Font settings in Thunderbird
UNDER CONSTRUCTION... (please don't categorize this page yet)
This article provides an overview of the various font/character settings in Thunderbird, which are often a source of confusion for new users. Broadly speaking, font settings can apply to three things in Thunderbird: message display, message composition, and the Thunderbird user-interface. (This article does not cover other aspects of message display and composition, such as text wrapping, background colors or images.)
Basic terminology
First of all, a few basic terms/concepts related to font settings:
- Text format: plain text vs. HTML
- Character width/spacing: proportional vs. monospace, aka variable width vs. fixed width (and yes, TB uses both sets of terms [1])
- Font style: serif vs. sans-serif
- Font size: pixels vs. small-medium-large (in HTML options; note the absence of points)
- Character encoding (both for display and composition)
Message display
This refers to what messages look like when you view them.
Settings via the Options/Preferences dialog
Accessed via "Tools -> Options -> Display". With just one exception, none of these settings affect outgoing messages. (The exception: character encoding for outgoing mail, as explained below [when it's written].)
- Format: plain text and HTML options
- Wrapping problems in Compose window if you use a variable width font such as Verdana for your standard monospace (fixed width) font [2]
- Character encoding (for message display, labelled "Incoming")
- Proportional and monospace (i.e., same as variable width and fixed width)
- Switching between Serif and Sans-serif for Proportional display seems to be broken in 1.5 (works only when composing), but maybe that's only me [3]
Other message display settings
- text size zoom (via menu or keyboard)
- "View -> Message Body As -> Original HTML/Simple HTML/Plain Text"
- Signature display color: normally shown in gray
Message composition
This refers to the font/character settings that you use in messages that you compose and send to others.
Setting your standard preferences
- For each account, do you normally want to compose in HTML or plain-text?
- Your standard HTML font settings, for when you do compose in HTML mode, via the "HTML Options" button:
- Font: Note that "Variable width" actually doesn't do anything to the text in the message body (leaves the font unspecified); "Fixed width" encloses the selected text in <tt> tags.
- Size: The use of small-medium-large for font sizes. Why not "absolute" size like points instead? (frequent Q)
- Color: if you must...
- Outgoing character encoding: as noted above, this is accessed via "Tools -> Options -> Display".
- "Send Options" for text format (if you compose in HTML mode it doesn't mean you have to send in HTML)
Per-message settings
Things you can change on the fly when composing, to override your standard font preferences.
- Switch HTML/plain-text on a per-message basis
- Font, in Compose window. As noted above, "Variable width" actually doesn't do anything to the text in the message body (leaves the font unspecified); "Fixed width" encloses the selected text in <tt> tags.
- Character encoding (via "Options -> Character Encoding")
- sigs (take this out?)
Thunderbird user-interface
This refers to the font settings that are used in the menus, folder pane, message-list pane, and other parts of the Thunderbird user-interface.
Related articles
- Plain text e-mail
- Default HTML font for new messages
- some of the articles in Visual customizations
External links
Wikipedia articles:
