>> i don't quite get why everyone purportedly loves webmail clients so much? > > Ease of access as opposed to setting up a client like > Thunderbird/Outlook/mutt etc.
I can tell you gmail's interface completely sucks now. Every change they make is a whole new world of ruin. Webmail dates back to providers not offering imap/submission, no small part because it's harder to force feed ads down those interface channels than with captive eyeballs in webmail. Many other reasons but most of them are the provider choosing/forcing webmail, not the user. Never forget the AOL captive UI.
