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4 @settitle T-gnus 6.14 Manual
10 * Gnus: (gnus). The newsreader Gnus.
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266 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
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275 Copyright \copyright{} 1995,96,97,98,99,2000 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
278 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
279 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
280 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
281 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
282 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
283 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
284 License'' in the Emacs manual.
286 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
287 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
288 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
290 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
291 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
292 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
293 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
301 This file documents gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
303 Copyright (C) 1995,96,97,98,99,2000 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
305 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
306 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
307 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the
308 Invariant Sections being none, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
309 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
310 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
311 License'' in the Emacs manual.
313 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
314 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
315 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
317 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
318 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
319 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
320 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
326 @title T-gnus 6.14 Manual
328 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
331 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
332 Copyright @copyright{} 1995,96,97,98,99,2000 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
334 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
335 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
336 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
337 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
338 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
339 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
340 License'' in the Emacs manual.
342 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
343 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
344 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
346 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
347 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
348 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
349 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
358 @top The gnus Newsreader
362 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using gnus. The news
363 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
364 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
367 T-gnus provides MIME features based on SEMI API. So T-gnus supports
368 your right to read strange messages including big images or other
369 various kinds of formats. T-gnus also supports
370 internationalization/localization and multiscript features based on MULE
371 API. So T-gnus does not discriminate various language communities.
372 Oh, if you are a Klingon, please wait Unicode Next Generation.
374 This manual corresponds to T-gnus 6.14.
385 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
386 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
388 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
389 being accused of plagiarism:
391 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
392 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
393 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you
394 can even read news with it!
396 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
397 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
398 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend gnus to make it behave
399 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
400 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
406 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
407 * The Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
408 * The Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
409 * The Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
410 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
411 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
412 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
413 * Various:: General purpose settings.
414 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
415 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
416 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
417 * Key Index:: Key Index.
420 --- The Detailed Node Listing ---
424 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
425 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
426 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
427 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
428 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
429 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
430 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
431 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
432 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
433 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
434 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
438 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
439 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
440 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
444 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
445 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
446 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
447 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
448 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
449 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
450 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
451 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
452 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
453 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
454 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
455 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
456 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
457 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
458 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
459 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
460 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
464 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
465 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
466 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
470 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
471 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
472 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
473 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
474 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
478 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
479 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
480 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
481 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
485 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
486 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
487 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
488 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
489 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
490 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
491 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
492 * Threading:: How threads are made.
493 * Sorting:: How articles and threads are sorted.
494 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
495 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
496 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
497 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
498 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
499 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
500 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
501 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
502 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
503 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
504 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
505 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
506 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
507 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
508 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
509 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
510 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer.
511 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
512 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
514 Summary Buffer Format
516 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
517 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
518 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
519 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
523 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
524 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
526 Reply, Followup and Post
528 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
529 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
530 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
531 * Canceling and Superseding:: ``Whoops, I shouldn't have called him that.''
535 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
536 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
537 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
538 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
539 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
540 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
544 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
545 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
547 Customizing Threading
549 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
550 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
551 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
552 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
556 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
557 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
558 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
559 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
560 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
561 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
565 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
566 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
567 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
571 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
572 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
573 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
574 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
575 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
576 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
577 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
578 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
580 Alternative Approaches
582 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
583 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
585 Various Summary Stuff
587 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
588 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
589 * Summary Generation Commands:: (Re)generating the summary buffer.
590 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
594 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
595 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
596 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
597 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
598 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
602 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
603 * Post:: Posting and following up.
604 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
605 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
606 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
607 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
608 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
609 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
613 * The Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
614 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
615 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
616 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
617 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
618 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
619 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
623 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
624 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
625 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
626 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
627 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
628 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
629 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
633 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
634 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
638 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
639 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
640 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
641 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
642 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
643 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
644 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
645 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
646 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
647 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
648 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
649 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
650 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
654 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
655 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
656 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
658 Choosing a Mail Backend
660 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
661 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
662 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
663 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
664 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
665 * Comparing Mail Backends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
669 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
670 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
671 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
672 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
676 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
677 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
678 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
679 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
680 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
681 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
685 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
689 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
690 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
691 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
695 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
696 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
697 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
701 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
702 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
706 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
707 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
708 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
709 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
710 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
711 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
712 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
713 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
714 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
715 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
719 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
720 * The Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
721 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
725 * Group Agent Commands::
726 * Summary Agent Commands::
727 * Server Agent Commands::
731 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
732 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
733 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
734 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
735 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
736 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
737 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
738 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
739 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
740 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
741 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
742 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
743 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
744 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
745 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
746 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
750 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
751 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
752 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
753 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
757 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
758 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
759 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
763 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
764 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
765 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
766 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
767 * Windows Configuration:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
768 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
769 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
770 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
771 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
772 * Buttons:: Get tendonitis in ten easy steps!
773 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
774 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
775 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
776 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
777 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
778 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
779 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
780 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
784 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
785 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
786 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
787 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
788 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
792 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
793 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
794 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
795 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
799 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
800 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
801 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
802 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
803 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
807 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
808 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
809 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
810 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
811 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
812 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
813 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
814 * Frequently Asked Questions:: A question-and-answer session.
818 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
819 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
820 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
821 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
822 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
823 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
824 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
825 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
826 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
827 * Newest Features:: Features so new that they haven't been written yet.
831 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
832 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.3/5.3.
833 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
834 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
838 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
839 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
840 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
841 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
845 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
846 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
847 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
848 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
849 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
850 * Group Info:: The group info format.
