I use Thunderbird, and my contacts and calendar sync to a Google GMail account. But GMail can't access external addresses via IMAP, only POP. I can use web2mail.com to get email but the interface sucks and I can't see my contacts or calendar.
Ideally I want a browser-based version of Thunderbird that accesses contacts and calendar from Google (which is synced from my desktop). Not sure if that is possible.
When I'm away from my desktop and have to access my e-mail, it may be on a public computer and I may not remember to carry a flash drive around with me everywhere.
So is it possible then to load Thunderbird from a Cloud drive? I see issues though with many public computers being locked down so you can't install apps because wouldn't you have to essentially download the app off the cloud and run it locally as the cloud drive isn't a virtual desktop?
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Cloud drives (DropBox, Google Drive, etc) give you a folder so you can sync your apps between multiple PCs. They don't let you run Windows apps from the cloud in a browser. So, it can't do what you want. There is no browser-based version of Thunderbird nor is there likely to be in the near future.
Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!
Cloud drive: it is basically just a storage, nothing more then your usb stick for example. Just it is not connected via short usb connection to your computer (and oparating system) but by a long, relatively slow internet connection.
There is no operating system accessible for you on the cloud server. All you can access is storage space without any computing ability.
So all you have to do is to download the whole thunderbird to the local space, let say the desktop of some computer and run Thunderbird and delete the local copy after beaming the new 'version' back to the cloud.
The problem will start when you get rather big profile, meaning you have big number of local stored mails for example.
If you use it withh imap only and have no or little local storage, this operation can be done very well however and will work very nice as the few mb of the Thunderbird itself will be downloaded very fast.
Alternative would be to use good webmail of your choice. If you are already on gmail, you can use that well, but many other such servicec may give you also similar functionality.
Otto Sykora
Basel, Switzerland