Outlook 2003 SP2: Arrange by conversation problems with mailing list prefixes

[irstevenson]

Hi There,

I'm trying to get Outlook to sort my mailing list emails by
conversation, it mostly works, but sometimes trips up on the first
email for a thread. Sometimes it will put the first email in a thread
of it's own, and then all subsequent emails for that thread together.
I believe this is the result of the prefix the mailing list puts in
the subject line. Let me provide some examples:

Subject: "[WiX-users] Converting Setup project to WiX 3.0 project
(CustomActions)"
Conversation: "Converting Setup project to WiX 3.0 project
(CustomActions)"

Subject: "Re: [WiX-users] Converting Setup project to WiX 3.0 project
(Custom Actions)"
Conversation: "[WiX-users] Converting Setup project to WiX 3.0 project
(Custom Actions)"

The above two posts (from two different ppl) should be in the same
thread/conversation. But unfortunately for the initial post Outlook
removes the "[WiX-users]" prefix and puts it in a slightly different
group. Interestingly, this does not always occur, as the following
example shows:

Subject: "[WiX-users] Install target directory from Registry key."
Conversation: "[WiX-users] Install target directory from Registry
key."

Subject: "Re: [WiX-users] Install target directory from Registry key."
Conversation: "[WiX-users] Install target directory from Registry
key."

So in that example everything is working fine - they both end up in
the same conversation.

Can anyone tell me what I need to do to get this to work (which from
what I can gather, would be to get Outlook to *always* ignore the
mailing list prefix - instead of just sometimes like it currently is)?
Is there a way to configure the rules that Outlook uses to determine
conversations? Or is there some way to modify the subject line of
incoming emails - that would be last resort?

Thank you,
Ian.

 

[Diane Poremsky]

outlook is not removing the subject line, another email client is or the
list is poorly configured and not adding it to all emails.. or the sender is
replying directly to the sender and not the list.

--
Diane Poremsky [MVP - Outlook]
Author, Teach Yourself Outlook 2003 in 24 Hours
Need Help with Common Tasks? http://www.outlook-tips.net/beginner/
Outlook 2007: http://www.slipstick.com/outlook/ol2007/

Outlook Tips by email:
dailytips-subs (e-mail address removed)



Subscribe to Exchange Messaging Outlook newsletter:
(e-mail address removed)

 

[irstevenson]

Hi Diane,

Thanks for the response, however what you're saying doesn't add up.

"outlook is not removing the subject line"

Correct, there is no mention of subject lines getting removed, they're
always present, so I'm not sure why you mention this.

"another email client is or the list is poorly configured and not
adding it to all emails"

Ummm, no, the subject line is always present. At no point did I say it
wasn't.

"or the sender is replying directly to the sender and not the list"

Nope, if the sender was not replying to the list, then I would not be
getting the emails. Plus, it is normally the first email of a new
thread. Like all mailing lists, the only way that could occur is if
they sent it to the list - as there is no one to respond to at that
point. So basically the first email is put in it's own "conversation"
with subsequent responses then being correctly grouped under the same
conversation (albeit separate from the first).

What you have said seems to purely be an attempt to point the finger
at something other than outlook, but this is not what I'm after.
Surely there is some kind of configuration I can do within outlook, or
perhaps I should just use a different email account for my mailing
list so that I can use a client that can handle this correctly - such
as Thunderbird or gmail.

So please, if you have any suggestions regarding what might need to be
done confguration wise, please let me know.

Thanks,
Ian.

outlook is not removing the subject line, another email client is or the
list is poorly configured and not adding it to all emails.. or the sender is
replying directly to the sender and not the list.

--
Diane Poremsky [MVP - Outlook]
Author, Teach Yourself Outlook 2003 in 24 Hours
Need Help with Common Tasks?http://www.outlook-tips.net/beginner/
Outlook 2007:http://www.slipstick.com/outlook/ol2007/

Outlook Tips by email:
dailytips-subs (e-mail address removed)

Outlook Tips:http://www.outlook-tips.net/
Outlook & Exchange Solutions Center:http://www.slipstick.com
Subscribe to Exchange Messaging Outlook newsletter:
(e-mail address removed)

Hi There,

I'm trying to get Outlook to sort my mailing list emails by
conversation, it mostly works, but sometimes trips up on the first
email for a thread. Sometimes it will put the first email in a thread
of it's own, and then all subsequent emails for that thread together.
I believe this is the result of the prefix the mailing list puts in
the subject line. Let me provide some examples:

Subject: "[WiX-users] Converting Setup project to WiX 3.0 project
(CustomActions)"
Conversation: "Converting Setup project to WiX 3.0 project
(CustomActions)"

Subject: "Re: [WiX-users] Converting Setup project to WiX 3.0 project
(Custom Actions)"
Conversation: "[WiX-users] Converting Setup project to WiX 3.0 project
(Custom Actions)"

The above two posts (from two different ppl) should be in the same
thread/conversation. But unfortunately for the initial post Outlook
removes the "[WiX-users]" prefix and puts it in a slightly different
group. Interestingly, this does not always occur, as the following
example shows:

Subject: "[WiX-users] Install target directory from Registry key."
Conversation: "[WiX-users] Install target directory from Registry
key."

