Thunderbird 158 Fixes a Longstanding Duplicate Email Bug and Forgotten Passwords

Thunderbird has long been the go-to alternative for people who want a desktop email program without getting caught up in the Microsoft or Google ecosystem. It is free, open source, and combines email, calendars, and contacts in one application.

Of course, being an alternative does not make it immune to annoying bugs. Thunderbird 158, released October 13, fixes several that affect everyday use, including duplicate sends, forgotten calendar passwords, and an attachment picker that could refuse to open.

A Keyboard Shortcut Bug With a Long History

Ctrl+Enter is a handy shortcut for sending an email. However, holding those keys down could also accept the send confirmation and send multiple copies of the message. Thunderbird 158 fixes that behavior.

The surprising part is how far back this goes. [Mozilla’s original bug report] dates back roughly 15 years. The reporter described accidentally bypassing the confirmation in Thunderbird 2.0.0.23, and later comments confirmed that keeping the keys pressed could send repeated copies. That does not establish the first affected version, but it certainly qualifies as a longstanding headache.

One email is usually plenty. If the recipient ignored the first one, sending three more before you release the keyboard probably is not going to help.

Remember My Password Means Remember My Password

An email program should send your message once and remember the passwords you told it to save. Reasonable expectations, right? Well, it seem one of the more recent Thunderbird versions kind of broke that rather important feature... OOOOPS!

The good new here is version 158 also fixes saved CalDAV and CardDAV credentials being forgotten after restarting. These connections keep supported online calendars and address books synchronized. Updated calendar passwords could also fail to save, while address-book synchronization could miss newly added contacts.

Repeated password prompts can send you down a troubleshooting rabbit hole. Is the password wrong? Did the provider change something? Did you break a setting? If this has been happening to you it's probably not you PC's config, updating is a sensible first step.

Attachments and Search Get Some Attention

The attachment picker could fail to open when its previously used folder was unavailable. Quick Filter is also more responsive and now matches accented names when searches omit the accents. Searching for “Jose,” for example, should find “José.”

These are the kinds of improvements that rarely sell an update, but they matter when you spend your day working through an inbox.

Should You Update?

For existing monthly Release-channel users, I would consider this an essential maintenance update, particularly if you have encountered these problems. I mean, unless you like hunting down your passwords, contacts and recreating calendar appointments. I suppose there are a few of you out there who are digitally masochistic.

Thunderbird 158 also includes security fixes, giving you another reason to keep it current.

Version 158 belongs to Thunderbird’s monthly Release channel. If you use the Extended Support Release, or ESR, keep that branch updated rather than switching just to match the version number.


[Download Thunderbird from MajorGeeks]

Jim McMahon Jim McMahon, aka Corporal Punishment, is the founder of MajorGeeks.com. He has spent decades testing software, troubleshooting Windows, and helping users cut through the nonsense. He loves real freeware, hates bloatware, and runs on caffeine, sarcasm, and questionable choices.