Yahoo2mbox software is a Perl script designed to extract all messages from a Yahoo! Groups mailing list archive, in a quick and simple format.
The main purpose of using yahoo2mbox is to offer an alternative to the Yahoo! Groups interface, allowing users to search through the existing archive using their preferred Mail User Agent (MUA). This is especially useful for those who find it easier to browse through their emails using a different interface than that provided by Yahoo! Groups.
The software also comes with other interesting features, such as support for localized and age-restricted Yahoo groups. However, it's important to note that the automatic address unmangling feature no longer works, as a result of changes to Yahoo address presentation algorithm (as of December 2003 and probably before).
The requirements for using yahoo2mbox include having Perl 5.004 (although it might work with previous versions), as well as a bunch of modules that can be retrieved from CPAN, including HTTP::Cookies, LWP::UserAgent, and HTML::Parser. The program has only been tested on Linux with Perl 5.004, 5.005, 5.6, and 5.8.
In terms of enhancements, the latest release of yahoo2mbox offers a new --retry option to reget any missing messages, and a --debug option that allows you to save any messages the script was unable to parse as files for later analysis.
In summary, yahoo2mbox is a useful software tool, especially if you're looking for an alternative way to search through Yahoo! Groups archive files using your preferred email client. The software requires some basic programming knowledge, but the instructions are clear and easy to follow, making it an excellent choice for anyone with intermediate Perl skills.
Version 0.24: N/A