macOS Monterey to Support All-New Mail App Extensions, Plug-Ins Will Stop Functioning in Future Release
As part of WWDC this week, Apple introduced a new MailKit framework for macOS Monterey that enables developers to create Mail app extensions that block content, perform message and composing actions, and help with security.
There will be four main categories of Mail app extensions, according to Apple:
- Compose: Extensions that provide new workflows when composing emails
- Actions: Extensions that apply custom rules to incoming emails, such as an email being color coded, moved to a separate inbox, marked as read, or flagged
- Content Blocking: Extensions that serve as WebKit content blockers for emails based on specific criteria in an email's HTML code
- Message Security: Extensions that sign, encrypt, and decrypt emails when sending and receiving mail, with signed and encrypted icons below emails
Xcode 13, available in beta, includes a template for developers looking to create Mail app extensions on the Mac. The extensions can be built into existing Mac apps and can also be distributed through the Mac App Store, according to a WWDC session about MailKit, which is available on macOS only and not iOS or iPadOS.
In the WWDC session, Apple indicated that older Mail app plug-ins will stop functioning in an unspecified future macOS release.
macOS Monterey is available now in beta for developers, with a public beta to follow in July.
Related Stories
Apple today released macOS Monterey 12.2.1, a minor bug fix update that comes two weeks after the launch of macOS Monterey 12.2.
The macOS Monterey 12.2.1 update can be downloaded on all eligible Macs using the Software Update section of System Preferences.
According to Apple's release notes, macOS Monterey 12.2.1 addresses a bug that was causing Bluetooth devices...
Apple today seeded the second beta of an upcoming macOS Monterey 12.3 update to its public beta testing group, with the new software coming a week after the first macOS Monterey 12.3 public beta.
Public beta testers can download the macOS 12.3 Monterey update from the Software Update section of the System Preferences app after installing the proper profile from Apple's beta software website.
...
The iOS 15.4 beta that was introduced today expands support for the custom email domain feature available for iCloud+, adding an option to set up a custom domain with iCloud Mail directly on the iPhone.
If you go to Settings > Apple ID > iCloud, "iCloud Mail" is now a tappable option and it includes a section for setting up a Custom Email Domain.
Prior to now, custom domains were able to...
Apple today seeded the first beta of an upcoming macOS Monterey 12.3 update to its public beta testing group, with the new software coming one day after it was provided to developers.
Public beta testers can download the macOS 12.3 Monterey update from the Software Update section of the System Preferences app after installing the proper profile from Apple's beta software website....
iCloud+ subscribers who use Hide My Email can do so directly from the Mail app after installing the iOS 15.2, iPadOS 15.2, and macOS Monterey 12.1 betas that came out today.
The feature update is outlined in Apple's release notes for the beta, and it should make Hide My Email much more convenient to use on Apple devices. For those unfamiliar with Hide My Email, it is an iOS 15 and macOS...
Wednesday February 16, 2022 10:30 am PST by
Juli CloverApple today seeded the third beta of an upcoming macOS Monterey 12.3 update to its public beta testing group, with the new software coming a week after the second macOS Monterey 12.3 public beta.
Public beta testers can download the macOS 12.3 Monterey update from the Software Update section of the System Preferences app after installing the proper profile from Apple's beta software website.
...
Apple today released macOS Monterey 12.2, the second major update to the macOS Monterey update that launched in October. macOS Monterey 12.2 comes over a month after the release of the 12.1 update, which brought SharePlay support.
The macOS Monterey 12.2 update can be downloaded on all eligible Macs using the Software Update section of System Preferences. Apple has also...
Apple today released macOS Monterey 12.3, the third major update to the macOS Monterey operating system that launched in October 2021. macOS Monterey 12.3 comes more than a month after the launch of macOS 12.2, an update that addressed a Safari vulnerability.
The macOS Monterey 12.3 update can be downloaded on all eligible Macs using the Software Update section of System ...
Popular Stories
Apple is aiming to hold its first fall event on Wednesday, September 7, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The event will focus on the iPhone 14 models and the Apple Watch Series 8.
The standard iPhone 14 models are expected to get few changes, but the iPhone 14 Pro models will include updated camera technology, the removal of the notch in favor of a pill-shaped and hole-punch cutout, an A16...
Apple today released iOS and iPadOS 15.6.1, minor updates to the iOS and iPadOS 15 operating systems initially released in September 2021. iOS 15.6.1 and iPadOS 15.6.1 come a month after Apple released iOS 15.6 and iPadOS 15.6 with new Live Sports features and bug fixes.
The iOS 15.6.1 and iPadOS 15.6.1 updates can be downloaded for free and the software is available on all eligible devices...
Apple's rumored 10th-generation iPad is currently in production and will feature "major" design changes, according to a report from Taiwanese website DigiTimes.
A mockup of the potential 10th-generation iPad design by Renders By Shailesh The report did not provide any specific details about the 10th-generation iPad's new design, but rumors suggest the device will feature a larger 10.5-inch...
Apple's second-generation AirPods Pro are finally nearing launch, with a release expected later this year. If you are considering upgrading to the new AirPods Pro once they are released, keep reading for a list of five new features to expect.
In addition to all-new features, the second-generation AirPods Pro will likely adopt some features added to the standard AirPods last year.
H2 Chip
...
It's crazy to think about, but next month will mark five years since Apple announced the Apple Watch Series 3. Despite being a severely antiquated smartwatch, the Series 3 has remained at the bottom of Apple's lineup for $199.
Suppose you're still holding on to your Apple Watch Series 3. In that case, this article will list all the major new features and changes you'll get if you decide to...
Apple today seeded the sixth betas of upcoming iOS 16 and iPadOS 16 updates to developers for testing purposes, with the updates coming a week after Apple released the fifth developer betas.
Registered developers can download the iOS and iPadOS 16 profiles from the Apple Developer Center, and once installed, the betas will be available over the air.
iOS 16 introduces a revamped Lock...
Top Rated Comments
As for the mail plug-ins, they were never a great solution. Apple will continually move away from systems like mail plug-ins that live in the memory space of another application to inter-application communication systems like extensions that allow an application to extend another application visually without sharing memory space MacOS Classic style. I, for one, am looking forward to having a mail extension system that provides a stable API and that doesn’t break with each point release.
But this is also a change that needed to occur. Previously, mail bundles would break between point releases. Not major releases, mere patches. Every time Mail.app got updated, these bundles needed to get updated, too, and, until they did, the bundles wouldn’t work. Now we have a stable API guaranteed not to break on point releases and that will likely be stable across multiple major releases. We’ll probably see more mail extensions as a result of this, while previously, it was only worth the effort to devs who were absolutely serious about email extensibility. This API could also be ported to MobileMail.app, which, until now, hasn’t had any extensibility (except maybe for jailbreaking, but even then, I don’t think Mail was a common target for jailbreakers looking to tweak the system).