[pmmail-list] alright, I've had enough ...

[Sorin Srbu]

lists@blueprintsoftwareworks.com <> sez on Wednesday, May 18, 2005 1:08
AM:

> On 16.05.2005 09:48, Sorin Srbu wrote:
>
>>>>> You won't be sorry if you change.
>
>>>> Unless something ever corrupts your mbox or an anti-virus thingy
>>>> "deletes the infected file" which is your mbox.
>
>>> Urban myth, dangerous smattering.
>
>> Don't want to start a flamewar, but...;
>
> Never missed one. :-)

As long as they don't get out of hand. ;-)

>> On the contrary. At least SAVCE9 does this.
>
> Come on! Don't blame the mbox format for the behaviour of some brain
> dead Dr. Feelgood pseudo virus scanners. Emphasis is on "scanner".

I'd feel better if there was only one msg-file, like in PMM (what other
mailers do use the single-file msg strategy??) being "taken care" of,
instead of the while inbox. So it's partially being the mailers fault
keeping it all in one place.

> There is not one single reason for a well behaved virus scanner to do
> something else than _scanning_ files for virus patterns. It may
> prevent
> you from accessing an infected file, but it may _never_ corrupt a file
> while "repairing" it (not mentioning operations on copies of files).

SAVCE doesn't really delete it, but usually quaratines it, and notifies
the user (and me), AFAIK. But there've been occasions when the whole
file was deleted because it was unrecoverable after cleaning.

>>> Never saw a corrupted mbox in 20 years. There is no simpler format
>>> and it hasn't the main drawback of one-file-per-message-format:
>>> snail's pace.
>
>> YMMV as they say, I guess. How many ppl at your work uses Tbird?
>
> Well, TB is not around that long. Mbox is used by some
> hundred/thousand users where I have a thing like an influence.

Is the program, the mailer, called Mbox, or do you mean the
mbox-strategy used by a mailer?

> There is no such thing as a critical operation on mbox. In fact there
> are only two operations: append (new mail) or a direct modification of
> one status byte or another. Everything else is "make a copy while
> doing what you think is useful and (in case of success) rename copy
> to original".

And this is where the only single-mbx-mailer I know and have used, fails
utterly; Eudora. Eudora does something to the TOC-file, which then
somehow corrupts the actual mbx-file, for whatever reason, when it makes
the copy-back-thingie you mention.


>> You may want to have a look here for starters:
>> <http://www.slipstick.com/emo/2004/up040430.htm#myths>
>
> What do you expect from a so called "Microsoft Most Valuable
> Professional"? Judgement? Giggle ...

Well, everybody is entitiled to their own opinion. Personally, I just
don't like some ppl spreading FUD, 's all. I guess we're done flaming
now? ;-)