Question: I love Gmail but I would like to use an application that still works with its Web-based functions. It would allow me to set it as my default email app, which is useful when I click on mailto links on Web pages.
Answer: There are solutions for that. One elegant application is called Mailplane, if you are ready to pay US$24.95. Mailplane supports the browser functions of Gmail but it also offers menu items for things such as labels. It does multiple accounts and stores passwords in the Keychain.
It is integrated with Mac OS X technologies such as the Address Book and Grab snapshots. More importantly, it will send Growl notifications when you receive new messages. More about Growl here.
Once you have Mailplane installed, you need to launch the Mail app, pull down the Mail menu and select Preferences. Under General, you will find the Default Email Reader menu. This is where you select Mailplane. You can quit Mail. From now on, mailto links will lead to Mailplane.