851 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
852 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
853 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
857 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
858 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
859 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
860 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
861 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
862 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
866 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
867 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
871 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
872 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
878 @chapter Starting gnus
883 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting gnus
884 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
887 @findex gnus-other-frame
888 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
889 If you want to start gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
890 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
892 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
893 variables in your @file{~/.gnus} file. This file is similar to
894 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
896 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
897 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
900 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
901 * The First Time:: What does gnus do the first time you start it?
902 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
903 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one gnus active at a time.
904 * Fetching a Group:: Starting gnus just to read a group.
905 * New Groups:: What is gnus supposed to do with new groups?
906 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
907 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
908 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
909 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
910 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
914 @node Finding the News
915 @section Finding the News
918 @vindex gnus-select-method
920 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where gnus should look for
921 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
922 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
923 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
926 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
927 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
930 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
933 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
936 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
939 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
940 certainly be much faster.
942 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
944 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
945 If this variable is not set, gnus will take a look at the
946 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
947 gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
948 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
949 that fails as well, gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
951 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
952 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
953 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
954 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
956 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
957 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
958 You can also make gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
959 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
960 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), gnus will let you choose between the servers
961 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
962 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting. (Note that this
963 will set @code{gnus-nntp-server}, which means that if you then @kbd{M-x
964 gnus} later in the same Emacs session, Gnus will contact the same
967 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
969 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
970 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
971 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
972 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
973 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
974 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
976 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
978 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
979 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
980 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
981 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
982 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
983 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
986 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} backend to read your mail, you
987 would typically set this variable to
990 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
995 @section The First Time
996 @cindex first time usage
998 If no startup files exist, gnus will try to determine what groups should
999 be subscribed by default.
1001 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
1002 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, gnus
1003 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
1004 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
1007 Since she hasn't, gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
1008 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
1009 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
1011 You'll also be subscribed to the gnus documentation group, which should
1012 help you with most common problems.
1014 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, gnus will just
1015 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
1019 @node The Server is Down
1020 @section The Server is Down
1021 @cindex server errors
1023 If the default server is down, gnus will understandably have some
1024 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
1025 the news groups, you may want to start gnus anyway.
1027 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
1028 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
1029 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
1030 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
1031 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
1032 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
1033 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
1035 @findex gnus-no-server
1036 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
1038 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
1039 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
1040 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start gnus. That might come in handy
1041 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
1042 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
1043 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
1048 @section Slave Gnusae
1051 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one gnus at the
1052 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
1053 are using the two different gnusae to read from two different servers),
1054 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
1056 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
1057 @code{.newsrc} file.
1059 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the gnus
1060 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
1061 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
1062 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
1063 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
1064 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
1065 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
1067 Anyways, you start one gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
1068 however you do it). Each subsequent slave gnusae should be started with
1069 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
1070 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
1071 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master gnus
1072 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
1073 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
1074 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
1076 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
1077 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
1080 @node Fetching a Group
1081 @section Fetching a Group
1082 @cindex fetching a group
1084 @findex gnus-fetch-group
1085 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
1086 group and I don't care whether gnus has been started or not''. This is
1087 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
1088 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
1089 It takes the group name as a parameter.
1095 @cindex subscription
1097 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
1098 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
1099 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
1100 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
1101 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
1102 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
1103 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
1104 @code{always}, then gnus will query the backends for new groups even
1105 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1108 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
1109 * Subscription Methods:: What gnus should do with new groups.
1110 * Filtering New Groups:: Making gnus ignore certain new groups.
1114 @node Checking New Groups
1115 @subsection Checking New Groups
1117 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
1118 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
1119 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
1120 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, gnus will ask the
1121 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
1122 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
1123 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
1124 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
1125 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
1126 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
1128 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
1129 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
1130 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
1131 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
1132 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
1133 work. I could write a function to make gnus guess whether the server
1134 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
1135 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
1136 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
1137 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
1138 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
1140 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, gnus will
1141 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
1142 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
1143 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
1144 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
1145 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
1148 @node Subscription Methods
1149 @subsection Subscription Methods
1151 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
1152 What gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
1153 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
1155 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
1156 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
1158 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
1162 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
1163 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
1164 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
1165 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
1166 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
1168 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
1169 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
1170 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
1171 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
1173 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1174 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1175 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
1177 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1178 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1179 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
1180 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
1181 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
1182 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into its
1183 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
1184 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
1185 up. Or something like that.
1187 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
1188 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
1189 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that gnus will ask
1190 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
1191 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
1193 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
1194 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
1195 Kill all new groups.
1197 @item gnus-subscribe-topics
1198 @vindex gnus-subscribe-topics
1199 Put the groups into the topic that has a matching @code{subscribe} topic
1200 parameter (@pxref{Topic Parameters}). For instance, a @code{subscribe}
1201 topic parameter that looks like
1207 will mean that all groups that match that regex will be subscribed under
1210 If no topics match the groups, the groups will be subscribed in the
1215 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
1216 A closely related variable is
1217 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
1218 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, gnus will ask you in a
1219 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
1220 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
1223 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
1224 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
1225 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
1226 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
1229 @node Filtering New Groups
1230 @subsection Filtering New Groups
1232 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
1233 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
1234 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
1237 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
1240 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
1241 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
1242 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
1243 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
1244 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
1245 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
1246 subscribing these groups.
