The Bottom Line
marlin is a nice email client with a convincing security focus and a solid assortment of features. marlin also comes with its own share of problems, though, among them poor IMAP support and a lack of message labels. marlin is no longer available.
Pros
- marlin emphasizes security, includes OpenPGP
- Strong custom HTML and plain text support make marlin handle any email message
- marlin includes flexible filters and virtual folders as well as useful spam protection
Cons
- marlin's IMAP support is weak and searching mail could be faster
- The message editor in marlin cannot quote correctly using the indentation method
- marlin's English translation of help and user interface are not perfect
Description
- marlin is an email client and manages multiple POP, IMAP and NNTP (Usenet news) accounts.
- A focus on security makes it difficult for viruses and worms to affect marlin.
- marlin includes a custom HTML viewer and editor, also built for security and privacy.
- Additionally, marlin has secure OpenPGP messaging built in and can encrypt all data on disk.
- Filters and message templates including several macros let you automate email tasks in marlin.
- Anti-spam features include black/white lists, the option to block open relays and keyword filters
- marlin supports Unicode and bidirectional input.
- Messages can be grouped by various criteria in marlin, and virtual folders aggregate matching mail.
- marlin supports Windows 9x/ME/NT/2000/3/XP.
Guide Review - marlin 1.1 - Email Program
An email client that is not secure isn't worth much. The makers of marlin have taken this to heart, and so marlin comes equipped with OpenPGP messaging, the option to encrypt all data on disk, TLS/SSL support, and a secure HTML viewer.
marlin's message editor also makes use of the rendering technology and lets you enter HTML and plain text in both WYSIWYG and source mode flexibly. Unfortunately, marlin doesn't quote the original text correctly in replies.
A great plus is the full support for Unicode and a wide set of character sets. marlin's IMAP support is a makeshift at most as it simply downloads all mail from the INBOX folder. Flexible filters as well as the nice message templates help you manage mail in marlin.
While the "filter folders" — folders automatically aggregating messages based on custom criteria — are nice, free-form labels and faster search would make them even nicer. The spam filter built into marlin is no revelation, but it is certainly useful.
