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Posted by Christin on October 8, 2012

Hi Mailbird fans! Sorry for the silence, as we were mega busy with the 2012 Sparxup startup competition. We are happy to announce that we are a 2012 productivity Sparxup winner! Our team could not be more proud to receive an awesome productivity trophy, as well as recognition for all the hard work in our continued, relentless pursuit of improving online communication through productivity. Go Mailbird! Indonesia is the new mecca for startups in the tech industry, as well as a optimal location for opportunity and entrepreneurs to get started. With the Mailbird hub located in Bali and our co-founders being rooted in Bandung and Jakarta, Indonesia is a remarkable place in emerging success for innovative tech development. There is a ton of talent here, and Mailbird is proud to be part of the rapid growth of creative tech projects in this great country.  We are ready to take the world by storm, so Mailbird can be a major contributor to economic growth in Indonesia. There were many inspiring startups at the annual Sparxup event, amazing sponsors like blibli.com, Microsoft, infinyscloud.com, Freelancer, Acer, and many more. Willix Halim, vice president of Freelancer delivered a fantastic presentation focused on products and services that were once done manually, to the drastic shift by way of software automation. All in the name of increasing efficiency and growth across businesses worldwide. We even received a nice “shout out” from Mr. Halim naming Mailbird as one of the many world class startups he saw on Sparxup Demo day.…

Posted by Christin on September 5, 2012

There is a reason why there aren’t a ton of people trying to develop new email applications. It’s because it is quite difficult! With all the technical components, coding, testing, and ensuring you have a stable and reliable email engine that is compatible with multiple versions of a single operating system…well we could go on. Despite the heavy workload, late nights, and continuous coffee recharges, we just cannot stop! Our team is so excited to give email a fresh face that works for you. You don’t have to settle for what is out there, so we hope to offer a new flavor to the world of email. It’s amazing how much more input and complexity goes into stripping something down, so that an intricate system feels much more simple and easy for users. The documentary “Objectified” by Gary Hustwit taps into the many forms of design. When building a super cool software application, like Mailbird (*wink), there is a lot to learn about human to computer interaction, or interaction design associated with software development. Chief of Design, Jonathan Ive of Apple is a meticulous man who understands that “creating simplicity isn’t simple.” Packing this inspiration in our Mailbird backpack as we continue on our adventure. There are several obstacles that challenge us each day. However, we fully support the notion that the creation of better email will never stop. This is why we decided to include others in the coding community who share the passion for improving everyday tools. Even though we have…

Posted by Christin on August 26, 2012

Ever get into the loop of constantly checking distracting emails when your time should be focused on productivity? Do you feel like you have a tendency to develop ADHD when you are online or checking email? Well you are not alone, because a case study conducted by Loughborough University in the U.K. unveiled that 70% of arriving emails are reacted to within 6 seconds. It took an average employee 64 seconds to resume work focus after the email interruption. When you think of how many emails you receive in a given day, how much of a work deterrent is email for you? Of course some of us prefer to have email notifications galore lighting up our computer screen, like the Las Vegas strip. Well, Mailbird can give you that too. However, this post is for those of you who prefer a quieter email application. Yes, Mailbird can also turn down the volume, so you can stay focused on work. Remember long long ago when AOL reigned the email world with the simple sound clip “You’ve Got Mail!”. It even inspired a sappy romantic film with Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks. When you heard that sound, it was exciting, like receiving a package in the mail that you could not wait to open. Now a days, the heavier our email usage becomes and the more we use email in our day to day activities, building relationships and taking things to action, that “You’ve Got Mail!” novelty died a little. In developing Mailbird, we realized that there is no right or…

