[Users] [Bulk] Re: Claws config needs much better documentation

[Sitaram Chamarty]

On Mon, Jul 30, 2012 at 2:34 PM, Michael Gmelin <freebsd at grem.de> wrote:
> On Mon, 30 Jul 2012 06:02:56 +0530
> Sitaram Chamarty <sitaramc at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> On Mon, Jul 30, 2012 at 12:47 AM, Kevin Chadwick
>> <ma1l1ists at yahoo.co.uk> wrote:
>> >> > The default for "Open message when selected" (in
>> >> > Display/Summaries) is unsafe.
>> >> >
>> >
>> > I always figured this was a nice feature that claws  with certain
>> > plugins enabled and even more so other clients should follow in
>> > order to allow deletion without virus execution or image handler
>> > exploitation etc..
>> >
>> > A bit like download headers and delete spam with viruses before
>> > download when using pop3.
>>
>> That would be fine if it matched with what people *expect* from other
>> email clients.  IME no other mail clients do this, so it is a
>> surprise.  And not a good surprise either.
>>
>> The behaviour you spoke of should be implemented more explicitly.  For
>> example the checkboxes in gmail let you do just that.  In claws as is,
>> I'd say "hide the message view and then move to a message to have that
>> safety".
>
> In my understanding claws focuses on useful features which are
> presented in a more or less programmer style way (sometimes you just
> dig through the rc files to find a configuration settings, the dialogs
> tend to be crowded and full of advanced options etc.). And you know
> what? I dig that, because it means it is not hiding anything from me
> for the sake of usability (Apple), or trying to invent useless features
> instead of fixing year old bugs (TB). I switched to claws only a few
> weeks ago and it's already second nature to me - everything is so easy
> and straightforward and clearly designed by tech people - it's great
> for someone like me :)
>
> It doesn't behave like other MUAs and I don't think it should
> try to emulate them. There are too many similar working clients
> out there already, and making features that are special to claws the
> default actually forces people to explore them (and how to change them
> if it's not what they want). I wouldn't have found this useful feature,
> that you criticize as dangerous, otherwise. It's incredibly refreshing
> to see software with a different approach - open source productivity
> applications way too often try to copy commercial products instead of
> providing alternative solutions.
>
> I cannot speak for the project owners, but to me the project philosophy
> is not to create a 100% polished product that's a seamless
> replacement for the MUA that came with the OS. It's for people that are
> willing to invest into the configuration of their MUA to get the best
> possible tool for *their* use case - essentially people that are not
> satisfied with the usual 90/10 approach most user-friendly software
> takes these days. Wasting development resources to make it more like
> other programs seems pointless to me.
>
> Just my 2 cents...

You're extrapolating what I said about "principle of least
astonishment" into something far more.