HI Stacy,

Are you referring to right clicking the top toolbar and selecting 'Customize...'

I added a screenshot for example

Hi Mike, looks like your screen shot didn't come thru much better than mine, but I think we're talking about the same thing. I haven't installed a new version since before covid and I've forgotten some stuff, like clicking on that tool bar. Let me try it and see if that does the trick. And thanks!

@Annette: do you mean the Quick Filter toolbar (see image)?

Now I really screwed it up! I've lost the little blue "New Messages" that tops the left side column, on my existing machine, so I can't write a new message! I right clicked on something but I don't remember what. Everything else on this machine is fine, but I clicked thru it to see if I could set the laptop up the same way, and I see there is no way to go back. So now neither of them has a "New Message" blue button! Yikes!

In TB go to View > Folders and check "Folder Pane Header" (image) You should systematically explore all TB menus...

Thank you!! So easy when you remember how.

I'm still left with 2 search bars at the top of mail in my new laptop. Does the current version of TBird have 2, one on the top left, and 1 in the middle on line with the New Message button? If not how ca I get rid of the one in the middle next to blue Message button? Thanks

Many commands in TB are double or even triple if you count the keyboard shortcuts: Instead of the New Message button you can also go File < New > Message ....

I'm still left with 2 search bars at the top of mail in my new laptop.

Please show us a screenshot (but not a tiny one....)

Umm I'm not sure how to do that on the laptop because not everything is installed yet. I have a shapshot on this desk top, maybe I can get it over to the laptop and get the shot. Unless you know another way? I see I've just received mail there, not had any yet, thought it was offline. Let me get back to you - working these two machines is confusing and space limited. Thanks.

Now I can't remember where I saw the 'offline' option. Please bear with me, I'm 86 and trying my best.

So I managed to take a big screen shot of the mail page. But when I tried to send it from laptop to me at desktop so I could send it to you, I discovered tons of emails I have sent over the past several years flooding back into new setup on laptop. I use aol as a 3rd party, and apparently when the helpful Geek tried to set up TBird for me, instead of checking to leave sent messages on aol server, she instead must have checked off leave them on My machine. I believe that's what happened, but now I can't find where the option is to reset it to leave them on aol!! I've deleted hundreds of sent posts that have downloaded to my laptop (and probably desktop as well), I'm back into 2003, and I just want to stop them from coming it! Can you please tell me where to find that setting?

Please bear with me, I'm 86 and trying my best. Me too, I am older than you!

well your mind certainly doesn't give your age away! How much older than I are you?

I found the place in the new version (synchronize) to stop aol from returning all those old posts, so I fixed that.  But there are still SO man that dumped into my "sent" box, and it only shows 2 in a list, then opens

the full post, taking time for me to delete them all. I'll be back . . . .

First let us know whether you have a POP or an IMAP account. Click on the Appmenu ("Hamburger" ) button ≡ on the upper right of the unified toolbar and choose "Account Settings". In Account Settings select your mail account and open Server Settings: here you should see whether your account has set up for the POP or the IMAP protocol

Annette, the other search function is global search, which searches all your folders at once (at least the ones that you specify). The quick search searches only the currently selected folder.

It is available on a toolbar. See your options under the “View” menu. As Mapenzi said, you may want to explore options systematically to see what you can control.

Are you replying to my question about the sync a/c? I've sorted that, thanks. I had it set right to begin with, but the Geek had to go thru all the settings again, making things worse. I'm just deleting all the stuff that aol sent back to me from the laptop. I have the screenshot and email from my questions about the extra searchbar, put that laptop keeps encountering a problem when I try to send it, which is how I ended up trying to delete all the old stuff off the laptop. I wish I could find a quicker way to do it, but "sent" has no way that I know of except to delete one by one. If you know a faster way, I'd love to hear it so I can get the screen shot of the search bar to you. Thanks for your patience.

Rick, are you saying then, that the two search bars (I now see one says Filter, the other says search) are meant to be there?

Rick, are you saying then, that the two search bars (I now see one says Filter, the other says search) are meant to be there?

Thunderbird has two search bars for different kinds of searches. There is no problem if both are showing. You can control what appears.

Are you replying to my question about the sync a/c? I've sorted that, thanks. I had it set right to begin with, but the Geek had to go thru all the settings again, making things worse. I'm just deleting all the stuff that aol sent back to me from the laptop. I have the screenshot and email from my questions about the extra searchbar, put that laptop keeps encountering a problem when I try to send it, which is how I ended up trying to delete all the old stuff off the laptop. I wish I could find a quicker way to do it, but "sent" has no way that I know of except to delete one by one. If you know a faster way, I'd love to hear it so I can get the screen shot of the search bar to you. Thanks for your patience.

Would it help to select many messages at once? There are several ways to do that: shift click, command click, select all.