1OFFLINEIMAPUI(7) OFFLINEIMAPUI(7)
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6 offlineimapui - The User Interfaces
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9 OfflineIMAP comes with different UIs, each aiming its own purpose.
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12 TTYUI interface is for people running in terminals. It prints out basic
13 status messages and is generally friendly to use on a console or xterm.
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16 Basic is designed for situations in which OfflineIMAP will be run
17 non-attended and the status of its execution will be logged.
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19 This user interface is not capable of reading a password from the
20 keyboard; account passwords must be specified using one of the
21 configuration file options. For example, it will not print periodic
22 sleep announcements and tends to be a tad less verbose, in general.
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25 Blinkenlights is an interface designed to be sleek, fun to watch, and
26 informative of the overall picture of what OfflineIMAP is doing.
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28 Blinkenlights contains a row of "LEDs" with command buttons and a log.
29 The log shows more detail about what is happening and is color-coded to
30 match the color of the lights.
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32 Each light in the Blinkenlights interface represents a thread of
33 execution — that is, a particular task that OfflineIMAP is performing
34 right now. The colors indicate what task the particular thread is
35 performing, and are as follows:
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37 • Black
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39 indicates that this light's thread has terminated; it will light up again
40 later when new threads start up. So, black indicates no activity.
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42 • Red (Meaning 1)
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44 is the color of the main program's thread, which basically does nothing but
45 monitor the others. It might remind you of HAL 9000 in 2001.
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47 • Gray
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49 indicates that the thread is establishing a new connection to the IMAP
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52 • Purple
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54 is the color of an account synchronization thread that is monitoring the
55 progress of the folders in that account (not generating any I/O).
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57 • Cyan
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59 indicates that the thread is syncing a folder.
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61 • Green
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63 means that a folder's message list is being loaded.
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65 • Blue
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67 is the color of a message synchronization controller thread.
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69 • Orange
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71 indicates that an actual message is being copied. (We use fuchsia for fake
72 messages.)
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74 • Red (meaning 2)
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76 indicates that a message is being deleted.
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78 • Yellow / bright orange
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80 indicates that message flags are being added.
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82 • Pink / bright red
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84 indicates that message flags are being removed.
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86 • Red / Black Flashing
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88 corresponds to the countdown timer that runs between synchronizations.
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90 The name of this interfaces derives from a bit of computer history.
91 Eric Raymond’s Jargon File defines blinkenlights, in part, as:
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93 Front-panel diagnostic lights on a computer, esp. a dinosaur. Now that
94 dinosaurs are rare, this term usually refers to status lights on a modem,
95 network hub, or the like.
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97 This term derives from the last word of the famous blackletter-Gothic
98 sign in mangled pseudo-German that once graced about half the computer
99 rooms in the English-speaking world. One version ran in its entirety as
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102 ACHTUNG! ALLES LOOKENSPEEPERS!
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104 Das computermachine ist nicht fuer gefingerpoken und mittengrabben.
105 Ist easy schnappen der springenwerk, blowenfusen und poppencorken
106 mit spitzensparken. Ist nicht fuer gewerken bei das dumpkopfen.
107 Das rubbernecken sichtseeren keepen das cotten-pickenen hans in das
108 pockets muss; relaxen und watchen das blinkenlichten.
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111 It will output nothing except errors and serious warnings. Like Basic,
112 this user interface is not capable of reading a password from the
113 keyboard; account passwords must be specified using one of the
114 configuration file options.
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117 Syslog is designed for situations where OfflineIMAP is run as a daemon
118 (e.g., as a systemd --user service), but errors should be forwarded to
119 the system log. Like Basic, this user interface is not capable of
120 reading a password from the keyboard; account passwords must be
121 specified using one of the configuration file options.
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124 MachineUI generates output in a machine-parsable format. It is designed
125 for other programs that will interface to OfflineIMAP.
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132 07/22/2021 OFFLINEIMAPUI(7)