A computer-implemented method improves an efficiency of a client computer's electronic text-based messaging operation. A client computer transmits a user-selected set of preferred typographic features to a text-based electronic messages server, where typographic features describe a stylistic appearance of an electronic text-based message. The client computer also transmits, to the text-based electronic messages server, instructions to sort text-based electronic messages that are addressed to the client computer according to the user-selected set of preferred typographic features. The client computer receives text-based messages that have been sorted by the text-based electronic messages server according to the user-selected set of preferred typographic features, and then displays those text-based messages in an order according to how the text-based electronic messages server sorted the text-based electronic messages.