Re: [Evolution] A list of problems/issues I've found with .13

[Jeffrey Stedfast <fejj ximian com>]

I'll deal with the mail section since I don't hack on the other
components...

On Sat, 2001-09-08 at 03:54, Alan wrote:
> Mail
> ===============================================================================
> Enhancements:
>  - Not everyone knows their PGP id, why not have a button that opens
>    a browser to something like http://wwwkeys.us.pgp.net/ or even
>    better
>    http://pgp.dtype.org:11371/pks/lookup?search=%s&op=index
>    Where %s is the default email address the user provides.

You don't actually need to fill in the Key Id field. This is optional,
and really only needed if your pgp key does not match (or contain) your
email address. Since that is the case, opening a browser is a complete
waste of time I think...?

>  - In the mail settings dialog the button at the bottom is labeled
>    "Close" no matter what tab you are on.  This is bad design IMHO as
>    if you make changes (set, set threading to default on the Display
>    tab) are your settings save automatically, or not.  People are used
>    to seeing "Apply/OK/Cancel" buttons at the bottom of a dialog, and
>    in this case I think at least an "OK/Cancel" combination would make
>    sense, to allow people the choice to save their settings or not.
>    If the architecture of the program is a "save as soon as an option
>    is set", then instead of close, how about changing it to "OK"
>    (which is more "friendly" sounding).

Options are set/saved the instant you change them... I guess I agree
that maybe an OK button instead of Close might be more appropriate. I
dunno... I'm not a UI expert.

>  - When connecting via SSL to a site that has created their own cert
>    (ie: lots of personal sites and servers out there, including mine)
>    a "Bad Certificate" message is displayed.  This is done each
>    session.  It would be much nicer to have a "remember this choice"
>    or "import certificate" similar to the way that IE or netscape can
>    do it, so you are not nagged every time you check your mail (or
>    every time you restart Evolution, it seems to vary).  At least
>    an "ignore further errors about this site" or "ignore further
>    certificate errors" or something like that.

I've been trying to fix it to import the certificate (that's the only
non-hacky-kludgy way to do it) but unfortunately Mozilla's NSS library
interfaces changed on me and now I have no clue how to import
certificates. I love working with libraries that contain 0
documentation.

>  - A useful option to have when right clicking on a VFolder would be
>    "Edit..."
>
>  - Allowing more EMACS keybindings (^u is the one I noticed) in the
>    email composer

The bindings are configurable, you just have to edit the file...although
I forget where they are. I think they are accessable via the gnomecc
program.

> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Problem:
>  - Deleted messages dragged onto their same pane (ie: you decide you
>    don't want to drag it anywhere after starting to drag it somewhere
>    and move the mouse back to the original message) are undeleted.
>    Their strikethrough is removed, even if the "drop" is back where
>    they started.

I agree that this shouldn't happen, but for me it doesn't... I also
wrote the Drag & Drop code and am pretty damn certain that it shouldn't
be doing this (it's not something that can happen by mistake either).

However, we *do* need it so we can drop on message-lists... if you have
2 Evolution windows open, you should be able to drag a message from one
message-list and drop into another.

> Possible Solution:
>  - Have the list pane that the message is dragged from be an invalid
>    drop area.  I don't think you can re-order messages by
>    dragging/dropping anyway, as this would be controlled by the sort
>    order.
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Problem:
>  - Sometimes vfolders get "stuck" and I get a screen bottom full of
>    "Refreshing folder <foldername>" along the status bar.  This is
>    sign of an impending crash and time to leave.
>
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Problem:
>  - Setting "Message list should display in a threaded fashion by
> default"
>    does not work.  Having this set (Mail settings->display) does not
>    affect (for example) new vfolders, which default to NOT having
>    that option checked in the View menu

What probably happened is that you had already opened the folders before
setting the default behavior? Since the default behavior starts off as
"not threaded", each folder you open gets saved as "don't thread this
folder" and so when you change the default setting, the folders you had
previously opened retain their specified setting.

> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Problem:
>  - Setting "send HTML mail by default" does not seem to work when
>    inserting an inline text file.  This makes sense, in a way, but
>    how do you bring a text file in as an email (ie: something you
>    wrote somewhere else) without making HTML mail (or at least, an
>    HTML attachment)?  Opening it up in another editor, select all,
>    copy, paste is an option, but "import text file" or some similar
>    type option would be cool as well.

Insert -> Inline Text File ...

Already there ;-)

> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Problem:
>  - Vfolders do not seem to refresh their contents until they are
>    clicked on.
>    For example:
>     o I start up evolution, create a bunch of Vfolders on my various
>       mailing lists,
>       save and exit.
>     o Wait a bit till more mail is recieved.  o Start up evolution.
>       My IMAP mail server shows the new messages in the inbox.
>       The Vfolders that I've created will not reflect those changes
>       in the mail count until I click on EACH AND EVERY ONE.
>
>    IMHO, this way of doing things (and I hope I'm doing something
>    wrong here, I did wait for some time (a minute? maybe more,
>    maybe a bit less) before determining that they weren't refreshing
>    automatically) is completely pointless for the way that Vfolders
>    work.  You are actually making more work for the user if they
>    have to click on each folder to refresh it (funnily enough,
>    the UNMATCHED folder will start off with a high number, and go
>    down as each mailing list folder is clicked).
>
>    Telling me "just filter your mail to other local|remote folders"
>    isn't going to work.  I'm doing it this way so that I can filter
>    my mail while I'm at work, and download it via POP when I get
>    home, so I want to leave it on the server in the main spool.
>
>    IMHO, I don't see how this behaviour could not be seen as either
>    a design flaw or a bug :)  Don't get me wrong, VFolders absolutely
>    ROCK, but having to click on them to refresh my mail just sucks.
>
> Possible Solution:
>  - Make Vfolders so they are always "active" and searching the contents
>    of their sources.  They seemed to work properly after the initial
>    click, so it may just be something on initialization or program
> start.

The problem is that to keep the vfolders constantly updating means
having to do loads of extra disk access and cpu hogging. Unfortunately
it takes resources in order to query on-disk mailboxes (and especially
remote (IMAP) mailboxes). The way I see it we are stuck between a rock
and a hard place. Users want fast, but they also want continuous
updating. If we make it continually update, then we'll get complaints
that Evolution is too slow. Users need to understand that they can't
have their cake and eat it too. And unfortunately we are already being
critisized for "being too slow".

>    It's not always working though, I have 4 messages sitting in IMAP
>    inbox right now, but the text for the UNMATCHED folder shows no
>    new mail.  When I click on the UNMATCHED folder it changes to
>    "UNMATCHED (4)" :(

This bug is known.

> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Problem:
>  - When initially attaching a file to an outgoing message, the
> attachment
>    icon is shown in the center of the attachment pane.   When it is
>    accessed again (ie: right click->properties->ok) or another
>    attachment is added, the icons are moved to the far left.
>    Not a huge problem, but inconsistant behaviour.

Also known, but not sure how to fix it...my guess is that this is a
gnome-libs bug.

> Possible Solution:
>  - Place the icon with the same alignment initially as when the pane
>    is redrawn (what I assume is happening).

Jeff