1247 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
1248 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
1250 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
1251 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
1252 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
1253 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
1254 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
1255 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
1256 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
1257 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
1259 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
1260 Yet another variable that meddles here is
1261 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
1262 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
1263 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
1264 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
1265 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
1266 that come from mail backends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
1267 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, and @code{nnmh}) subscribed. If you
1268 don't like that, just set this variable to @code{nil}.
1270 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
1271 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
1274 @node Changing Servers
1275 @section Changing Servers
1276 @cindex changing servers
1278 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
1279 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
1280 very flaky and you want to use another.
1282 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
1283 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
1287 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
1288 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
1289 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
1290 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
1293 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
1294 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
1295 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
1296 functions more than absolutely necessary.
1298 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
1299 @findex gnus-change-server
1300 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
1301 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
1302 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
1303 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
1304 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
1306 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1307 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1308 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
1309 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
1310 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
1312 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1313 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1314 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
1315 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
1316 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
1317 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
1319 After changing servers, you @strong{must} move the cache hierarchy away,
1320 since the cached articles will have wrong article numbers, which will
1321 affect which articles Gnus thinks are read.
1325 @section Startup Files
1326 @cindex startup files
1331 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
1332 information is traditionally stored in this file.
1334 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
1335 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
1336 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
1337 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
1338 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
1339 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
1340 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
1342 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
1343 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
1344 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
1345 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
1346 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
1347 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
1349 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
1350 @vindex gnus-read-newsrc-file
1351 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
1352 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
1353 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from gnus faster.
1354 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
1355 gnus. But hey, who would want to, right? Similarly, setting
1356 @code{gnus-read-newsrc-file} to @code{nil} makes gnus ignore the
1357 @file{.newsrc} file and any @file{.newsrc-SERVER} files, which is
1358 convenient if you have a tendency to use Netscape once in a while.
1360 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
1361 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
1362 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
1363 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
1364 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
1365 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
1366 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
1367 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
1368 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
1369 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
1370 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
1371 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
1373 @vindex gnus-startup-file
1374 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
1375 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
1376 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
1378 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
1379 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
1380 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
1381 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
1382 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
1383 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
1384 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
1385 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
1386 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
1387 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
1390 (defun turn-off-backup ()
1391 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
1393 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1394 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1397 @vindex gnus-init-file
1398 When gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
1399 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
1400 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
1401 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
1402 @file{site-init} files with gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
1403 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
1404 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
1405 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
1406 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
1412 @cindex dribble file
1415 Whenever you do something that changes the gnus data (reading articles,
1416 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
1417 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
1418 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
1419 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
1422 If gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
1423 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
1426 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
1427 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, gnus won't create and
1428 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
1430 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
1431 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
1432 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, gnus will dribble
1433 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
1434 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
1435 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
1437 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
1438 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
1439 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
1442 @node The Active File
1443 @section The Active File
1445 @cindex ignored groups
1447 When gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
1448 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
1449 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
1451 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
1452 Before examining the active file, gnus deletes all lines that match the
1453 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
1454 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make gnus
1455 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
1456 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
1457 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
1460 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
1461 @c if you set it to anything else.
1463 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
1465 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
1466 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent gnus from
1467 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
1469 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
1470 you actually subscribe to.
1472 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
1473 variable to @code{nil} will probably make gnus slower, not faster. At
1474 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow gnus down
1475 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
1477 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
1478 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
1479 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
1480 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
1481 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
1482 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
1484 Some news servers (Leafnode and old versions of INN, for instance) do
1485 not support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group}. For these servers, @code{nil}
1486 is probably the most efficient value for this variable.
1488 If this variable is @code{nil}, gnus will ask for group info in total
1489 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
1490 @sc{nntp} server, gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
1491 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
1492 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
1493 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
1495 If you think that starting up Gnus takes too long, try all the three
1496 different values for this variable and see what works best for you.
1498 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
1499 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1501 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1502 secondary select methods.
1505 @node Startup Variables
1506 @section Startup Variables
1510 @item gnus-load-hook
1511 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1512 A hook run while gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1513 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1514 times you start gnus.
1516 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1517 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1518 A hook run after starting up gnus successfully.
1520 @item gnus-startup-hook
1521 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1522 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up gnus
1524 @item gnus-started-hook
1525 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1526 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up gnus
1529 @item gnus-setup-news-hook
1530 @vindex gnus-setup-news-hook
1531 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1532 generating the group buffer.
1534 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1535 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1536 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1537 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1538 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1539 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1540 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1541 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1543 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1544 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1545 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1546 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1547 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1548 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
1550 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1551 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1552 Message displayed by gnus when no groups are available.
1554 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1555 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1556 If non-@code{nil}, play the gnus jingle at startup.
1558 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1559 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1560 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1561 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1566 @node The Group Buffer
1567 @chapter The Group Buffer
1568 @cindex group buffer
1570 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1571 is the first buffer shown when gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1572 long as gnus is active.
1576 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1577 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group.ps,height=9cm}}
1578 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1579 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1580 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1581 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1582 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1583 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1589 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1590 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1591 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1592 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1593 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1594 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1595 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1596 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1597 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1598 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1599 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1600 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1601 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1602 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1603 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1604 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1605 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1609 @node Group Buffer Format
1610 @section Group Buffer Format
1613 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1614 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1615 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1619 @node Group Line Specification
1620 @subsection Group Line Specification
1621 @cindex group buffer format
1623 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1624 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1626 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1629 25: news.announce.newusers
1630 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1635 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1636 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1637 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1638 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1640 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1641 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1642 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1643 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1644 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1645 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1647 @samp{%M%S%5y: %(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1649 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1650 the colon after performing an operation. Nothing else is required---not
1651 even the group name. All displayed text is just window dressing, and is
1652 never examined by gnus. Gnus stores all real information it needs using
1655 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1656 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1657 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1659 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1664 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1667 Whether the group is subscribed.
1670 Level of subscribedness.
1673 Number of unread articles.
1676 Number of dormant articles.
1679 Number of ticked articles.
1682 Number of read articles.
1685 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1686 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1689 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1692 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1701 Newsgroup description.
1704 @samp{m} if moderated.
1707 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1716 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1720 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1723 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1724 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1725 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1726 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1727 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.e.gnus}.
1730 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1732 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1736 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1740 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1741 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1742 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1743 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1744 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1745 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1750 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1751 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1752 group, or a bogus native group.
1755 @node Group Modeline Specification
1756 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1757 @cindex group modeline
1759 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1760 The mode line can be changed by setting
1761 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1762 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1766 The native news server.
1768 The native select method.
1772 @node Group Highlighting
1773 @subsection Group Highlighting
1774 @cindex highlighting
1775 @cindex group highlighting
1777 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1778 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1779 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1780 that look like @code{(@var{form} . @var{face})}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1781 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1783 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1787 (cond (window-system
1788 (setq custom-background-mode 'light)
1789 (defface my-group-face-1
1790 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))) "First group face")
1791 (defface my-group-face-2
1792 '((t (:foreground "DarkSeaGreen4" :bold t))) "Second group face")
1793 (defface my-group-face-3
1794 '((t (:foreground "Green4" :bold t))) "Third group face")
1795 (defface my-group-face-4
1796 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))) "Fourth group face")
1797 (defface my-group-face-5
1798 '((t (:foreground "Blue" :bold t))) "Fifth group face")))
1800 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1801 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1802 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1803 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1804 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1805 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1808 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1810 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1817 The number of unread articles in the group.
1821 Whether the group is a mail group.
1823 The level of the group.
1825 The score of the group.
1827 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1829 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1830 MIN-NUMBER plus one.
1832 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1833 topic being inserted.
1836 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1837 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal gnus
1838 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1840 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1841 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1842 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1843 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1844 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1847 @node Group Maneuvering
1848 @section Group Maneuvering
1849 @cindex group movement
1851 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1852 expected, hopefully.
1858 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1859 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1860 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1866 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1867 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1868 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1872 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1873 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
1877 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
1878 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
1882 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
1883 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
1884 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
1888 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
1889 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
1890 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
1893 Three commands for jumping to groups:
1899 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
1900 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
1901 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
1906 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
1907 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
1908 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
1912 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
1913 Jump to the first group with unread articles
1914 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
1917 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
1918 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
1919 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
1920 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
1924 @node Selecting a Group
1925 @section Selecting a Group
1926 @cindex group selection
1931 @kindex SPACE (Group)
1932 @findex gnus-group-read-group
1933 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
1934 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
1935 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
1936 this command, gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
1937 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
1938 determines the number of articles gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
1939 positive, gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
1940 negative, Gnus fetches the @code{abs(@var{N})} oldest articles.
1944 @findex gnus-group-select-group
1945 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
1946 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
1947 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
1948 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
1952 @kindex M-RET (Group)
1953 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
1954 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
1955 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
1956 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
1957 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
1958 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
1959 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
1960 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
1961 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
1964 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
1965 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
1966 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
1967 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
1968 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
1971 @kindex M-C-RET (Group)
1972 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
1973 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
1974 doing any processing of its contents
1975 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
1976 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
1977 manner will have no permanent effects.
1981 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
1982 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what gnus should consider
1983 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
1984 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, gnus will query the user
1985 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
1986 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
1987 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
1988 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
1991 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
1992 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
1993 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} control whether any articles are selected
1994 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
1999 Don't select any articles when entering the group. Just display the
2000 full summary buffer.
2003 Select the first unread article when entering the group.
2006 Select the highest scored article in the group when entering the
2011 This variable can also be a function. In that case, that function will
2012 be called to place point on a subject line, and/or select some article.
2013 Useful functions include:
2016 @item gnus-summary-first-unread-subject
2017 Place point on the subject line of the first unread article, but
2018 don't select the article.
2020 @item gnus-summary-first-unread-article
2021 Select the first unread article.
2023 @item gnus-summary-best-unread-article
2024 Select the highest-scored unread article.
2028 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
2029 binary group with Huge articles) you can set this variable to @code{nil}
2030 in @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
2034 @node Subscription Commands
2035 @section Subscription Commands
2036 @cindex subscription
2044 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
2045 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
2046 Toggle subscription to the current group
2047 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2053 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
2054 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
2055 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
2056 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
2062 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
2063 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
2064 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
2070 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
2071 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
2074 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
2075 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
2076 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
2077 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
2078 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
2084 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
2085 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
2089 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
2090 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
2093 @kindex S C-k (Group)
2094 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
2095 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
2096 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
2097 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
2098 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
2099 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
2100 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
2101 @file{.newsrc} file.
2105 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
2115 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
2116 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
2117 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
2118 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
2119 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
2120 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
2125 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
2126 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
2127 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
2131 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
2132 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
2133 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
2135 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2136 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2137 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2138 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
2139 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
2140 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
2147 @section Group Levels
2151 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
2152 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
2153 can ask gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
2154 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
2155 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
2157 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
2163 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
2164 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
2165 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
2166 prompted for a level.
2169 @vindex gnus-level-killed
2170 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
2171 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
2172 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
2173 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
2174 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
2175 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
2176 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
2177 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
2178 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
2179 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
2180 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
2181 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
2182 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
2183 reasons of efficiency.
