Re: suggestion for expiry

[Thomas Lofgren <lofgren@sics.se>]

>>>>> "Max" == Max Froumentin <masmef@maths.bath.ac.uk> writes:

    Max> I like gnus for its ability to wait before deleting expirable
    Max> mail messages (nnmail-expiry-wait-function, etc.).  In my
    Max> mail groups, expiry length is set to 30 days. When I keep
    Max> messages ticked for more than a month, and then I mark them
    Max> expirable, they are deleted immediately. Am I the only one to
    Max> be bothered by this?

I find it very convenient.  If I want to save the article after
unticking, I just mark it as read instead of expired.  Typical example
is a message on bugtraq that seems interesting.  I tick the article
until I have time to look into if my systems are vulnerable, and when
I'm done I expire it.  If that means th article is deleted right away,
then that's exactly what I want.  After all, I had plenty of time to
look at it.

    Max> May I suggest that expiry be based on another date than the
    Max> message's 'Date:' field? Rather, another field storing the
    Max> date of the last time the message was read seems to me more
    Max> appropriate.  What do people think?

This would be a very bad idea, because then Gnus behavior depends on
the configuration of *another system*.  If I set my date back a few
weeks/months/years, I can have my mail expired on your machine right
away.  Arrival time would be more interesting, since then you're only
trusting your own system.

Tom
-- 
T. Lofgren <lofgren@sics.se> - Wherever I lay my .emacs, that's my ${HOME}
"Hear that, Mr Anderson?  That's the sound of inevitability." - Smith