SORTM(1) [nmh-1.0.4] (MH.6.8) SORTM(1)
NAME
sortm - sort messages
SYNOPSIS
sortm [+folder] [msgs] [-datefield field] [-textfield field]
[-notextfield] [-limit days] [-nolimit] [-verbose]
[-noverbose] [-version] [-help]
DESCRIPTION
Sortm sorts the specified messages in the named folder
according to the chronological order of the Date: field of
each message.
The `-verbose' switch directs sortm to tell the user the
general actions that it is taking to place the folder in
sorted order.
The `-datefield field' switch tells sortm the name of the
field to use when making the date comparison. If the user
has a special field in each message, such as BB-Posted: or
Delivery-Date:, then the `-datefield' switch can be used to
direct sortm which field to examine.
The `-textfield field' switch causes sortm to sort messages
by the specified text field. If this field is subject, any
leading "re:" is stripped off. In any case, all characters
except letters and numbers are stripped and the resulting
strings are sorted datefield-major, textfield-minor, using a
case insensitive comparison.
With `-textfield field', if `-limit days' is specified,
messages with similar textfields that are dated within
`days' of each other appear together. Specifying `-nolimit'
makes the limit infinity. With `-limit 0', the sort is
instead made textfield-major, date-minor.
For example, to order a folder by date-major, subject-minor,
use:
sortm-textfield subject +folder
FILES
$HOME/.mh_profile The user profile
PROFILE COMPONENTS
Path: To determine the user's nmh directory
Current-Folder: To find the default current folder
SEE ALSO
folder (1)
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SORTM(1) [nmh-1.0.4] (MH.6.8) SORTM(1)
DEFAULTS
`+folder' defaults to the current folder
`msgs' defaults to all
`-datefield date'
`-notextfield'
`-noverbose'
`-nolimit'
CONTEXT
If a folder is given, it will become the current folder. If
the current message is moved, sortm will preserve its status
as current.
HISTORY
Timezones used to be ignored when comparing dates: they
aren't any more.
Messages which were in the folder, but not specified by
`msgs', used to be moved to the end of the folder; now such
messages are left untouched.
Sortm sometimes did not preserve the message numbering in a
folder (e.g., messages 1, 3, and 5, might have been
renumbered to 1, 2, 3 after sorting). This was a bug, and
has been fixed. To compress the message numbering in a
folder, use folder -pack as always.
BUGS
If sortm encounters a message without a date-field, or if
the message has a date-field that sortm cannot parse, then
sortm attempts to keep the message in the same relative
position. This does not always work. For instance, if the
first message encountered lacks a date which can be parsed,
then it will usually be placed at the end of the messages
being sorted.
When sortm complains about a message which it can't
temporally order, it complains about the message number
prior to sorting. It should indicate what the message
number will be after sorting.
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