[imp] message selection in imp

[Andy Dorman]

On 07/20/2015 03:10 AM, Michael Menge wrote:
>
> Hi,
>
> some of our users don't like how the message selection in imp is
> currently handled.
>
> If you click on es message to view it, the current selection is reset
> and the message gets selected.
> The following three "issues" are reported.
>
> 1. If you want to delete/move multiple other mails you have to remember
> to deselect the message.
>
> 2. There is no way to view a mail without deselecting all selected
> mails. (e.g. you have selected
> some mails to delete them, and you want to check one mail if it should
> be deleted or not.)
>
> 3. If you miss the selection box, your selection is reset.
>
>
> One possible solution to these problems would be to make the message
> view independent from
> the message selections.
>
> Before I create a new feature request I would like to discuss the pro
> and cons, and
> check if such a feature request  would have a chance to be accepted.
>
>
> Regards
>
>      Michael
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> M.Menge                                Tel.: (49) 7071/29-70316
> Universität Tübingen                   Fax.: (49) 7071/29-5912
> Zentrum für Datenverarbeitung          mail:
> michael.menge at zdv.uni-tuebingen.de
> Wächterstraße 76
> 72074 Tübingen
>

I have a couple of questions about how you would want the selection 
process to changed...

 > 1. If you want to delete/move multiple other mails you have to 
remember to deselect the message.

So, if you have a message selected and you want to select another to 
read, how would you do it?  The expected behavior is that the selected 
email is the one that is viewed.  So you want to be able to select a 
specific email and it NOT be displayed?

In that case you would need another action to tell the system to 
actually display the selected email, roughly doubling the actions needed 
to read your email and that is NOT something we would support.

Or perhaps I do not understand. ;-)

 > 2. There is no way to view a mail without deselecting all selected
 > mails. (e.g. you have selected some mails to delete them, and you
 > want to check one mail if it should be deleted or not.)

I simply delete the group above or below the email I have a question 
about and then select the email I want to read...two clicks...Every 
email client I have ever used works this way.  I think changing Imp to 
require MORE user actions to manage their email is the wrong way to go.

 > 3. If you miss the selection box, your selection is reset.

This one really confused me...so I logged in and tried to reset a group 
I was selecting.

I was at first unable to do what you describe as follows:

1. I selected an email by clicking anywhere on the row containing the 
Selection check box - From - Subject - Date - Size.

2. Then I held down the Shift key (Shift+select and Ctrl+select have 
been GUI standards for inclusive and exclusive list selections 
respectively for over 30 years)

3. Then tried to somehow reset the group by clicking anywhere in the 
email list and I could not loose the selection.

Eventually I figured out that if you do NOT follow GUI standards to hold 
down the Shift key to indicate an "inclusive" multi-select, then the 
interface correctly sees your selection request as NOT a multi-select 
and behaves as it should.

Again, I may not understand and if I miss your point then I apologize.

Sincere regards,

-- 
Andy Dorman