[imp] Idea for new feature: View Only...

[Eric Jon Rostetter]

Quoting Eric Gorr <mailist at ericgorr.net>:

> This is a common feature found in other popular e-mail applications, like
> Thunderbird - the ability to display only certain kinds of messages in a
> mailbox.

As others have said, this can be done via virtual folders.  I'm not
sure what your objections to this are, or how you would provide a better
solution.

As also noted, the search interface also provides this ability, with
some work of course ;)

> So, for example, when viewing your inbox, you could select View:   
> unseen and only
> the unseen messages would be displayed.

You can do a system-wide setup in IMP to always create a Virtual Inbox to
do just this.  But assuming that you mean this as just one example, and
want others (beside unseen and deleted), then the user would have to define
the needed virtual folders...

> This could be largely thought of as a more generic implementation of the
> Show/Hide Deleted messages feature.

If you wanted it restricted to a single mailbox.  The virtual folders seem
more useful to me as they can span folders selectively.  Show/Hide
Deleted (AFAIK) only work on a single folder.

> Anyone else like this idea? Is it already on the 'to do' list?

I'm really unclear of the issue you are trying to solve, and how it
differs from Virtual Folders.  The only way I see it would be different
would be that it is more dynamic (via a select box) where as Virtual
Folders would either be more static (define once, use from then on) or
more work (define it each time you want to use a new one).

I have a feeling that one of us is missing something though.  I really
think that to get any further you need to clearly state your goals, and
why you think virtual folders (and the search interface) don't meet those
goals as-is.

Sorry if I'm just being dense...

-- 
Eric Rostetter
The Department of Physics
The University of Texas at Austin

Go Longhorns!