2185 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
2186 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
2188 Maybe the following description of the default behavior of Gnus helps to
2189 understand what these levels are all about. By default, Gnus shows you
2190 subscribed nonempty groups, but by hitting @kbd{L} you can have it show
2191 empty subscribed groups and unsubscribed groups, too. Type @kbd{l} to
2192 go back to showing nonempty subscribed groups again. Thus, unsubscribed
2193 groups are hidden, in a way.
2195 Zombie and killed groups are similar to unsubscribed groups in that they
2196 are hidden by default. But they are different from subscribed and
2197 unsubscribed groups in that Gnus doesn't ask the news server for
2198 information (number of messages, number of unread messages) on zombie
2199 and killed groups. Normally, you use @kbd{C-k} to kill the groups you
2200 aren't interested in. If most groups are killed, Gnus is faster.
2202 Why does Gnus distinguish between zombie and killed groups? Well, when
2203 a new group arrives on the server, Gnus by default makes it a zombie
2204 group. This means that you are normally not bothered with new groups,
2205 but you can type @kbd{A z} to get a list of all new groups. Subscribe
2206 the ones you like and kill the ones you don't want. (@kbd{A k} shows a
2207 list of killed groups.)
2209 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
2210 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
2211 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
2213 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
2214 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
2215 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
2216 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
2217 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
2218 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
2219 relevant valid ranges.
2221 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
2222 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
2223 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
2224 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
2225 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
2226 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
2229 If this variable is @code{best}, Gnus will make the next newsgroup the
2230 one with the best level.
2232 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
2233 All groups with a level less than or equal to
2234 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
2237 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
2238 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
2239 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
2240 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
2243 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
2244 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
2245 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
2246 use this level as the ``work'' level.
2248 @vindex gnus-activate-level
2249 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
2250 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
2251 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
2252 to 5. The default is 6.
2256 @section Group Score
2261 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
2262 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
2263 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
2266 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can have Gnus assign a score
2267 to each group through the mechanism described below. You can then sort
2268 the group buffer based on this score. Alternatively, you can sort on
2269 score and then level. (Taken together, the level and the score is
2270 called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group that is on level 4 and has
2271 a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group on level 5 that has a score
2272 of 300. (The level is the most significant part and the score is the
2273 least significant part.))
2275 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
2276 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
2277 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
2278 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
2279 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
2280 action after each summary exit, you can add
2281 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
2282 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
2283 slow things down somewhat.
2286 @node Marking Groups
2287 @section Marking Groups
2288 @cindex marking groups
2290 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
2291 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
2292 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
2293 bidding on those groups.
2295 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
2296 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
2297 with the process mark and then execute the command.
2305 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
2306 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
2312 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
2313 Remove the mark from the current group
2314 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
2318 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
2319 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
2323 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
2324 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
2328 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
2329 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
2333 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
2334 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
2335 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
2338 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
2340 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
2341 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
2342 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
2343 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
2344 the command to be executed.
2347 @node Foreign Groups
2348 @section Foreign Groups
2349 @cindex foreign groups
2351 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
2352 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
2353 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
2354 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
2361 @findex gnus-group-make-group
2362 @cindex making groups
2363 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
2364 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
2365 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
2369 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
2370 @cindex renaming groups
2371 Rename the current group to something else
2372 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
2373 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
2379 @findex gnus-group-customize
2380 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
2384 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
2385 @cindex renaming groups
2386 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
2387 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
2391 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
2392 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
2393 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
2397 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
2398 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
2399 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
2403 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
2405 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
2406 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
2411 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
2412 Make the gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
2416 @cindex (ding) archive
2417 @cindex archive group
2418 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
2419 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
2420 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
2421 Make a gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
2422 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
2423 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
2424 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
2428 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
2430 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
2431 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
2432 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
2433 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
2437 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
2439 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
2440 @code{nneething} backend (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
2441 @xref{Anything Groups}.
2445 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
2446 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
2448 Make a group based on some file or other
2449 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2450 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
2451 Currently supported types are @code{babyl}, @code{mbox}, @code{digest},
2452 @code{mmdf}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{clari-briefs},
2453 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{nsmail} and @code{forward}.
2454 If you run this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file
2455 type. @xref{Document Groups}.
2459 @vindex gnus-useful-groups
2460 @findex gnus-group-make-useful-group
2461 Create one of the groups mentioned in @code{gnus-useful-groups}
2462 (@code{gnus-group-make-useful-group}).
2466 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
2471 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
2472 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2473 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
2474 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
2475 include @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
2476 @xref{Web Searches}.
2478 If you use the @code{dejanews} search engine, you can limit the search
2479 to a particular group by using a match string like
2480 @samp{~g alt.sysadmin.recovery shaving}.
2483 @kindex G DEL (Group)
2484 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
2485 This function will delete the current group
2486 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
2487 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
2488 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
2489 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
2490 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
2494 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
2495 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
2496 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
2500 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
2501 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
2502 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
2505 @xref{Select Methods}, for more information on the various select
2508 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
2509 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
2510 gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
2511 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
2512 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
2513 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
2517 @node Group Parameters
2518 @section Group Parameters
2519 @cindex group parameters
2521 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
2522 Here's an example group parameter list:
2525 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2529 We see that each element consists of a "dotted pair"---the thing before
2530 the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value. All the
2531 parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs, which are
2532 not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
2534 The following group parameters can be used:
2539 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
2542 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
2545 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
2546 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
2547 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
2548 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
2549 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
2551 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
2552 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
2553 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
2554 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
2555 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
2556 list address instead.
