My inbox is empty, everything filed into my GTD system. I have scripts that auto-compile the financial stuff into the right place, and other scripts that semi-automate (using a Bayesian classifier) stuff that needs an answer now, stuff that needs to be answered soon, stuff I need to think about, and archive.<p>I hate repetition, and have scripted my most common actions. I guess I've hacked my email system.
What the author's real issue appears to be here - which they don't quite articulate, but which is lurking in there - is really simple. We use email for two things nowadays: interpersonal communication and event notifications. The fact that they both end up in our inboxes is more by accident than by design, and a really good email client should probably separate the two to some degree.
I have 29 of inboxes, and I have filters that categorize the mail automatically. The changes he wants are already here, and have been since the dawn of email.<p>The author needs to learn how to use filters.