ...I filed it away from my view
Lost in a gig of email
Oops! ...I've fixed the filter that was screwed
Mistake was innocent

Britney Spears - Oops! ...I Did It Again