Re: draft-ietf-imapext-thread

[Mark Crispin <[e-mail]>]

On Wed, 13 Jun 2001, Cyrus Daboo wrote:
> There are two types of 'windowing' mode: input windowing and output
> windowing.

To expand on Cyrus' excellent summary, you need both types of windowing.
There are numerous cases where you do not want to sort or thread all
messages.

SORT and THREAD do input windowing because it is easy and obvious how to
do it, and because it follows the theme of SORT/THREAD being merely
expanded forms of SEARCH (or SEARCH the most degenerate form of
SORT/THREAD).

Right now, output windowing is done by the application.  I have stood firm
on NOT putting output windowing into SORT/THREAD, because I believe that
server-based output windowing will probably need to go through multiple
generations of evolution before it can replace application-based output
windowing.  If server-based output windowing is done by a VIEW or WINDOW
command, then it can evolve without forcing new generations of
SORT/THREAD.  Breaking up the problem into smaller pieces is a Good Thing.

-- Mark --

http://staff.washington.edu/mrc
Science does not emerge from voting, party politics, or public debate.