[Alpine-info] preserving role in postponed messages

[Tim Woodall via Alpine-info]

On Sun, 9 Nov 2025, Lucio Chiappetti via Alpine-info wrote:


> There are a couple of correspondents of mine which do not receive my messages 

> sent in my usual ways. For them I have to use a special role (which sends via 

> a specific smtp server).

>

> It is quite easy to do that when creating a new message or replying.

>

> However sometimes I have to postpone a message to them. When I resume 

> composition (M C P) the role is not preserved, nor it seems I can choose the 

> role.

>

> Currently the workaround I've found is only to Export the postponed message, 

> compose a new one with the wished role, and read in the exported file.

>

> I there a simpler way ?


I don't think so. Pretty much exclusively I use roles to set the from 
address. So I can edit it after the event if necessary and it remembers 
it while a message is postponed.

But there doesn't seem to be a way to select a role after you've started 
composing a mail. I wasn't even aware of the "Use SMTP server" setting 
in the roles until I went to look for it so I hadn't come across this 
particular quirk.

I run a local MTA - and I do stuff like that there and point alpine at 
my local MTA instead. Not sure if you'd call that simpler or not.

I also use a remote pinerc.
so it's
alpine -> remote imap server -> local mail server -> external mail server -> ...

Not sure if you'd class that as "easier". All my incoming mail is sorted 
into folders using my MDA rather than in alpine.

Tim.