2560 Address used when doing @kbd{a} in that group.
2563 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
2566 It is totally ignored
2567 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2568 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2570 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2571 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2572 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2573 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2574 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2576 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2577 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2578 sending the message.
2582 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2583 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2584 of whether it has any unread articles.
2586 @item broken-reply-to
2587 @cindex broken-reply-to
2588 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2589 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
2590 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
2591 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
2592 broken behavior. So there!
2596 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2597 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2601 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, gnus
2602 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2603 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2608 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2609 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group. If
2610 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2611 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2612 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2613 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2614 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
2618 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2619 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2620 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2623 @cindex total-expire
2624 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2625 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2626 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2627 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2632 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2633 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(expiry-wait
2634 . 10)}, this value will override any @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and
2635 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} when expiring expirable messages.
2636 The value can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or
2637 the symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2640 @cindex score file group parameter
2641 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2642 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2643 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2646 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2647 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2648 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2649 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2652 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2653 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2654 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2655 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2658 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2659 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2663 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2666 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2671 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")}
2672 are arbitrary comments on the group. They are currently ignored by
2673 gnus, but provide a place for you to store information on particular
2677 Elements that look like @code{(charset . iso-8859-1)} will make
2678 @code{iso-8859-1} the default charset; that is, the charset that will be
2679 used for all articles that do not specify a charset.
2681 @item (@var{variable} @var{form})
2682 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2683 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2684 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2685 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2686 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2687 @code{eval}ed there.
2689 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2690 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2691 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2692 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2693 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2696 You can store additional posting style information for this group only
2697 here (@pxref{Posting Styles}). The format is that of an entry in the
2698 @code{gnus-posting-styles} alist, except that there's no regexp matching
2699 the group name (of course). Style elements in this group parameter will
2700 take precedence over the ones found in @code{gnus-posting-styles}.
2702 For instance, if you want a funky name and signature in this group only,
2703 instead of hacking @code{gnus-posting-styles}, you could put something
2704 like this in the group parameters:
2709 (signature "Funky Signature"))
2714 Use the @kbd{G p} command to edit group parameters of a group. You
2715 might also be interested in reading about topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
2719 @node Listing Groups
2720 @section Listing Groups
2721 @cindex group listing
2723 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
2731 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
2732 List all groups that have unread articles
2733 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
2734 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
2735 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
2736 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
2743 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
2744 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
2745 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
2746 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
2747 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
2748 unsubscribed groups).
2752 @findex gnus-group-list-level
2753 List all unread groups on a specific level
2754 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
2755 with no unread articles.
2759 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
2760 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
2761 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
2762 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
2767 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
2768 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
2772 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
2773 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
2774 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
2778 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
2779 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
2783 @findex gnus-group-list-active
2784 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
2785 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
2786 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
2787 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
2788 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
2789 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
2790 Take the output with some grains of salt.
2794 @findex gnus-group-apropos
2795 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
2796 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
2800 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
2801 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
2802 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
2806 @findex gnus-group-list-cached
2807 List all groups with cached articles (@code{gnus-group-list-cached}).
2811 @findex gnus-group-list-dormant
2812 List all groups with dormant articles (@code{gnus-group-list-dormant}).
2816 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2817 @cindex visible group parameter
2818 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
2819 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
2820 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
2821 get the same effect.
2823 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
2824 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
2825 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
2826 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
2827 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
2830 @node Sorting Groups
2831 @section Sorting Groups
2832 @cindex sorting groups
2834 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
2835 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
2836 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
2837 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
2838 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
2839 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
2844 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2845 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2846 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
2848 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2849 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2850 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
2852 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
2853 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
2854 Sort by group level.
2856 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
2857 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
2858 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
2860 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2861 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2862 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
2863 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
2865 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2866 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2867 Sort by number of unread articles.
2869 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
2870 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
2871 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
2876 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
2877 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
2881 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
2882 some sorting criteria:
2886 @kindex G S a (Group)
2887 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2888 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
2889 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2892 @kindex G S u (Group)
2893 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
2894 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
2895 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2898 @kindex G S l (Group)
2899 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
2900 Sort the group buffer by group level
2901 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
2904 @kindex G S v (Group)
2905 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
2906 Sort the group buffer by group score
2907 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2910 @kindex G S r (Group)
2911 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
2912 Sort the group buffer by group rank
2913 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2916 @kindex G S m (Group)
2917 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
2918 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by backend name
2919 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
2923 All the commands below obey the process/prefix convention
2924 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2926 When given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), all these
2927 commands will sort in reverse order.
2929 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
2933 @kindex G P a (Group)
2934 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
2935 Sort the groups alphabetically by group name
2936 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
2939 @kindex G P u (Group)
2940 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
2941 Sort the groups by the number of unread articles
2942 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
2945 @kindex G P l (Group)
2946 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
2947 Sort the groups by group level
2948 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
2951 @kindex G P v (Group)
2952 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
2953 Sort the groups by group score
2954 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2957 @kindex G P r (Group)
2958 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
2959 Sort the groups by group rank
2960 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2963 @kindex G P m (Group)
2964 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
2965 Sort the groups alphabetically by backend name
2966 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
2972 @node Group Maintenance
2973 @section Group Maintenance
2974 @cindex bogus groups
2979 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
2980 Find bogus groups and delete them
2981 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
2985 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
2986 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
2987 With 1 @kbd{C-u}, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
2988 for new groups. With 2 @kbd{C-u}'s, use most complete method possible
2989 to query the server for new groups, and subscribe the new groups as
2993 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
2994 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
2995 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
2996 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}).
