🚀 go-pugleaf

On Wednesday, in article <823721983snx@holly.demon.co.uk>
     mcr@holly.demon.co.uk "Mark Rogers" wrote:

MR> Along with Decapitate (see other post), I'm looking at writing a program 
MR> to process .wrk files before KA9Q runs.
MR> 
MR> The prime reason for doing this is to automatically (but optionally) send 
MR> all mail via a "smart host" such as post.demon.co.uk. It should be able 
MR> to handle exceptions (such as news.demon.co.uk, or local mail which 
MR> needn't leave the system at all).

Mark, that sounds very useful: I'll certainly use it if I can
afford the registration fee :)   I curently have duplicate aliases
to achieve this, such as "Ann" and "SlowAnn", to save having to
use the % hack for regular recipients

However, a suggested enhancement would be to make its use optional, to
fit my current strategy, which is:
a) If I'm going on-line briefly especially at high-cost rates, I
   currently send everything to post.d.c.u
b) If I go on-line early in the morning, I send nearly everything
   direct, 'cos the lines shld be clear and my mail will get there
   quickly
c) If I'm going on-line in the evenings, I'll send mail to
   slow sites via post.d.c.u, unless I really need it to get through,
   in which case I send it direct.
d) As exceptions to the above rules, I have other strategies for
   specific sites.  For example, I regularly mail to a site in Germany
   which has a 70% packet loss in the evenings (so mail takes ages)
   but at other times, it's fine.  Another site (in Ireland) is OK only
   early in the morning.

So what I'd like the program to do is to ask the user before running:
  Send mail to smart host? Yes/No/Selected  (Y/N/S)

The "Selected" option wld allow you choose the fate of each bit
of mail individually

A further enhancement might be a configuration file, which
would allow some pre-definitions: e.g.

-------- config file -------------
direct=*.ac.uk
smarthost=*.outer.mongolia

and a few rules for other mail, to define times to use smarthost:

#day 1 = monday

#early morning w/e mail can go direct
[direct]
day=6-7
&time=0300-1030

[smarthost]
day=1-5
&time=0800-1800
&!To=my.love.mail.com

#default is to ask user

---- end of config file -------------

All a bit complex, but it would make it a very powerful tool.

Philip

-- 
/ Philip McNab  // philip@siberia.demon.co.uk /