From mboxrd@z Thu Jan  1 00:00:00 1970
Return-Path: <david@tethera.net>
Received: from localhost (localhost [127.0.0.1])
 by arlo.cworth.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 87FD66DE0943
 for <notmuch@notmuchmail.org>; Wed,  7 Dec 2016 06:22:52 -0800 (PST)
X-Virus-Scanned: Debian amavisd-new at cworth.org
X-Spam-Flag: NO
X-Spam-Score: -0.006
X-Spam-Level: 
X-Spam-Status: No, score=-0.006 tagged_above=-999 required=5 tests=[AWL=0.005, 
 SPF_PASS=-0.001, T_RP_MATCHES_RCVD=-0.01] autolearn=disabled
Received: from arlo.cworth.org ([127.0.0.1])
 by localhost (arlo.cworth.org [127.0.0.1]) (amavisd-new, port 10024)
 with ESMTP id Ki74pb9ot-wl for <notmuch@notmuchmail.org>;
 Wed,  7 Dec 2016 06:22:51 -0800 (PST)
Received: from fethera.tethera.net (fethera.tethera.net [198.245.60.197])
 by arlo.cworth.org (Postfix) with ESMTPS id 3DF5A6DE00D3
 for <notmuch@notmuchmail.org>; Wed,  7 Dec 2016 06:22:50 -0800 (PST)
Received: from remotemail by fethera.tethera.net with local (Exim 4.84_2)
 (envelope-from <david@tethera.net>)
 id 1cEd75-0002u7-Bh; Wed, 07 Dec 2016 09:22:27 -0500
Received: (nullmailer pid 4788 invoked by uid 1000);
 Wed, 07 Dec 2016 14:22:46 -0000
From: David Bremner <david@tethera.net>
To: Jian Fan <abemud@gmail.com>, notmuch@notmuchmail.org
Subject: Re: search for squre bracket
In-Reply-To: <CAFpdsY2qyE5XYjnmOP4K7omECYMTzRsEr2=ouMfDX-SkMO3Kmg@mail.gmail.com>
References: <CAFpdsY2qyE5XYjnmOP4K7omECYMTzRsEr2=ouMfDX-SkMO3Kmg@mail.gmail.com>
Date: Wed, 07 Dec 2016 10:22:46 -0400
Message-ID: <878trr6cp5.fsf@tesseract.cs.unb.ca>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain
X-BeenThere: notmuch@notmuchmail.org
X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.22
Precedence: list
List-Id: "Use and development of the notmuch mail system."
 <notmuch.notmuchmail.org>
List-Unsubscribe: <https://notmuchmail.org/mailman/options/notmuch>,
 <mailto:notmuch-request@notmuchmail.org?subject=unsubscribe>
List-Archive: <http://notmuchmail.org/pipermail/notmuch/>
List-Post: <mailto:notmuch@notmuchmail.org>
List-Help: <mailto:notmuch-request@notmuchmail.org?subject=help>
List-Subscribe: <https://notmuchmail.org/mailman/listinfo/notmuch>,
 <mailto:notmuch-request@notmuchmail.org?subject=subscribe>
X-List-Received-Date: Wed, 07 Dec 2016 14:22:52 -0000

Jian Fan <abemud@gmail.com> writes:

> Hi,
>
> I want to search
>
> subject:[Release]
>
> i.e. emails whose subject is like:
>
> [Release] fix a bug
>
> Notmuch seems to return those and many other emails. I tried to escape,
> quote and nothing seems working.

by default xapian (and hence notmuch) uses a word based search that
essentially ignored punctation.

There is a patch to support (slower) regular expression search

      id:20161114214651.19770-1-david@tethera.net


      http://mid.tethera.net/notmuch/20161114214651.19770-1-david@tethera.net/

If you help test it, maybe it will be merged into notmuch.

d