Mailer Modularity (was Re: lynx-dev Attached files)

[Michael Warner]

On Tue, May 05, 1998, address@hidden <address@hidden> wrote:

> In a recent note, Larry W. Virden, x2487 said:
>
> > Date: Tue, 5 May 1998 07:37:41 -0400
> >
> > As far as I am aware, no lynx provides an 'attachment' feature.  To
> > include a file in a message, you would somehow need to uuencode
> > or mime pack, etc. the file in question, then when you get into
> > lynx and the mail option you would read the encoded file into the
> > message.  Of course, if your lynx is configured to prevent using a
> > regular editor, then that option isn't available to you.
>
> Even if you do use a "regular editor", the MIME headers probably
> won't be right for an enclosure.  Perhaps the complete solution is a
> configuration option allowing lynx to use a "regular" MUA (e.g. elm).
> It would be the modular thing to do.  But will I ever get around to
> it?

Sounds like a job for... UNDERDOG!!! ...er, I mean, EXTERNAL!!!  (I
guess I was thinking of my MUA - mutt).

Something that naive users (like me) might find useful could be a
repository of canned EXTERNAL: definitions for various popular "helper
apps" on various platforms, over and above the samples in lynx.cfg.
Also, some things might (will) need a little help in the form of a
simple script to filter lynx's output into a format the external app can
use.  For instance, lynx passes along the whole mailto: URL, so I have
to trim off the "mailto:"; and feed mutt just the address part.

NB: This is on unix(tm), I have no idea whether/how EXTERNAL works on
other platforms.

Then again, maybe EXTERNAL was only intended to be an interim solution
on the way to something more comprehensive?

-- 
Michael Warner 
<address@hidden>