Thunderbird is an easy to use but powerful open source (that means it’s free!) desktop info manager. It can easily help you keep track of e-mails, contacts, events, and even your twitter. But what good is it if you can’t sync the important things like contact and events from everyone’s favorite Gmail to the best desktop info manager?
Sync Your Gmail Account
If it’s your first time using Thunderbird you be prompted to add an e-mail account and set up a custom one. If you don’t want to pay for a custom e-mail address (like logan@totallyradsite.com) then just click “skip this and use my existing e-mailâ€.
On the next screen just enter your name, your Gmail address, and the password then click continue. If you use higher security settings for your Google account then you will have to generate an application specific password for Thunderbird to login. When you hit continue the box will look like this:
You can see you also have the option to choose between IMAP and POP3. For the unfamiliar IMAP means that every message stays synced automatically with gmail and with POP3 you manually sync. POP3 is handy if you work offline a lot or want finer control on your e-mail. I usually choose IMAP so I don’t have to worry about syncing.
After that click done, and Thunderbird will check your password. If everything is correct that box will disappear and you will be taken to your Thunderbird inbox. Depending on the size of your gmail inbox it could take 30 seconds to a couple minutes for all the messages to download.
Sync Gmail Contacts
Although Thunderbird makes it super easy to sync your gmail inbox, syncing your contacts requires a couple of extra steps. An easy to use and free add-on is Zindus available conveniently in the Thunderbird add-on section
1. Go to the tools in the menu bar (if you don’t see the menu bar, right click on the status bar and click the menu bar option to enable it) and click on add-ons.
2. In the search bar type in “zindus†and hit enter
3. Click install
4.Having done that, click the text that says “restart nowâ€
Some add-ons like Zindus require Thunderbird to restart to use the add-on. It’s perfectly safe but it isn’t a bad idea to save whatever email you are working on before you restart just in case.
5. When Thunderbird restarts you will see this in the lower right hand corner of Thunderbird:
Right click on the stylized Z and click settings. At first the accounts box will be empty. Just click add to add your gmail address with all your contacts. This if need be can be a separate e-mail from the one synced to get e-mail. When you click the add button you will be taken to a box like below to enter your email account details. Just enter them and click test connection and it should save the information if your password is correct.
When you get taken back to the Zindus settings click sync now to start it off. After that first sync Zindus automatically syncs. You can tell the contacts are current by this symbol.
Anytime you want to sync your contacts yourself just right click the z and choose sync now.
Sync Google Calendar
As an add-on Lightning is a powerful addition to Thunderbird and using it in conjunction with email makes Thunderbird a close competitor to outlook (with the big plus being it’s free). The only draw back is that out of the box is that it doesn’t natively support Google calendars. Thankfully there is a simple add-on that bridges the connection.
1. To install Lightning, just like zindus go to the add-on page. It is usually on the front page of the add-on section but if it’s not just search for it.
2. Also like zindus install and restart Thunderbird. On restart you will see a few new panels. Click on the button I highlighted for emphasis to see your calendar.
Looks empty doesn’t it? To add your gmail calendar you also need to install the “provider for Google calendar†add-on just like you did with Zindus and Lightning and also restart Thunderbird.
Adding Gmail Calendar
1. You need to open up Google calendar in an internet browser and then go to your settings in Google calendar.
2. Click on the calendar tab and then click on the name of the calendar you want to sync with Thunderbird.
Scroll down and look for where it says “private address†with an orange button that says XML and a green one that says ICAL. Click on the button that says XML to get the address for your calendar. Keep this pop up box open as you will need that long URL in just a second.
3. Back in Thunderbird go to File in the menu bar, then new, then click calendar. You have two options to choose from, a calendar on your computer or on the network. Choose “on the network†then click next.
4. On the next screen for the format option choose “Google Calendar†and then where it says location copy and paste that long URL you got from the calendar settings. It should look something like this:
When you click next you will be asked to enter your password and then have the choice to give that calendar and nickname and special color to highlight the events. After that click done and your Google calendar will start to sync. And it syncs automatically so you don’t have to worry about remembering to do so before leaving.
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