Subject: "Re: [WiX-users] Install target directory from Registry key."
Conversation: "[WiX-users] Install target directory from Registry
key."

So in that example everything is working fine - they both end up in
the same conversation.

Can anyone tell me what I need to do to get this to work (which from
what I can gather, would be to get Outlook to *always* ignore the
mailing list prefix - instead of just sometimes like it currently is)?
Is there a way to configure the rules that Outlook uses to determine
conversations? Or is there some way to modify the subject line of
incoming emails - that would be last resort?

Thank you,
Ian.

 

[Diane Poremsky]

I am very familiar with how outlook handles threading of mailing lists (I
own several lists) and how some versions strip short group names under very
specific conditions. I've written about it several times and there is a KB
explaining the behavior but I can't find find them this morning (I brought
the issue to their attention).

Other than that, Outlook has always had problems threading messages to
mailing lists, especially if the sender is not using outlook - outlook 2003
and 2007 thread the best (replies are indented under the original, not just
sorted by time) - but if they aren't threading there is little you can do,
short of editing the subject line and grouping by subject.

Hi Diane,

Thanks for the response, however what you're saying doesn't add up.

"outlook is not removing the subject line"

Correct, there is no mention of subject lines getting removed, they're
always present, so I'm not sure why you mention this.

"another email client is or the list is poorly configured and not
adding it to all emails"

Ummm, no, the subject line is always present. At no point did I say it
wasn't.

"or the sender is replying directly to the sender and not the list"

Nope, if the sender was not replying to the list, then I would not be
getting the emails. Plus, it is normally the first email of a new
thread. Like all mailing lists, the only way that could occur is if
they sent it to the list - as there is no one to respond to at that
point. So basically the first email is put in it's own "conversation"
with subsequent responses then being correctly grouped under the same
conversation (albeit separate from the first).

What you have said seems to purely be an attempt to point the finger
at something other than outlook, but this is not what I'm after.
Surely there is some kind of configuration I can do within outlook, or
perhaps I should just use a different email account for my mailing
list so that I can use a client that can handle this correctly - such
as Thunderbird or gmail.

So please, if you have any suggestions regarding what might need to be
done confguration wise, please let me know.

Thanks,
Ian.

outlook is not removing the subject line, another email client is or the
list is poorly configured and not adding it to all emails.. or the sender
is
replying directly to the sender and not the list.

--
Diane Poremsky [MVP - Outlook]
Author, Teach Yourself Outlook 2003 in 24 Hours
Need Help with Common Tasks?http://www.outlook-tips.net/beginner/
Outlook 2007:http://www.slipstick.com/outlook/ol2007/

Outlook Tips by email:
dailytips-subs (e-mail address removed)

Outlook Tips:http://www.outlook-tips.net/
Outlook & Exchange Solutions Center:http://www.slipstick.com
Subscribe to Exchange Messaging Outlook newsletter:
(e-mail address removed)

Hi There,

I'm trying to get Outlook to sort my mailing list emails by
conversation, it mostly works, but sometimes trips up on the first
email for a thread. Sometimes it will put the first email in a thread
of it's own, and then all subsequent emails for that thread together.
I believe this is the result of the prefix the mailing list puts in
the subject line. Let me provide some examples:

Subject: "[WiX-users] Converting Setup project to WiX 3.0 project
(CustomActions)"
Conversation: "Converting Setup project to WiX 3.0 project
(CustomActions)"

Subject: "Re: [WiX-users] Converting Setup project to WiX 3.0 project
(Custom Actions)"
Conversation: "[WiX-users] Converting Setup project to WiX 3.0 project
(Custom Actions)"

The above two posts (from two different ppl) should be in the same
thread/conversation. But unfortunately for the initial post Outlook
removes the "[WiX-users]" prefix and puts it in a slightly different
group. Interestingly, this does not always occur, as the following
example shows:

Subject: "[WiX-users] Install target directory from Registry key."
Conversation: "[WiX-users] Install target directory from Registry
key."

Subject: "Re: [WiX-users] Install target directory from Registry key."
Conversation: "[WiX-users] Install target directory from Registry
key."

So in that example everything is working fine - they both end up in
the same conversation.

Can anyone tell me what I need to do to get this to work (which from
what I can gather, would be to get Outlook to *always* ignore the
mailing list prefix - instead of just sometimes like it currently is)?
Is there a way to configure the rules that Outlook uses to determine
conversations? Or is there some way to modify the subject line of
incoming emails - that would be last resort?

Thank you,
Ian.

