Using Mail on a new iMac

Hello all and thank you for help...

I am pretty well versed on using a PC but just switched over to a new iMac at Christmas.

I have a single user account for the computer and would like to keep it this way. I have set up the mail program with my wife's information. It does seem to show that you can add different emails (with associated settings) within iMail. My question is - Can I set up my email address information within iMail and have it separate from my wife's or does adding additional emails within the same computer user account just make it so that iMail will download from both email address serves and display them in the same "inbox"?

The preferred outcome would be for my wife and I to be able to sign onto the same user account but be able to keep our emails separate while using iMail. I have found that this is true in "sharing" from within iPhoto.

On a side note, while I am enjoying some of the ease of the new computer, I find myself having to google what seems to be some of the most basic tasks. An annoyance that I hope will fade with more use...

Thanks all.

If I am understanding what you are asking correctly Mail will download messages from both accounts this way. As I see it you have two options:

1. Create separate user accounts for you and your wife on the computer. With a little preparation they could still easily have some things shared such as the iTunes library.

2. The other option would be to let Mail sort the incoming e-mail into two different folders. Using either a mail rule or Smart Mailbox and a few mail folders your wife's mail could go into one folder and your into another. You would still be able to see each other's mail if you accidentally opened the wrong folder though.

Thanks for the quick answer and it's what I figured. It's more important for me to use just one user account. Seeing each other's mail is not a problem with the folder suggestion however it seems more bother than it's worth. It's not critical that I be able to get mail on the iMac as I use my phone and work pc for that. Just thought it would be nice.

Thanks again.

Using either a mail rule or smart folder to sort mail is not difficult to set up especially if all you want to do is separate your mail from your spouses. If you have never used 'Smart" mailboxes, or some of the other "Smart" features in OS X this overview might prove helpful ATPM 16.03 - How To: Making Your Mac as Smart as Its Owner