Posted by Christin on August 12, 2012

There will always be die hard fans of a product who will support it no matter what. Then there are those who curse the name of products they find the smallest disappointment in, taking “having a strong opinion” to the next level. With email processes, users have different needs. Some want simple email without tons of “distracting” add-ons, while others like having tons of accessibility and features so they can do more with their email. Marissa Mayer, as the new CEO of Yahoo is even being called to act upon besting Gmail with improvements to Yahoo mail. A recent post siding with users who just want to read their email is a perfect example of how extreme email users can be with their preferences. That is why when considering Mailbird as a desktop email client, you can have it as sweet and simple for basic sending and receiving emails, or you can go for the mother load and get all the fancy feature rich goodness it has to offer. You get to decide, instead of having updated highlights shoved in your face. We can’t stress enough how much this digital age will enjoy the simplicity of online communication, and how we are excited to do something new to better serve the needs of basic email users, and those who need a little more from their desktop app. Email culture has changed. It is rare that we compose properly structured complete letters, as done in the ancient times of snail mail. Since then it…

Posted by Christin on August 2, 2012

The nature of online communication in the form of an email has transitioned over the years. There is the never ending battle of whether desktop or web based email clients are better, Windows vs. Mac, Cats vs. Dogs, Apples vs. Oranges- the reality of it all is that we have a new breed of email users who enjoy the benefits of both worlds. Many new and diverse forms of email applications have evolved since the crashing halt of Thunderbird, later followed by Google’s acquisition of Sparrow (for Mac). What is happening with all these desktop email clients? Well, not only are they being simply bought out by the biggest online company in the world, but they are also refocusing efforts in the other facets of online communication. One of those being mobile communication, which is a whole other animal in itself. With a focus on the benefits of desktop email applications that use both features of web based, and the adaptability and power of desktop, Mailbird brings it on! One of the most widely used desktop email clients is Outlook, because they were quick on their toes to penetrate a market called the professional workforce. As society evolves with technology, we have more niche groups, and people who like to celebrate their individuality, who have very particular preferences especially when we talk technology and gadgets. With the public introduction of Facebook in 2006, online social networking hit a big growth spurt, over a “Wow, time flies!” six year period. So…

Posted by Christin on July 3, 2012

In 2010 we had the chance to chat with Michael Bodekaer about his awesome decision to set up a work environment on the beautiful, tropical island of Bali. One of his many initiatives was Project Getaway, as mentioned in the 2010 Version2 blog post. Looks like we will have another batch of super talented entrepreneurs attending this year. A truly fantastic event for networking, meeting new people, learning, working, while living in luxury in a relaxing environment. One of the little gems that emerged from Project Getaway (among many other projects), is an email application called Mailbird. Michael Bodekaer has really been able to reach out to and inspire many other entrepreneurs, and has formed teams that focus on several different tech startups. Mailbird is a startup with a team of joined forces from the local talent in Indonesia, Denmark, including myself from the U.S. Additionally, Michael has been laying the foundation and building upon a business called Contenga International, with a work environment that directly correlates to that of Project Getaway. I was very lucky to have stumbled upon a job posting for Contenga International while still living in the U.S. It felt like I finally found the best job in the world, and people who shared the same ideals as myself. Even though I felt that it was too good to be true, I took the risk. One of the core values that unifies location independent tech entrepreneurs is making things simple so life is more enjoyable. Now I’m launching a slick Windows…

Posted by Christin on July 2, 2012

We had our great idea. The development already set in motion. We started to build the best Windows supported desktop email app, and a strong passion to unleash Mailbird for the world to see. However, one thing was missing…Mailbird needed a graphic symbol, a face, an image, a visual form to represent this awesome tool in all of its glory! We began throwing around ideas for a potential Mailbird logo. We even created a few mock ups of the logo design internally. What we really needed was a ton of ideas and examples, so we could start narrowing down our search for the perfect design. From envelopes in the shape of wings to origami style birds striped in red and blue, we had a long ways to go before finding the perfect logo. Having had many conversations about gradients, colors, shades, shapes, placement, image integration and more, we decided to check out 99Designs for additional inspiration. You could call it a perversion of truth to assume that creating a logo would be a quick and easy task. There is quite a crazy library of literature on the psychology of images and color when looking at logo design. Do we go with a letter envelope, a clever integration of a bird in the Mailbird text, an @ sign that easily identifies email? After 169 designs, tons of feedback, poll results, and the fusion of minds within the Mailbird team, we got it! Thanks to our winning designer, Pich from 99Designs, we we can…