On 02/08/2010 7:30 AM, MB wrote:
Rene Merz suggested:
It's not at all! The "database" has his own proprietary format of PM.
The "database" for the typical use is all of the email messages and the
folders containing them, not the database format itself.
Would the typical user be led to believe that the features of the PM
database format is lost when export to say, Unix box format, and it was
possible to select other formats after having selected to export all of
the database? I think not.
Are there any features of the PM DB-format, except being able to keep
metadata for future import to another version of PM, that is worth even
contemplating?
I think the current interface for the export is more bewildering for non-
technical users, than if PM would regard export of the database as "the
complete selection of the folders and messages".
It's not merely a question of technical vs non-technical, I think.
Rather it is a case of what assumptions should one make and how clear is
the documentation regarding those assumptions.
Other apps don't require one to make the distinction between "all
folders in the database" and "the database" when exporting. The export
just happens. Any necessary massaging of the data is handled by the
export function.
The documentation on the website makes no mention of this subtlety
either. It only says that one can choose the format of one's choice and
that's it. I've written many a user guide in my time on a variety of
topics. I know when something is missing and you can bet your bottom
dollar (or euro or yen or whatever you use) that somebody somewhere is
going to trip on that missing piece of information.
Here is the section of the online manual, the very section that Rene
pointed out in his mail as well:
--------------------------
Exporting messages and addresses out of PowerMail to other e-mail
clients
Exporting the mail database: Select the messages or the folder(s) you
want to export (if you want to export a subset of your database),
then select the "Export" item from the File / Database submenu. We
recommend exporting your mail as set of Netscape / Mozilla, or Unix
mailbox files since these are the most commonly used formats for
interchange, and to check the "include attachments" checbox if you
want to also export the files that were attached to sent and received
messages.
--------------------------
Unfortunately, Rene, it does NOT answer the question I had. It should
have a sentence that states something like:
---
NOTE: In order to export your entire database to a format other than
PowerMail Exchange, you MUST select the option for specific folders and
then select ALL folders from the list.
---
I know that the manual has not always kept up with the times but this
example seems more of a glaring omission than others.
Anyway, thanks to all who took the time to answer! :-)
Regards,
Tim
