1SORTM(1) [nmh-1.3] SORTM(1)
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6 sortm - sort messages
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9 sortm [+folder] [msgs] [-datefield field] [-textfield field]
10 [-notextfield] [-limit days] [-nolimit] [-verbose | -noverbose]
11 [-version] [-help]
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14 Sortm sorts the specified messages in the named folder according to the
15 chronological order of the “Date:” field of each message.
16 The -verbose switch directs sortm to tell the user the general actions
18 that it is taking to place the folder in sorted order.
19 The -datefield field switch tells sortm the name of the field to use
21 when making the date comparison. If the user has a special field in
22 each message, such as “BB-Posted:” or “Delivery-Date:”, then the -date‐
23 field switch can be used to direct sortm which field to examine.
24 The -textfield field switch causes sortm to sort messages by the speci‐
26 fied text field. If this field is “subject”, any leading "re:" is
27 stripped off. In any case, all characters except letters and numbers
28 are stripped and the resulting strings are sorted datefield-major,
29 textfield-minor, using a case insensitive comparison.
30 With -textfield field, if -limit days is specified, messages with simi‐
32 lar textfields that are dated within `days' of each other appear
33 together. Specifying -nolimit makes the limit infinity. With -limit
34 0, the sort is instead made textfield-major, date-minor.
35 For example, to order a folder by date-major, subject-minor, use:
37 sortm -textfield subject +folder
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42 $HOME/.mh_profile The user profile
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46 Path: To determine the user's nmh directory
47 Current-Folder: To find the default current folder
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51 folder(1)
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55 `+folder' defaults to the current folder
56 `msgs"'defaultstoall"
57 `-datefield' defaults to date
58 `-notextfield'
59 `-noverbose'
60 `-nolimit'
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64 If a folder is given, it will become the current folder. If the cur‐
65 rent message is moved, sortm
66 will preserve its status as current.
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70 Timezones used to be ignored when comparing dates: they aren't any
71 more.
72 Messages which were in the folder, but not specified by `msgs', used to
74 be moved to the end of the folder; now such messages are left
75 untouched.
76 Sortm sometimes did not preserve the message numbering in a folder
78 (e.g., messages 1, 3, and 5, might have been renumbered to 1, 2, 3
79 after sorting). This was a bug, and has been fixed. To compress the
80 message numbering in a folder, use “folder -pack” as always.
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84 If sortm encounters a message without a date-field, or if the message
85 has a date-field that sortm cannot parse, then sortm attempts to keep
86 the message in the same relative position. This does not always work.
87 For instance, if the first message encountered lacks a date which can
88 be parsed, then it will usually be placed at the end of the messages
89 being sorted.
90 When sortm complains about a message which it can't temporally order,
92 it complains about the message number prior to sorting. It should
93 indicate what the message number will be after sorting.
94MH.6.8 1 June 2008 SORTM(1)