Chapter 2 Organizing the Inbox
39
from the
Inbox
label without permanently deleting them. Archived mail
is displayed within the
All Mail
label. Unlike deleted messages, archived
messages will appear in search results of Gmail. Archived messages also
will be displayed in the
Inbox
label if a new message in the conversation
is received.
Using Stars, Importance Markers, and Labels
For the messages that remain in the
Inbox
label, Gmail users can use
stars, importance markers, and customized labels to organize them. By
using these organizational tools, users can highlight messages according to
importance or action within the
Inbox
label or distinguish them being part of
a particular group of messages.
Stars are symbols that provide a quick way to make a visual
distinction between messages. Some e-mail messages require the user to
respond right away, while other messages do not require any response.
Applying stars to differentiate the type of action needed on a message
can help organize the inbox. The default symbol is a yellow star, but
other colored stars and symbols are available, as shown in Figure 2-2.
Because symbols can be quickly changed or removed at any time, Gmail
users could also use a combination of colored stars and symbols as a
way to track the progress in resolving messages. For example, a yellow
star could indicate a message that requires action. The star could be
changed to a green check mark when the action is complete. Only the
Gmail user will see the symbol or understand its significance. Another
advantage of using this tool is that starred messages show up in the
default
Starred
label.
Star Name Star Name
Yellow-Star Red-Bang
Orange-Star Orange-Guillement
Red-Star Yellow-Bang
Purple-Star Green-Check
Blue-Star Blue-Info
Green-Star Purple-Question
Goodheart-Willcox Publisher
Figure 2-2. There are 12 stars (symbols) that can be used to visually categorize
messages.