2999 @kindex C-c M-C-x (Group)
3000 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
3001 Run all articles in all groups through the expiry process
3002 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
3007 @node Browse Foreign Server
3008 @section Browse Foreign Server
3009 @cindex foreign servers
3010 @cindex browsing servers
3015 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
3016 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
3017 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
3018 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
3021 @findex gnus-browse-mode
3022 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
3023 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
3024 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
3026 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
3031 @findex gnus-group-next-group
3032 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
3036 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
3037 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
3040 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
3041 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
3042 Enter the current group and display the first article
3043 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
3046 @kindex RET (Browse)
3047 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
3048 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
3052 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
3053 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
3054 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
3060 @findex gnus-browse-exit
3061 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
3065 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
3066 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
3067 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
3072 @section Exiting gnus
3073 @cindex exiting gnus
3075 Yes, gnus is ex(c)iting.
3080 @findex gnus-group-suspend
3081 Suspend gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit gnus,
3082 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
3083 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
3087 @findex gnus-group-exit
3088 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
3089 Quit gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
3093 @findex gnus-group-quit
3094 Quit gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
3095 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
3098 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
3099 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
3100 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend gnus and
3101 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit gnus, while
3102 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
3107 If you wish to completely unload gnus and all its adherents, you can use
3108 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
3109 trying to customize meta-variables.
3114 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
3115 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
3116 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
3122 @section Group Topics
3125 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
3126 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
3127 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
3128 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
3129 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
3130 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
3134 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
3135 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group-topic.ps,height=9cm}}
3146 2: alt.religion.emacs
3149 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3151 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3152 13: comp.sources.unix
3155 @findex gnus-topic-mode
3157 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
3158 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
3159 is a toggling command.)
3161 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
3162 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and now
3163 press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
3164 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
3167 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
3168 the hook for the group mode:
3171 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
3175 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
3176 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
3177 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
3178 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
3179 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
3183 @node Topic Variables
3184 @subsection Topic Variables
3185 @cindex topic variables
3187 Now, if you select a topic, it will fold/unfold that topic, which is
3188 really neat, I think.
3190 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
3191 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
3192 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3205 Number of groups in the topic.
3207 Number of unread articles in the topic.
3209 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
3212 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
3213 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
3214 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
3217 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
3218 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
3220 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
3221 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
3222 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
3225 @node Topic Commands
3226 @subsection Topic Commands
3227 @cindex topic commands
3229 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
3230 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
3231 definitions slightly.
3237 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
3238 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
3239 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
3243 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
3244 Move the current group to some other topic
3245 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3246 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3250 @findex gnus-topic-jump-to-topic
3251 Go to a topic (@code{gnus-topic-jump-to-topic}).
3255 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
3256 Copy the current group to some other topic
3257 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3258 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3262 @findex gnus-topic-hide-topic
3263 Hide the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-hide-topic}). If given
3264 a prefix, hide the topic permanently.
3268 @findex gnus-topic-show-topic
3269 Show the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-show-topic}). If given
3270 a prefix, show the topic permanently.
3274 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
3275 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
3276 This command is mainly useful if you have the same group in several
3277 topics and wish to remove it from one of the topics. You may also
3278 remove a group from all topics, but in that case, Gnus will add it to
3279 the root topic the next time you start Gnus. In fact, all new groups
3280 (which, naturally, don't belong to any topic) will show up in the root
3283 This command uses the process/prefix convention
3284 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3288 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
3289 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3290 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
3294 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
3295 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3296 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
3300 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
3301 Toggle hiding empty topics
3302 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
3306 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
3307 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
3308 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
3311 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
3312 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
3313 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
3314 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
3318 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
3320 @findex gnus-topic-indent
3321 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3322 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
3323 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
3326 @kindex M-TAB (Topic)
3327 @findex gnus-topic-unindent
3328 ``Un-indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3329 parent of its current parent (@code{gnus-topic-unindent}).
3333 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
3335 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
3336 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
3337 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
3338 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
3339 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
3340 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
3343 @kindex C-c C-x (Topic)
3344 @findex gnus-topic-expire-articles
3345 Run all expirable articles in the current group or topic through the expiry
3346 process (if any) (@code{gnus-topic-expire-articles}).
3350 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
3351 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
3352 topic will be removed along with the topic.
3356 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
3357 Yank the previously killed group or topic
3358 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
3363 @findex gnus-topic-rename
3364 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
3367 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
3368 @findex gnus-topic-delete
3369 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
3373 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
3374 List all groups that gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
3375 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
3379 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
3380 @cindex group parameters
3381 @cindex topic parameters
3383 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
3384 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
3390 @subsection Topic Sorting
3391 @cindex topic sorting
3393 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
3399 @kindex T S a (Topic)
3400 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3401 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
3402 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3405 @kindex T S u (Topic)
3406 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
3407 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
3408 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3411 @kindex T S l (Topic)
3412 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
3413 Sort the current topic by group level
3414 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
3417 @kindex T S v (Topic)
3418 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
3419 Sort the current topic by group score
3420 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3423 @kindex T S r (Topic)
3424 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
3425 Sort the current topic by group rank
3426 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3429 @kindex T S m (Topic)
3430 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
3431 Sort the current topic alphabetically by backend name
3432 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
3436 @xref{Sorting Groups}, for more information about group sorting.
