Bug in gnus-group-make-articles-read? (was: nnimap: gnus-gcc-mark-as-read not working)

[Wolfram Fenske <Wolfram.Fenske@Student.Uni-Magdeburg.DE>]

Simon Josefsson <jas@extundo.com> writes:

> Wolfram Fenske <Wolfram.Fenske@Student.Uni-Magdeburg.DE> writes:
>
>> Wolfram Fenske <Wolfram.Fenske@Student.Uni-Magdeburg.DE> writes:
>>
>>> I have sent mail Gcc-ed to a folder on my IMAP-server.  This mostly
>>> works, but the copy in the sent-mail folder is never marked as read.
>>> In my .gnus.el I have:
>>>
>>> --8<---------------cut here---------------start------------->8---
>>> (setq gnus-message-archive-group  "nnimap+uni:INBOX.sent-mail"
>>>       gnus-gcc-mark-as-read       t)
>>> --8<---------------cut here---------------end--------------->8---
>>>
>>> If I use nnfolder [...], archiving works as it should.
>>
>> [...]
>>
>> For my IMAP sent-mail group, "entry" is always "nil" because "group"
>> is "nnimap+uni:INBOX.sent-mail" but my ~/.newsrc.eld contains only
>> entries like "INBOX.sent-mail", i. e. the prefix "nnimap+uni:" is
>> missing.
>
> Doesn't it work to simply drop the 'nnimap+uni:' part above?

Unfortunately, it doesn't, I just checked again (I knew I had tried
this at some point ...).  If I omit it, gnus adds the prefix
"nnfolder+archive:", so I get a header field saying

--8<---------------cut here---------------start------------->8---
Gcc: nnfolder+archive:INBOX.sent-mail
--8<---------------cut here---------------end--------------->8---

I have to admit, I cheated a bit before.  Actually, my setup is

--8<---------------cut here---------------start------------->8---
(setq gnus-message-archive-group '("nnimap+uni:INBOX.sent-mail" "sent-mail"))
--8<---------------cut here---------------end--------------->8---

I should have said that before.  

Anyway, from reading the docs, I got the impression these setting were
a correct way to accomplish creating both a carbon copy on the IMAP
server and one in a local folder.  My logic was: use the full name to
make it clear I mean the nnimap group and use an "unqualified" name
for the local copy, which gnus auto-completes using the value of
"gnus-message-archive-method" (I don't set this variable myself.).

>> Now the question is: why don't I have the prefixes in ~/.newsrc.eld?
>> Is this because nnimap is my primary gnus-select-method?  A while back
>> I had nnimap as my secondary select method and I think I didn't have
>> this problem then.
>>
>> Also: is there a bug in "gnus-group-make-articles-read" or is it my
>> config?  [...]
>
> I've found that the easiest is to use a nnnil method as the primary
> method, and then have all methods being equal.

That sounds like the way to go [1].  Still, I wonder whether the
behavior I described constitutes a bug or not.  I'm thinking, yes, but
I don't know enough about the internals of gnus to actually decide
that.


Greetings
Wolfram

Footnotes: 
[1]  Maybe the distinction between primary method and secondary
methods should be removed altogether.  I suppose it was good for
backward compatibility back in the day but now it's only asymmetric,
and it appears to me that the problem I described in this thread stems
from this very asymmetry.  Why else would my IMAP groups (primary
method) be called e. g. "INBOX.sent-mail" in my ~/.newsrc.eld file,
when groups from other backends (secondary methods) are called
"nnfolder+archive:sent-mail" etc.?  I'm almost sure, if it wasn't for
the different naming schemes, I wouldn't have had the problem.

-- 
A: Yes.
>Q: Are you sure?
>>A: Because it reverses the logical flow of conversation.
>>>Q: Why is top posting frowned upon?