docs/master: ch03.roff annotate

annotate ch03.roff @ 21:bb8a8be49024

Wrote about Face support and vfork().

author	markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de>
date	Mon, 07 May 2012 15:50:09 +0200
parents	7a100c80fa91
children	99409e4546d2

rev	line source
0 dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	1 .H0 "Work Report
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	2 .P
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	3 foo
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	4 .P
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	5 bar
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	6
12 7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	7 .H1 "Removal of Code Relicts
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	8 .P
20 7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	9 The code base of mmh originates from the late 70s, had been extensively
12 7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	10 worked on in the mid 80s, and had been partly reorganized and extended
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	11 in the 90s. Relicts of all those times had gathered in the code base.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	12 My goal was to remove any ancient code parts. One part of the task was
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	13 converting obsolete code constructs to standard constructs, the other part
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	14 was dropping obsolete functions.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	15 .P
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	16 As I'm not even thirty years old and have no more than seven years of
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	17 Unix experience, I needed to learn about the history in retroperspective.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	18 Older people likely have used those ancient constructs themself
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	19 and have suffered from their incompatiblities and have longed for
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	20 standardization. Unfortunately, I have only read that others had done so.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	21 This put me in a much more difficult positions when working on the old
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	22 code. I needed to recherche what other would have known by heart from
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	23 experience. All my programming experience comes from a time past ANSI C
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	24 and past POSIX. Although I knew about the times before, I took the
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	25 current state implicitely for granted most of the time.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	26 .P
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	27 Being aware of
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	28 these facts, I rather let people with more historic experience solve the
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	29 task of converting the ancient code constructs to standardized ones.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	30 Luckily, Lyndon Nerenberg focused on this task at the nmh project.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	31 He converted large parts of the code to POSIX constructs, removing
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	32 the conditionals compilation for now standardized features.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	33 I'm thankful for this task being solved. I only pulled the changes into
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	34 mmh.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	35 .P
20 7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	36 The other task \(en dropping ancient functionality to remove old code \(en
12 7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	37 I did myself, though. My position to strip mmh to the bare minimum of
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	38 frequently used features is much more revolutional than the nmh community
20 7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	39 likes it. Without the need to justify my decisions, I was able to quickly
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	40 remove functionality I considered ancient.
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	41 The need to discuss my decisions with
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	42 peers likely would have slowed this process down. Of course, I researched
12 7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	43 if a particular feature really should be dropped. Having not had any
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	44 contact to this feature within my computer life was a first indicator to
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	45 drop it, but I also asked others and searched the literature for modern
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	46 usage of the feature. If it appeared to be truly ancient, I dropped it.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	47 The reason for dropping is always part of the commit message in the
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	48 version control system. Thus, it is easy for others to check their
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	49 view on the topic with mine and possibly to argue for reinclusion.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	50
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	51 .U2 "MMDF maildrop support
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	52 .P
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	53 I did drop any support for the MMDF maildrop format. This type of format
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	54 is conceptionally similar to the mbox format, but uses four bytes with
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	55 value 1 (\fL^A^A^A^A\fP) as message delimiter,
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	56 instead of the string ``\fLFrom\ \fP''.
12 7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	57 Due to the similarity and mbox being the de-facto standard maildrop
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	58 format on Unix, but also due to the larger influence of Sendmail than MMDF,
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	59 the MMDF maildrop format had vanished.
0 dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	60 .P
12 7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	61 The simplifications within the code were only moderate. Switches could
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	62 be removed from tools like
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	63 .L packf ,
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	64 which generate packed mailboxes. Only one packed mailbox format remained:
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	65 mbox.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	66 The most important changes affect the equally named mail parsing routine in
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	67 .L sbr/m_getfld.c .
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	68 The direct MMDF code had been removed, but as now only one packed mailbox
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	69 format is left, code structure simplifications are likely possible.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	70 The reason why they are still outstanding is the heavily optimized code
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	71 of
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	72 .Fu m_getfld() .
