Interesting idea, Chris. Metadata or folders could solve the issue. Of the two, the metadata idea seems more efficient. One of the big problems with attachments are all those image files that are included in HTML style mail: such as little emoticons, stuff in the headers and footers and even background images.
Perhaps a better idea would be to maintain a separate index file for the attachments. Basically a simple database, each record would include sufficient info to recreate the links to a specific email message. That way a simple search for subject or date would be all that is required to determine whether or not a given attachment is orphaned and to which e-mail it once belonged. As far as the spinning beach ball goes, I don't think it would be too bad. I just checked my attachments folder. It has just under 3,000 items and it took less than 5 seconds to display. I have the last of the white iMacs (circa 2007) with the maximum amount of RAM (3 to 4 GB). Assuming an equivalent Mac, it should take less than 30 seconds to display just under 14,000 items. -- Tim Lapin t...@sympatico.ca On 2010-11-22, at 9:23 PM, C. A. Niemiec wrote: >>> I have 13,795 items in my Attachments folders, going back to 2003. I'm >>> convinced that many of them are orphans. I wish there was a way to clean >>> them out. >> >> I wonder if there's a way to identify orphans? >> >> Anyone know of one? Perhaps CTM has a suggestion? > > Is there is any technical problem to putting all the attachments for > each message in its own folder? Name the folder with some combination of > message subject and date/timestamp received. > > This would prevent the need to rename attachments. If you find what you > think is an orphaned attachment set, you have a clue to what the > original message is, and if it's junk you can be rid of it all by > deleting just one folder. > > Can metadata be set in the Finder on that folder in such a way that > Spotlight will see that it is attached to a particular PowerMail > message? Could FoxTrot use this kind of logic (maybe it does)? > > Here's another idea that perhaps could be done if attachments were > stored in folders: an AppleScript that goes through your messages and > finds the corresponding folder of its attachments and sets the Finder > label to what you choose. Then you know which folders are orphaned by > seeing which ones are not labeled. > > If one actually uses Finder labels for some other purpose here, "do not > change label if already labeled" criterion, etc. > > Hrm. 13.932 items in my Attachments folder. That's quite a spin of the > ol' beachball to see the list in the Finder. I can't imagine an > Attachments folder with fewer folders (than that number of files) would > be worse. > > Chris > -- > > > >
