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Re: Why does it always say "using template mhl.format"

1998-02-09 21:08:22

Richard Coleman <coleman(_at_)math(_dot_)gatech(_dot_)edu> writes:
Now that mhl is the default showproc, why is it that it *always* prints:

 -- using template mhl.format --

at the beginning of all messages?  It says this even if it *isn't* using
that file.  I copied mhl.format to my mail directory with a different name,
made changes to it, and verified that show is using my file, but it still
prints that annoying line...

This happens whether the -form specifier is on the mhl: line of the
.mh_profile or on the show command line.

Uh ... Dan, that line is in the format file itself.  The format file directs
everything that is printed, including that initial line.

Ah yes.  I guess I missed it before because the colon the line starts with
resembles the semicolons of the lines just above it.  My neural net
automatically classified it as a comment line and I glossed right over it.

I wonder if it's worthwhile having that line in there.  I'd be willing to
bet there are a lot of people who think the default format is just fine but
don't particularly like that line.  Those people now have to learn about the
mhl command, figure out the right place to copy the file to, etc.  And I
don't think it's a particular help to mhl experts, either...

I have a thing against unnecessarily chatty software.  Why not make the
default be something that's attractive and usable without tweaking
(mhl.format _is_, except for that line).

 --------------------------------------
| Dan Harkless           |             |
| dan_nmh(_at_)unitech(_dot_)com    | MH FOREVER! |
| Unitech Research, Inc. |             |
 --------------------------------------


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