In the last decade, software has made tremendous advances. We are all accustomed to sophisticated configuration features that allow us to personalize our software's behavior. As the internet becomes more pervasive in our communications, the next big leap in user-friendliness will be software that responds to remote configuration by your friends and family.
In Microsoft Outlook for Linux, version 23 beta, scheduled for released in 2012 (so we can expect it in 2017), you will be able to click on Settings, then Preferences, and then Remote. (Do not select Local.) When you do this, the following dialog box will appear:
As the dialog illustrates, you will be able to define your email behavior towards each contact in your address book. A remote URL, whose contents is under the control of your contact, will empower your contacts to influence the configuration, so that your email with each contact will generally respect his or her preferences.
I can't wait for this software to be invented! Perhaps it is I who will do it. For now, with great faith that such software is forthcoming, I have assembed a list of my own internet application prefernces. When that magical software is finally invented, my online preferences file will be ready for processing!