KMime API review

[Sune Vuorela]

On 2026-02-04, Ingo Klöcker <kloecker at kde.org> wrote:
> I think you didn't write what you meant to write.

Right.

> If `this` is const, the function *does not take* an argument. Otherwise, it 
> takes one optional argument. This makes a lot of sense to me because you 
> cannot create/add a new header to a const object. The argument-less overload 
> prevents you from calling subject() with Create. Hmm, is your concern that the 
> non-const overload creates a new header if called without argument while the 
> const overload doesn't create a new header?

yeah. the fact that asking for a subject() has different behavior wether
or not the message/content is const or not is at least a bit surprising.

I don't know the good solutions to the problem off hand - I only see
various less-optimal solutions - but maybe just dropping the default
argument is the simplest?

>> Types:
>>  At least KMime::Type::Address have a public QList member
>
> What do you suggest? I guess one could make the member private and add a 
> public inline `const QList<KMime::Type::Address> &` getter to avoid the smell 
> of a public member variable and, at the same time, avoid a prohibitive 
> performance penalty. Or maybe Address should simply be a struct (with one 
> private member variable) instead of a class if it's supposed to be used like a 
> struct (like AddrSpec is).

It is again, surprising. I don't know if people expects it to be mutable
or not, but it is.

Either make it clearly a struct to be used like a struct or make it
clearly a class (with a getter and maybe a setter) is probably my
suggestion.

/Sune