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	73 Changes beyond a small local scope \(en
12 7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	74 which restructuring in its core is \(en cause a high risk of damaging
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	75 the intricate workings of the optimized code. This problem is know
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	76 to the developers of nmh, too. They also avoid touching this minefield
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	77 if possible.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	78
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	79 .U2 "UUCP Bang Paths
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	80 .P
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	81 More questionably than the former topic is the removal of support for the
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	82 UUCP bang path address style. However, the user may translate the bang
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	83 paths on retrieval to Internet addresses and the other way on posting
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	84 messages. The former can be done my an MDA like procmail; the latter
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	85 by a sendmail wrapper. This would ensure that any address handling would
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	86 work as expected. However, it might just work well without any
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	87 such modifications, as mmh does not touch addresses much, in general.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	88 But I can't ensure as I have never used an environment with bang paths.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	89 Also, the behavior might break at any point in further development.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	90
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	91 .U2 "Hardcopy terminal support
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	92 .P
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	93 More of a funny anecdote is the remaining of a check for printing to a
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	94 hardcopy terminal until Spring 2012, when I finally removed it.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	95 I surely would be very happy to see such a terminal in action, maybe
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	96 actually being able to work on it, but I fear my chances are null.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	97 .P
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	98 The check only prevented a pager to be placed between the outputting
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	99 program (\c
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	100 .Pn mhl )
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	101 and the terminal. This could have been ensured with
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	102 the
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	103 .Sw \-nomoreproc
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	104 at the command line statically, too.
12 7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	105
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	106 .U2 "Removed support for header fields
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	107 .P
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	108 The `Encrypted' header had been introduced by RFC\^822, but already
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	109 marked legacy in RFC 2822. It was superseded by FIXME.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	110 Mmh does no more support this header.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	111 .P
21 bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	112 Native support for `Face' headers
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	113 had been removed, as well.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	114 The feature is similar to the `X-Face' header in its intent,
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	115 but takes a different approach to store the image.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	116 Instead of encoding the image data directly into the header,
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	117 the the header contains the hostname and UDP port where the image
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	118 date could be retrieved.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	119 Neither `X-Face' nor the here described `Face' system
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	120 \**
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	121 .FS
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	122 There is also a newer but different system, invented 2005,
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	123 using `Face' headers.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	124 It is the successor of `X-Face' providing colored PNG images.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	125 .FE
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	126 became well used in the large scale.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	127 It's still possible to use a Face systems,
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	128 although mmh does not provide support for any of the different systems
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	129 anymore. It's fairly easy to write a small shell script to
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	130 extract the embedded or fetch the external Face data and display the image.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	131 Own Face headers can be added into the draft template files.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	132 .P
12 7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	133 `Content-MD5' headers were introduced by RFC\^1864. They provide only
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	134 a verification of data corruption during the transfer. By no means can
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	135 they ensure verbatim end-to-end delivery of the contents. This is clearly
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	136 stated in the RFC. The proper approach to provide verificationability
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	137 of content in an end-to-end relationship is the use of digital cryptography
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	138 (RFCs FIXME). On the other hand, transfer protocols should ensure the
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	139 integrity of the transmission. In combinations these two approaches
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	140 make the `Content-MD5' header field useless. In consequence, I removed
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	141 the support for it. By this removal, MD5 computation is not needed
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	142 anywhere in mmh. Hence, over 500 lines of code were removed by this one
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	143 change. Even if the `Content-MD5' header field is useful sometimes,
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	144 I value its usefulnes less than the improvement in maintainability, caused
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	145 by the removal.
7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	146
20 7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	147 .U2 "Prompter's Control Keys
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	148 .P
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	149 The program
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	150 .Pn prompter
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	151 queries the user to fill in a message form. When used by
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	152 .Pn comp
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	153 as:
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	154 .DS
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	155 comp \-editor prompter
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	156 .DE
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	157 the resulting behavior is similar to
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	158 .Pn mailx .
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	159 Appearently,
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	160 .Pn prompter
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	161 hadn't been touched lately. Otherwise it's hardly explainable why it
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	162 still offered the switches
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	163 .Sn \-erase \fUchr\fP
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	164 and
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	165 .Sn \-kill \fUchr\fP
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	166 to name the characters for command line editing.
