Portable notewhal

This is the portable edition of notewhal, a simple-to-use software application that can automatically check for new messages on Reddit accounts and those using the IMAP4 protocol (with or without SSL). It comes packed with several settings that can be easily figured out.

Portability advantages

Since installation is not required, you can drop the program files in any part of the hard disk and just click the executable to run. It is also possible to save notewhal to a USB flash disk or similar storage unit, in order to run it on any PC with minimum effort and no previous installers.
More importantly, the app does not create new entries in the Windows registry or Start menu, leaving no traces behind after its removal.

Standard interface with clear-cut options

notewhal does not put too much emphasis on the looks of the interface, preferring to take a straightforward approach instead. It provides direct access to the main options, letting you easily add new profiles by specifying the network protocol, accounts credentials, server, HTTP login data, program to launch and sound to play when selecting the profile (if any), along with the icon color for the profile to change into when new messages are found.
In addition, you can set the checkup frequency, assign a custom icon to the tray icon, as well as disable balloons and update checkups. Multiple profiles can be easily prioritized, and all changes are applicable with the click of a button.

Evaluation and conclusion

The tool does not put a strain on PC performance, running on low CPU and RAM. We have not come across any unpleasant surprises throughout our evaluation, since it did not hang, crash or pop up error dialogs. All in all, notewhal delivers a simple solution to verifying Reddit and IMAP4 accounts.