Re: [Nmh-workers] Replace mh-format?

[Tet]

Jerry Peek writes:

>He was thinking about replacing mh-format -- that is, code like:
>
>    %4(msg)%<(cur)+%| %>%<{replied}-%?{x-done} %|>%>
>
>with a scripting language like Tcl, or something else more standard.

Oddly enough I was thinking about the very same thing a few weeks ago.
Mostly because I was trying to explain to someone else why I wasn't
looking for a new MUA. I *can't* live without the power that mh-format
gives me, and he couldn't come up with a way of doing the same things
I use it for in another MUA. But it occurred to me that there's no reason
it has to have the same rebarbative syntax that it's traditionally used.
Personally, I quite like it, but then I'm weird like that -- I see beauty
in sendmail.cf too :-)

>But, of course, it would also mean that everyone -- including users
>of front-ends like exmh and MH-E -- would have to update their custom
>scan format files and other things that use mh-format. I dunno if the
>pain would be worthwhile. Comments?

Would they? Why not make it optional?

        repl -script foo.tcl

If you supply both -script and -form arguments, then make -script take
priority. That way, you get nice new syntax, without breaking backwards
compatibility. Or alternatively, look for the presence of some magic
cookie in a form to determine whether it's in new script syntax, and
default to the traditional syntax if said cookie isn't found.

Tet