21 bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	167 The times when this had been necessary are long time gone.
20 7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	168 Today these things work out-of-the-box, and if not, are configured
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	169 with the standard tool
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	170 .Pn stty .
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	171
21 bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	172 .U2 "Vfork and Retry Loops
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	173 .P
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	174 MH creates many processes, which is a concequence of the toolchest approach.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	175 In earlier times
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	176 .Fu fork()
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	177 had been an expensive system call, as the process's whole image needed
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	178 to be duplicated. One common case is replacing the image with
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	179 .Fu exec()
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	180 right after having forked the child process.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	181 To speed up this case, the
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	182 .Fu vfork()
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	183 system call was invented at Berkeley. It completely omits copying the
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	184 image. If the image gets replaced right afterwards then unnecessary
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	185 work is omited. On old systems this results in large speed ups.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	186 MH uses
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	187 .Fu vfork()
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	188 whenever possible.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	189 .P
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	190 Memory management units that support copy-on-write semantics make
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	191 .Fu fork()
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	192 almost as fast as
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	193 .Fu vfork()
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	194 in the cases when they can be exchanged.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	195 With
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	196 .Fu vfork()
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	197 being more errorprone and hardly faster, it's preferable to simply
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	198 use
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	199 .Fu fork()
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	200 instead.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	201 .P
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	202 Related to the costs of
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	203 .Fu fork()
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	204 is the probability of its success.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	205 Today on modern systems, the system call will succeed almost always.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	206 In the 80s on heavy loaded systems, as they were common at
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	207 universities, this had been different. Thus, many of the
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	208 .Fu fork()
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	209 calls were wrapped into loops to retry to fork several times in
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	210 short intervals, in case of previous failure.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	211 In mmh, the program aborts at once if the fork failed.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	212 The user can reexecute the command then. This is expected to be a
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	213 very rare case on modern systems, especially personal ones, which are
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	214 common today.
bb8a8be49024 Wrote about Face support and vfork(). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 20 diff changeset	215
12 7ca384d68edc Wrote some text for removal of old code. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 0 diff changeset	216
14 55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	217 .H1 "Draft and Trash Folders
16 81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	218 .U2 "Draft Folder
14 55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	219 .P
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	220 Historically, MH provided exactly one draft message, named
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	221 .Fn draft
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	222 and
14 55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	223 being located in the MH directory. When starting to compose another message
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	224 before the former one was sent, the user had been questioned wether to use,
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	225 refile or replace the old draft. Working on multiple drafts at the same time
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	226 was impossible. One could only work on them in alteration by refiling the
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	227 previous one to some directory and fetching some other one for reediting.
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	228 This manual draft management needed to be done each time the user wanted
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	229 to switch between editing one draft to editing another.
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	230 .P
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	231 To allow true parallel editing of drafts, in a straight forward way, the
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	232 draft folder facility exists. It had been introduced already in July 1984
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	233 by Marshall T. Rose. The facility was deactivated by default.
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	234 Even in nmh, the draft folder facility remained deactivated by default.
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	235 At least, Richard Coleman added the man page
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	236 .Mp mh-draft(5)
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	237 to document
14 55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	238 the feature well.
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	239 .P
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	240 The only advantage of not using the draft folder facility is the static
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	241 name of the draft file. This could be an issue for MH frontends like mh-e.
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	242 But as they likely want to provide working on multiple drafts in parallel,
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	243 the issue is only concerning compatibility. The aim of nmh to stay compatible
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	244 prevented the default activation of the draft folder facility.
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	245 .P
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	246 On the other hand, a draft folder is the much more natural concept than
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	247 a draft message. MH's mail storage consists of folders and messages,
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	248 the messages named with ascending numbers. A draft message breaks with this
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	249 concept by introducing a message in a file named
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	250 .Fn draft .
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	251 This draft
14 55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	252 message is special. It can not be simply listed with the available tools,
17 b3c37947764e Several minor text improvements. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 16 diff changeset	253 but instead requires special switches. I.e. corner-cases were
14 55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	254 introduced. A draft folder, in contrast, does not introduce such
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	255 corner-cases. The available tools can operate on the messages within that
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	256 folder like on any messages within any mail folders. The only difference
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	257 is the fact that the default folder for
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	258 .Pn send
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	259 is the draft folder,
14 55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	260 instead of the current folder, like for all other tools.
