Re: [gentoo-security] Let's blow the whistle

[Bart]

lOn Mon, 8 Nov 2004 14:31:44 -0800, Anthony Gorecki
<anthony@××××××××××.com> wrote:
> On Monday 08 November 2004 2:22 pm, Bart wrote:
> > Okay, I'll use the reply-to-all on gmail. See how it's annoying? I am
> > *not* going to continually do the work of a
> > click-click-select-delete-click every single message because it's
> > against someone's sense of purism.
>
> Really, it's very simple: In my case, to reply solely to the author, I press
> "R". To reply to the mailing list, I press "L". To reply to everyone
> applicable, I press "A". Please don't complain about the fact that your web
> based email client isn't functioning like a real email client: it isn't a
> real email client.

There's a simple general test for what we call reality - that which
doesn't go away when you stop thinking about it.

The argument that your specific client (probably a minority client -
regardless of how cool it is and how much I would probably think
so too if I used it) does have this specific feature work doesn't
really help most people, who probably use their client for another
feature yours probably doesn't have. Their choice, and no program
is perfect. 

Does Outlook have this? Eudora? Thunderbird? Yahoo webmail? Hotmail?
Gmail? Kmail? Pine? Mutt? Two or three, perhaps.
The rest, which probably summarizes about everyone else, have to learn
to go "Oh right, the *gentoo* lists - did I just reply to the author?
Shit. Lemme
check my sent thing. Right. Copy... Oh, copy address first. Uh. Copy, paste,
copy, paste, send with apology to double dude".

In the end, computers are a tool to make things you want to do work as
simply as they can. You'll notice most people don't do what's technically
possible, but what's *simple*. Laziness, Impatience, Hubris, anyone?:)

I agree that this should be a supported client feature - but it isn't. 
Whatever the reason is, it's not going to be resolved, for now it
clashes with people's intuition, and in many cases will probably make
people work at something that could be automatic. 


> Ideally, GMail would read the message headers and would support a
> reply-to-list feature, however if it does not, we're not the ones to which
> you need to direct your frustrations.

Ideally, yes. I'ld like that. Practically? I doubt it'll happen, even with 
gmail's general clean-yet-featured attitude.

Not frustrated, just explaining my point of view. Now, all the people who
will be getting double emails from now on may be. (Laziness, Impat..
Er, yeah. Simplest solution.)

--Bart

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