 

[irstevenson]

Hi Diane,

"Outlook has always had problems threading messages to mailing lists
[...] if they aren't threading there is little you can do [...]"

I guess that is basically what I was after, it tells me there is
nothing more I can do to get it working perfectly, and therefore I'm
wasting my time trying. Guess I'll just use another client for my
mailing lists. Good to know I wasn't just missing a special setting.

Thanks for your help,
Ian.

I am very familiar with how outlook handles threading of mailing lists (I
own several lists) and how some versions strip short group names under very
specific conditions. I've written about it several times and there is a KB
explaining the behavior but I can't find find them this morning (I brought
the issue to their attention).

Other than that, Outlook has always had problems threading messages to
mailing lists, especially if the sender is not using outlook - outlook 2003
and 2007 thread the best (replies are indented under the original, not just
sorted by time) - but if they aren't threading there is little you can do,
short of editing the subject line and grouping by subject.

--
Diane Poremsky [MVP - Outlook]
Author, Teach Yourself Outlook 2003 in 24 Hours
Need Help with Common Tasks?http://www.outlook-tips.net/beginner/
Outlook 2007:http://www.slipstick.com/outlook/ol2007/

Outlook Tips by email:
(e-mail address removed)

Outlook Tips:http://www.outlook-tips.net/
Outlook & Exchange Solutions Center:http://www.slipstick.com
Subscribe to Exchange Messaging Outlook newsletter:
(e-mail address removed)

Hi Diane,

Thanks for the response, however what you're saying doesn't add up.

"outlook is not removing the subject line"

Correct, there is no mention of subject lines getting removed, they're
always present, so I'm not sure why you mention this.

"another email client is or the list is poorly configured and not
adding it to all emails"

Ummm, no, the subject line is always present. At no point did I say it
wasn't.

"or the sender is replying directly to the sender and not the list"

Nope, if the sender was not replying to the list, then I would not be
getting the emails. Plus, it is normally the first email of a new
thread. Like all mailing lists, the only way that could occur is if
they sent it to the list - as there is no one to respond to at that
point. So basically the first email is put in it's own "conversation"
with subsequent responses then being correctly grouped under the same
conversation (albeit separate from the first).

What you have said seems to purely be an attempt to point the finger
at something other than outlook, but this is not what I'm after.
Surely there is some kind of configuration I can do within outlook, or
perhaps I should just use a different email account for my mailing
list so that I can use a client that can handle this correctly - such
as Thunderbird or gmail.

So please, if you have any suggestions regarding what might need to be
done confguration wise, please let me know.

Thanks,
Ian.

outlook is not removing the subject line, another email client is or the
list is poorly configured and not adding it to all emails.. or the sender
is
replying directly to the sender and not the list.
--
Diane Poremsky [MVP - Outlook]
Author, Teach Yourself Outlook 2003 in 24 Hours
Need Help with Common Tasks?http://www.outlook-tips.net/beginner/
Outlook 2007:http://www.slipstick.com/outlook/ol2007/
Outlook Tips by email:
dailytips-subs (e-mail address removed)
Outlook Tips:http://www.outlook-tips.net/
Outlook & Exchange Solutions Center:http://www.slipstick.com
Subscribe to Exchange Messaging Outlook newsletter:
(e-mail address removed)

Hi There,
I'm trying to get Outlook to sort my mailing list emails by
conversation, it mostly works, but sometimes trips up on the first
email for a thread. Sometimes it will put the first email in a thread
of it's own, and then all subsequent emails for that thread together.
I believe this is the result of the prefix the mailing list puts in
the subject line. Let me provide some examples:
Subject: "[WiX-users] Converting Setup project to WiX 3.0 project
(CustomActions)"
Conversation: "Converting Setup project to WiX 3.0 project
(CustomActions)"
Subject: "Re: [WiX-users] Converting Setup project to WiX 3.0 project
(Custom Actions)"
Conversation: "[WiX-users] Converting Setup project to WiX 3.0 project
(Custom Actions)"
The above two posts (from two different ppl) should be in the same
thread/conversation. But unfortunately for the initial post Outlook
removes the "[WiX-users]" prefix and puts it in a slightly different
group. Interestingly, this does not always occur, as the following
example shows:
Subject: "[WiX-users] Install target directory from Registry key."
Conversation: "[WiX-users] Install target directory from Registry
key."
Subject: "Re: [WiX-users] Install target directory from Registry key."
Conversation: "[WiX-users] Install target directory from Registry
key."
So in that example everything is working fine - they both end up in
the same conversation.
Can anyone tell me what I need to do to get this to work (which from
what I can gather, would be to get Outlook to *always* ignore the
mailing list prefix - instead of just sometimes like it currently is)?
Is there a way to configure the rules that Outlook uses to determine
conversations? Or is there some way to modify the subject line of
incoming emails - that would be last resort?
Thank you,
Ian.