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	261 .P
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	262 The trivial part of the change was activating the draft folder facility
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	263 by default and setting a default name for this folder. Obviously, I chose
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	264 the name
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	265 .Fn +drafts .
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	266 This made the
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	267 .Sw \-draftfolder
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	268 and
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	269 .Sw \-draftmessage
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	270 switches useless, and I could remove them.
14 55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	271 The more difficult but also the part that showed the real improvement,
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	272 was updating the tools to the new concept.
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	273 .Sw \-draft
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	274 switches could
14 55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	275 be dropped, as operating on a draft message became indistinguishable to
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	276 operating on any other message for the tools.
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	277 .Pn comp
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	278 still has its
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	279 .Sw \-use
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	280 switch for switching between its two modes: (1) Compose a new
14 55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	281 draft, possibly by taking some existing message as a form. (2) Modify
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	282 an existing draft. In either case, the behavior of
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	283 .Pn comp is
14 55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	284 deterministic. There is no more need to query the user. I consider this
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	285 a major improvement. By making
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	286 .Pn send
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	287 simply operate on the current
17 b3c37947764e Several minor text improvements. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 16 diff changeset	288 message in the draft folder by default, with message and folder both
14 55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	289 overridable by specifying them on the command line, it is now possible
17 b3c37947764e Several minor text improvements. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 16 diff changeset	290 to send a draft anywhere within the storage by simply specifying its folder
b3c37947764e Several minor text improvements. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 16 diff changeset	291 and name.
14 55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	292 .P
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	293 All theses changes converted special cases to regular cases, thus
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	294 simplifying the tools and increasing the flexibility.
55ec590cfa07 Wrote about the draft folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 12 diff changeset	295
16 81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	296 .U2 "Trash Folder
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	297 .P
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	298 Similar to the situation for drafts is the situation for removed messages.
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	299 Historically, a message was deleted by renaming. A specific
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	300 \fIbackup prefix\fP, often comma (\c
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	301 .Fn , )
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	302 or hash (\c
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	303 .Fn # ),
16 81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	304 being prepended to the file name. Thus, MH wouldn't recognize the file
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	305 as a message anymore, as only files whose name consists of digits only
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	306 are treated as messages. The removed messages remained as files in the
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	307 same directory and needed some maintenance job to truly delete them after
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	308 some grace time. Usually, by running a command similar to
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	309 .DS
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	310 find /home/user/Mail \-ctime +7 \-name ',*' \| xargs rm
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	311 .DE
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	312 in a cron job. Within the grace time interval
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	313 the original message could be restored by stripping the
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	314 the backup prefix from the file name. If however, the last message of
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	315 a folder is been removed \(en say message
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	316 .Fn 6
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	317 becomes file
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	318 .Fn ,6
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	319 \(en and a new message enters the same folder, thus the same
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	320 numbered being given again \(en in our case
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	321 .Fn 6
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	322 \(en, if that one
17 b3c37947764e Several minor text improvements. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 16 diff changeset	323 is removed too, then the backup of the former message gets overwritten.
16 81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	324 Thus, the ability to restore removed messages does not only depend on
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	325 the ``sweeping cron job'' but also on the removing of further messages.
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	326 This is undesireable, because the real mechanism is hidden from the user
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	327 and the concequences of further removals are not always obvious.
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	328 Further more, the backup files are scattered within the whole mail
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	329 storage, instead of being collected at one place.
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	330 .P
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	331 To improve the situation, the profile entry
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	332 .Pe rmmproc
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	333 (previously named
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	334 .Pe Delete-Prog )
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	335 was introduced, very early.
16 81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	336 It could be set to any command, which would care for the mail removal
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	337 instead of taking the default action, described above.
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	338 Refiling the to-be-removed files to some wastebin folder was a common
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	339 example. Nmh's man page
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	340 .Mp rmm(1)
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	341 proposes
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	342 .Cl "refile +d
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	343 to move messages to the wastebin and
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	344 .Cl "rm `mhpath +d all`
16 81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	345 the empty the wastebin.
