GNOME Bugzilla – Bug 787988
Don't replace subject line when replying with template (canned) reply
Last modified: 2021-05-19 12:28:08 UTC
Evolution's mail "templates" feature is incredibly useful for mail-based customer support workers who often need to reply the same kind of answer or to ask the same kind of questions to request more information. The only problem: when you right-click a mail and choose to reply with a template, it doesn't seem to preserve the subject line, even though https://help.gnome.org/users/evolution/stable/mail-composer-message-templates-reply.html.en says it should (and it indeed should). Or at least, it doesn't show that in the subject line gtkentry field, so I can't trust it as a user.
Thanks for a bug report. You can set the template message Subject as: $ORIG[Subject] in which case it'll copy the subject from the original message. It's better, because sometimes you want the same Subject for each response (for example when sending product keys or anything like that, thus users can find it easily in their mail box). The only downside is that it's also shown in the context menu, thus there might be added some way to describe the message in the context menu, but also preserve the original subject.
Indeed you have found the discrepancy... it uses the subject line that was written in the template to actually identify the template in the menu and in the list of template messages inside the "templates" folder, so that clearly wouldn't work. Having to put $ORIG[Subject] in the subject field is not discoverable; I've been using the templates feature for years and only now have I discovered you can use variables in it... and even then I would never think you can use it in the subject *field*, I'd have thought variables are only for the body (like a mailmerge feature, kind of). I suspect the "override reply's subject line with the template's subject line" scenario is used much less often than "preserve the original subject" (tech support). Even for sending "product keys" or whatever, I'm not sure this would be used. But if you do have customers who actively want it to behave that way, I suppose it could either be a global dconf key, or by popping up a dialog, when saving a template, that says "Please name this reply template:" with a gtkentry, and a checkbox saying "[ ] When using this template to reply to emails, replace the subject line with the above."... but then you end up with the problem of "what if they change their mind later?" I simply suspect that for most office workers, it's just "unexpected/counterproductive behavior" that the subject line would get overridden, as it might break the threading etc. (not all mail clients are smart like Evolution)
Out of interest, how did you deal with it for the years of usage? It could be very discouraging to copy the subject line of the original message for each "reply" (I just noticed, the message sent with a template is not a real reply, it has no In-Reply-To or References, unless the original message had it, in which case it's copied from there, but not updated).
With changes for bug #602612, there's a checkbox added in the Alternative Reply which reads "Preserve original message Subject" and when checked the Subject in the composer is filled as: "Re: $ORIG[Subject]" regardless the subject of the template. Would it be enough, or you'd like some kind of global option to influence behaviour of the Right-click->Templates->...? The thing is that both usages are valid, because sometimes you want the same subject for one kind of messages or even replies (like when sending an activation key to users, you want to have the same body and the same subject, thus it can be easily found in the archives, instead of having original message's Subject).
Hi, sorry to only be noticing this now... hadn't checked my bug mail and hadn't realized you implemented a workaround. I had no idea the "Alternative Reply" feature existed until I hit ctrl+alt+R by mistake the other day, as this option is not present in the contextual menu when you right-click a message in the message list, although it is present in other menus ;) Personally speaking I would've thought a global preference might have been more straightforward than requiring the user to go through the "Alternate Reply" dialog each time, and I find it a bit weird that this "Alternate Reply" dialog, with all its flexibility, doesn't let me reply with a template while still having the ability of quoting the message I'm template-replying to (otherwise what's the advantage over just using the "Templates" contextual menu?), but I guess the current situation is already an improvement, it's at least _possible_, so thanks for that :)
(In reply to Jean-François Fortin Tam from comment #5) > Personally speaking I would've thought a global preference might have been more > straightforward than requiring the user to go through the "Alternate Reply" > dialog each time... This is the second global preference. The idea of the Alternative Reply is that the user uses some settings most of the time (as set in Preferences), then he/she uses some alternative reply style for whatever reason, but only seldomly. The he/she sets the Alternative Reply the first time and the next time It's just Ctrl+Alt+R followed by Enter (eventually scan over the values that they are as the user wants them). > I find it a bit weird that this "Alternate Reply" dialog, with all its > flexibility, doesn't let me reply with a template... I'm afraid I do not follow. When the "Apply Template" is checked the reply style is disabled and it works like the context-menu reply with a template.
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