Integrated Email
Mac Tip #300/01-August-2007

I have a confession to make: I don’t actually use Apple’s Mail.app, even though the recent series of Tips was about that application.

Even so, sometimes other software requires us to use Mail.app.

Suppose you grab a quick photo using the built-in iSight camera on your Mac. Photo Booth provides a Toolbar button to email that photo. (See Picture yourself in Photo Booth, Mac Tip #282/28-March-2007)

The Photo Booth window.

But when you select a photo and click the Email button it’s Apple’s Mail.app that pops open. There is nowhere to set Photo Booth to use any other email application.

It’s a similar story in Apple’s iCal: set an email alarm to remind you of an event and again, it’s Mail.app that will be used. And again, there’s nowhere to change that setting.

Using an email alert in iCal.

This means it’s a good idea to set up Mail.app to send mail, even if you don’t usually use it. Tip #296/04-July-2007 Configure Email Account Settings explains how.

Fortunately both iMovie and iPhoto allow you to choose your email application.

In iMovie go to the Share menu and select Email. Choose your email application from the Send email using: popup.

In iPhoto go to Preferences — General and select an email application from the Email photos using: popup.

Mail.app Preferences.

Other programs, such as Address Book, use the default email application. Set the default email application in Mail.app’s Preferences — General tab.

See Newbies Guide to Apple’s Address Book for some extra information about how to send an email from the Address Book.