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	346 Managing the message removal this way is a sane approach. It keeps
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	347 the removed messages in one place, makes it easy to remove the backup
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	348 files, and, most important, enables the user to use the tools of MH
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	349 itself to operate on the removed messages. One can
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	350 .Pn scan
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	351 them,
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	352 .Pn show
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	353 them, and restore them with
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	354 .Pn refile .
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	355 There's no more
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	356 need to use
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	357 .Pn mhpath
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	358 to switch over from MH tools to Unix tools \(en MH can do it all itself.
16 81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	359 .P
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	360 This apporach matches perfect with the concepts of MH, thus making
16 81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	361 it powerful. Hence, I made it the default. And even more, I also
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	362 removed the old backup prefix approach, as it is clearly less powerful.
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	363 Keeping unused alternative in the code is a bad choice as they likely
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	364 gather bugs, by not being constantly tested. Also, the increased code
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	365 size and more conditions crease the maintenance costs. By strictly
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	366 converting to the trash folder approach, I simplified the code base.
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	367 .Pn rmm
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	368 calls
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	369 .Pn refile
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	370 internally to move the to-be-removed
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	371 message to the trash folder (\c
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	372 .Fn +trash
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	373 by default). Messages
16 81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	374 there can be operated on like on any other message in the storage.
18 db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	375 The sweep clean, one can use
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	376 .Cl "rmm \-unlink +trash a" ,
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	377 where the
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	378 .Sw \-unlink
db3567c9cc3f style: Added format macros for files, functions, switches, etc. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 17 diff changeset	379 switch causes the files to be truly unliked instead
16 81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	380 of moved to the trash folder.
81f703140554 Wrote about the trash folder. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 14 diff changeset	381
0 dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	382
17 b3c37947764e Several minor text improvements. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 16 diff changeset	383 .H1 "MH Directory Split
0 dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	384 .P
19 ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	385 In MH and nmh, a personal setup had consisted of two parts:
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	386 The MH profile, named
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	387 .Fn \&.mh_profile
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	388 and being located directly in the user's home directory.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	389 And the MH directory, where all his mail messages and also his personal
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	390 forms, scan formats, other configuration files are stored. The location
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	391 of this directory could be user-chosen. The default was to name it
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	392 .Fn Mail
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	393 and have it directly in the home directory.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	394 .P
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	395 I've never liked the data storage and the configuration to be intermixed.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	396 They are different kinds of data. One part, are the messages,
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	397 which are the data to operate on. The other part, are the personal
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	398 configuration files, which are able to change the behavior of the operations.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	399 The actual operations are defined in the profile, however.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	400 .P
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	401 When storing data, one should try to group data by its type.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	402 There's sense in the Unix file system hierarchy, where configuration
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	403 file are stored separate (\c
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	404 .Fn /etc )
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	405 to the programs (\c
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	406 .Fn /bin
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	407 and
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	408 .Fn /usr/bin )
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	409 to their sources (\c
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	410 .Fn /usr/src ).
