re :My default is to send messages in Text, but I sometimes like to forward an html message....which means I have to goto Account Settings-> Composition and set the html format flag and unset it after I send the message which is annoying.

There is another temporary switch method which is enacted for that selected email.

• select email so you can read it in message pane.
• Hold down 'Shift' key and then click on 'Reply' or 'Forward' or 'Write' as required.
• this will open a new Write message so you can use the Formatting Bar to create html emails. (Assuming the account is not set up to compose in html)

Note the reverse is also true. If account settings is set up to use HTML, then using the 'Shift' key will force that email to be composed as plain text.

You need to make sure you have the option to 'send' in both plain text and html. So any you create using html can be sent as html. This is not the same as composing in html, because even if the message is composed in html, it is worth sending the plain text option. In the Preferences for Composition. select to 'Send the message in both plain text and HTML' click on all the 'OK's.

If you are only composing in Plain text, then there is no formatting.

Thank you for your suggestion. I tried it out and it works, My only complaints are: It doesn't work for Cmd-E and 2, I now have to devote some pixels to displaying the mail bar which I never had to do in the past.

Toad Hall's explanation "select email so you can read it in message pane" is not clear. What does this mean? I'm assuming that you are explaining how to compose an html message? In that case, you would be in a compose pane, not a message pane.

Also macnosy's last note says "It doesn't work for Cmd-E and 2", so it's not clear what this means. What is "Cmd-E"??

As a result, it's very difficult to understand from this exchange how to compose/send html emails in Thunderbird. It used to be a simple task to send html emails in TBird, but it's now quite complicated. Apparently impossible, in fact.

JJJoseph re:Toad Hall's explanation "select email so you can read it in message pane" is not clear. What does this mean? I'm assuming that you are explaining how to compose an html message? In that case, you would be in a compose pane, not a message pane.

You need to read the information in context. When you receive an email, it will be in a folder, usually the 'Inbox'. the 'Inbox' is listed in the 'Folder Pane' shown on the left side. When you select a folder, the list of emails will be in the 'Thread Pane' shown on the right side. To see the contents of an email, a single left click will open the email and display it in the lower 'Message Pane'; assuming it is enabled.

So as the person who asked the original question wanted to know how to invoke a HTML email (when the account is set up by default to use Plain Text) for a 'Reply' and 'Forward', you have to select the email you wish to Reply to or Forward to'. "select email so you can read it in message pane" means left click on the email shown in the 'Thread Pane' list so you can read the contents in the 'Message Pane'. It could not be any clearer.

The question is this, JJJoseph what are you trying to do?

• Have you set up your account to use HTML but want to send the odd email in Plain Text ?
• Have you set up your account to use Plain Text but want to send the odd email in HTML?

If this is not your query then the answers in this particular question which has been marked a 'Chosen Solution' and therefore solved, will not resolve your issue and you should ask your own question. Please note when you place a response in someone else's question you are specifically sending an email to them. I also received an email because I was still following the question.