HTML Emails - how do you design yours?

I'm just now starting to send out HTML emails and am looking for some tips on designing the emails. For example, when I code a page I have to worry about how it looks in IE, Firefox, Safari, etc. Are there similar concerns with emails or will it generally look the same in hotmail, thunderbird, outlook, etc.?

Also, any good programs or methods any of you use to make html emails?

Thanks,
Kevin

 

With webpages you only have to worry about 3 or 4 browsers. With email you have to worry about 10-12 clients and test in all of them. It's a major PITA.

Just don't use images and no funky tags, that's for HTML and CSS.

 

Think old-school, design for HTML 4.0

 

I have been using this for years.

http://www.webassist.com/professional/products/ProductDetails.asp?PID=13

You can create really advanced personalised html autoresponder lterally in minutes.

 

Using HTML font tags is pretty good. We use amix of that and inline CSS. This seems to help for the most part.

 

i can never get html to work in email! iv looked for info and every one wants to charge?
why doesnt my html work in email? what should i do?
i cant buy anything?