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	411 Such separation eases the backup management, for instance.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	412 .P
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	413 In mmh, I've reorganized the file locations.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	414 Still there are two places:
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	415 There's the mail storage directory, which, like in MH, contains all the
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	416 messages, but, unlike in MH, nothing else.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	417 Its location still is user-chosen, with the default name
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	418 .Fn Mail ,
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	419 in the user's home directory. This is much similar to the case in nmh.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	420 The configuration files, however, are grouped together in the new directory
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	421 .Fn \&.mmh
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	422 in the user's home directory.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	423 The user's profile now is a file, named
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	424 .Fn profile ,
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	425 in this mmh directory.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	426 Consistently, the context file and all the personal forms, scan formats,
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	427 and the like, are also there.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	428 .P
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	429 The naming changed with the relocation.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	430 The directory where everything, except the profile, had been stored (\c
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	431 .Fn $HOME/Mail ),
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	432 used to be called \fIMH directory\fP. Now, this directory is called the
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	433 user's \fImail storage\fP. The name \fImmh directory\fP is now given to
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	434 the new directory
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	435 (\c
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	436 .Fn $HOME/.mmh ),
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	437 containing all the personal configuration files.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	438 .P
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	439 The separation of the files by type of content is logical and convenient.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	440 There are no functional differences as any possible setup known to me
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	441 can be implemented with both approaches, although likely a bit easier
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	442 with the new approach. The main goal of the change had been to provide
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	443 sensible storage locations for any type of personal mmh file.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	444 .P
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	445 In order for one user to have multiple MH setups, he can use the
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	446 environment variable
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	447 .Ev MH
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	448 the point to a different profile file.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	449 The MH directory (mail storage plus personal configuration files) is
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	450 defined by the
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	451 .Pe Path
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	452 profile entry.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	453 The context file could be defined by the
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	454 .Pe context
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	455 profile entry or by the
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	456 .Ev MHCONTEXT
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	457 environment variable.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	458 The latter is useful to have a distinct context (e.g. current folders)
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	459 in each terminal window, for instance.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	460 In mmh, there are three environment variables now.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	461 .Ev MMH
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	462 may be used to change the location of the mmh directory.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	463 .Ev MMHP
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	464 and
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	465 .Ev MMHC
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	466 change the profile and context files, respectively.
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	467 Besides providing a more consistent feel (which simply is the result
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	468 of being designed anew), the set of personal configuration files can
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	469 be chosen independently from the profile (including mail storage location)
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	470 and context, now. Being it relevant for practical use or not, it
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	471 de-facto is an improvement. However, the main achievement is the
ab5253e48c74 Wrote about the directory split. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 18 diff changeset	472 split between mail storage and personal configuration files.
17 b3c37947764e Several minor text improvements. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 16 diff changeset	473
0 dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	474
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	475 .H1 "Path Notations
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	476 .P
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	477 foo
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	478
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	479 .H1 "Attachments
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	480 .P
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	481 foo
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	482
20 7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	483 .H1 "mhshow to show Transition
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	484 .P
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	485 Since the very beginning, already in the first concept paper,
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	486 .Pn show
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	487 had been MH's mail display program.
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	488 .Pn show
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	489 found out which pathnames the relevant messages had and invoked
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	490 .Pn mhl
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	491 then to let it render the content.
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	492 With the advent of MIME, this approach wasn't sufficient anymore.
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	493 MIME messages can consist of multiple parts, some of which aren't
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	494 directly displayable, and text content can be encoded in
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	495 foreign charsets.
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	496 .Pn show 's
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	497 simple approach and
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	498 .Pn mhl 's
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	499 limited display facilities couldn't cope with the task any longer.
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	500 Instead of extending these tools, new ones were written from scratch
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	501 and then added to the MH toolchest. Doing so is encouraged by the
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	502 toolchest approach. The new tools could be added without interfearing
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	503 with the existing ones. This is great. It allowed MH to be the
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	504 first MUA to implement MIME.
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	505 .P
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	506 The new MIME features were added in form of the single program
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	507 .Pn mhn .
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	508 The command
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	509 .DS
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	510 mhn \-show 42
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	511 .DE
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	512 would show the MIME message numbered 42.
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	513 With the 1.0 release of nmh in February 1999, Richard Coleman finished
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	514 the split of
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	515 .Pn mhn
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	516 into a set of specialized programs, which together covered the
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	517 aspects of MIME. One of these resulting tools was
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	518 .Pn mhshow .
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	519
7a100c80fa91 Some new text (show/mhshow; prompter). markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: 19 diff changeset	520
0 dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	521 .H1 "Blind Carbon Copies
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	522 .P
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	523 foo
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	524
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	525 .H1 "Good Defaults
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	526 .P
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	527 foo
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	528
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	529 .H1 "Modularization
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	530 .P
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	531 foo
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	532
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	533 .H1 "Code style
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	534 .P
dc2bfef4cda7 Initial commit: Basic structure, macros and fonts. markus schnalke <meillo@marmaro.de> parents: diff changeset	535 foo

Mercurial > docs > master

annotate ch03.roff @ 21:bb8a8be49024