Don't know what would happen but I would like to. Try it and see if
it goes KABOOM! :) If it works you get the Atta Boy badge, if not
you get the That Took 'Nads badge *plus* the Had a News.dat badge.
>I don't quite understand the expiry scheme yet, but I'm trying. :-)
>
I don't think there is a method, documented or not documented, for
expiring and recovering unused space immediately without reseting
expiry dates on the unexpired messages. The unused space is retained
for a reason (maybe you missed the recent explanation of the
reason) and I don't think there is a method for circumventing
that feature. It _is_ a feature, not a bug. Perhaps the logic in the
program requires reseting expiry dates. On the other hand
maybe it is possible and maybe it will be there in the next revision.
I've noticed that after rebuild -s the news.dat grows unnecessarily
but not terribly, though it probably depends on your habits. Also, I
believe earlier versions, the 0.8x series, did return unused space
immediately. You might try going back to one of those versions as
they seemed to work pretty good.
--Regards,
Kim Bergman