Carl Youngblood wrote:

> 
> Even if you collapse the threads, in the actual thread you're viewing, 
> you see a huge jumble of other messages before getting to the one you 
> want.  Also, threads are ordered by the time of the first post to the 
> thread, so threads receiving new posts don't show up at the top of your 
> inbox, which they do in Gmail.

Ah, well can tell you're not a mutt user. You're apparently comparing 
gmail with a lame threading mail reader (or perhaps to slashdot or other 
web forums). I don't blame you for thinking gmail is superior. If you'd 
like I can send you a screenshot privately. Mutt does all of the things 
you mentioned - sorts threads and subthreads chronologically by last 
post, easy to see the overall tree and you only read one message at a 
time, etc.

> I actually like the linear view because it is sufficient for me to get 
> the context of who is responding to whom.  If I ever get confused, I 
> expand the suppressed quotes and can quickly figure out what's going 
> on.  But to each his own, I guess.  The most annoying thing for me about 
> Gmail so far has been its occasional unresponsiveness.  When it works, 
> it works really well, IMO.

I like tree view (threads) because it's easier to keep context than 
linear, whether linear is sufficient or not. But you're right, de 
gustibus non disputatum est.