[Mutt] #3031: Handle multiple folders at the same time
#3031: Handle multiple folders at the same time
This addresses a complaint/question that comes up every now and then, and
would probably provide a lot of side-benefits that we can't even think of
at the moment. It would be excellent if mutt could view the contents of
several folders at the same time, in an integrated display (i.e. there's
not necessarily any visible distinction between messages in one folder and
another).
If this worked, one could (for example) set limits and search within
multiple folders.
It MAY even be useful to add another % option to index_format that allows
each message to display which folder it's from, and a new sorting option
to sort (or sort_aux) by folder.
Here's the way I imagine the interface could work (just a suggestion).
<change-folder> works as it currently does (namely, it clears the index
and rebuilds the index from the contents of the new folder), however we
can add a new command: <add-folder>. This command would behave similar to
<change-folder> (i.e. the prompt, the cycling through mailboxes, etc.) but
instead of clearing the index and rebuilding it with the contents of the
new folder, it adds the contents of the new folder to the existing index
list, and re-sorts the index to merge the two together.
If this could work generically, one could theoretically view both the
local mailspool and an IMAP INBOX at the same time (for example). You
could also view all new mail messages at the same time in all of your
mailboxes (by adding them all, and then limiting the view to just new
messages). You could even search all mailboxes by adding all mailboxes and
then searching.
Thinking beyond this, really blue-sky, would be if mailboxes were handled
similar to the way threading is handled: that all messages in a given
mailbox could be "collapsed" the way a thread can be collapsed.
I don't know how difficult any of this would be to implement. It would be
awesome, though: very mutt-like, very simple interface, and
extraordinarily powerful (better than any other mail reader out there, bar
none).
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Ticket URL: <http://dev.mutt.org/trac/ticket/3031>