Using evolution-2.11.92-3.fc8, everything else current with development as of 9/14/2007 evolution always displays the new mail notification in the notification area even if the preferences are set to not alert me when new mail arrives. Given the volume of mail we receive this means a notification is popping up every minute or two. Not only that, but the notification icon is set to blink, this is unnecessary and I believe is inconsistent with the HIG, no other status icons blink. The total effect is very distracting.
Evolution is using two completely different mail notification subsystems. The "Do not notify me when new mail arrives" preference only pertains to playing sounds. The notification area icon is controlled by the "Mail Notification" plugin (not the "New Mail Notification" plugin, mind you). It's kind of a mess at the moment. I've already complained about it [1]. You can stop the notification popups and the blinking icon by disabling the plugin. Unfortunately this disables notifications for ALL accounts, since we don't have per-account notification settings yet. [1] http://bugzilla.gnome.org/show_bug.cgi?id=446484
I'm moving this to the aforementioned upstream bug along with your comments.
Thank you Matthew for your prompt attention. Disabling the plugin did the trick. Kinda hidden, but it sounds like you're on top of it.