3439 @node Topic Topology
3440 @subsection Topic Topology
3441 @cindex topic topology
3444 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
3450 2: alt.religion.emacs
3453 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3455 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3456 13: comp.sources.unix
3459 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
3460 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
3461 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
3466 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
3467 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
3471 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
3472 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
3473 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
3474 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
3475 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
3476 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
3478 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
3479 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
3480 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
3483 @node Topic Parameters
3484 @subsection Topic Parameters
3485 @cindex topic parameters
3487 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
3488 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
3489 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
3491 In addition, the following parameters are only valid as topic
3496 When subscribing new groups by topic (@pxref{Subscription Methods}), the
3497 @code{subscribe} topic parameter says what groups go in what topic. Its
3498 value should be a regexp to match the groups that should go in that
3503 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
3504 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
3505 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
3506 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
3512 2: alt.religion.emacs
3516 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3518 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3519 13: comp.sources.unix
3523 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
3524 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
3525 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
3526 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
3527 @* @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
3528 . "religion.SCORE")}.
3530 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
3531 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
3532 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
3533 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
3534 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
3536 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
3537 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
3538 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
3539 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
3540 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
3541 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
3542 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
3543 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
3546 @node Misc Group Stuff
3547 @section Misc Group Stuff
3550 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
3551 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and gnus.
3552 * Group Timestamp:: Making gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
3553 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the gnus files.
3560 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
3561 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
3562 @xref{The Server Buffer}.
3566 @findex gnus-group-post-news
3567 Post an article to a group (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a
3568 prefix, the current group name will be used as the default.
3572 @findex gnus-group-mail
3573 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}).
3577 Variables for the group buffer:
3581 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
3582 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
3583 is called after the group buffer has been
3586 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
3587 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3588 is called after the group buffer is
3589 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
3592 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
3593 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3594 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
3595 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
3597 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3598 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3599 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
3600 whether they are empty or not.
3602 @item gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3603 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3604 An alist of method and the charset for group names. It is used to show
3605 non-ASCII group names.
3609 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3610 '(((nntp "news.com.cn") . cn-gb-2312)))
3613 @item gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3614 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3615 An alist of regexp of group name and the charset for group names.
3616 It is used to show non-ASCII group names.
3620 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3621 '(("\\.com\\.cn:" . cn-gb-2312)))
3626 @node Scanning New Messages
3627 @subsection Scanning New Messages
3628 @cindex new messages
3629 @cindex scanning new news
3635 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
3636 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
3637 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
3638 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
3639 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
3640 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
3645 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
3646 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
3647 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
3648 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
3649 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
3650 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
3651 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
3653 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
3654 @cindex activating groups
3656 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
3657 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
3662 @findex gnus-group-restart
3663 Restart gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
3664 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
3665 gnus variables, and then starts gnus all over again.
3669 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
3670 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
3672 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
3673 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
3677 @node Group Information
3678 @subsection Group Information
3679 @cindex group information
3680 @cindex information on groups
3687 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
3688 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
3691 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
3692 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
3693 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
3694 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
3695 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
3696 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
3697 for fetching the file.
3699 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, gnus will attempt to go
3700 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
3704 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
3706 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
3707 @cindex describing groups
3708 @cindex group description
3709 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
3710 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
3711 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
3715 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
3716 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
3717 prefix, force gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
3724 @findex gnus-version
3725 Display current gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
3729 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
3730 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
3733 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
3736 @findex gnus-info-find-node
3737 Go to the gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
3741 @node Group Timestamp
3742 @subsection Group Timestamp
3744 @cindex group timestamps
3746 It can be convenient to let gnus keep track of when you last read a
3747 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
3748 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
3751 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
3754 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
3756 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
3757 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
3760 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3761 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
3764 This will result in lines looking like:
3767 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
3768 0: custom 19961002T012713
3771 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
3772 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
3776 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3777 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
3782 @subsection File Commands
3783 @cindex file commands
3789 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
3790 @vindex gnus-init-file
3791 @cindex reading init file
3792 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
3793 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
3797 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
3798 @cindex saving .newsrc
3799 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
3800 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
3801 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
3804 @c @kindex Z (Group)
3805 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
3806 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
3811 @node The Summary Buffer
3812 @chapter The Summary Buffer
3813 @cindex summary buffer
3815 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
3816 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
3818 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
3819 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
3821 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
3824 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
3825 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
3826 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
3827 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
3828 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
3829 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
3830 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
3831 * Threading:: How threads are made.
3832 * Sorting:: How articles and threads are sorted.
3833 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
3834 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
3835 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
3836 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
3837 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
3838 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
3839 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
3840 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
3841 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
3842 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
3843 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
3844 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
3845 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
3846 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
3847 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
3848 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
3849 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer.
3850 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
3851 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
3855 @node Summary Buffer Format
3856 @section Summary Buffer Format
3857 @cindex summary buffer format
3861 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
3862 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary.ps,width=7.5cm}}
3863 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-article.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
3869 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
3870 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
3871 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
3872 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
3875 @findex mail-extract-address-components
3876 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
3877 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
3878 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
3879 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
3880 @code{From} header. Three pre-defined functions exist:
3881 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
3882 fast, and too simplistic solution;
3883 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works nicely, but is
3884 slower; and @code{std11-extract-address-components}, which works very
3885 nicely, but is slower. The default function will return the wrong
3886 answer in 5% of the cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the
3887 other function instead:
3890 (setq gnus-extract-address-components
3891 'mail-extract-address-components)
3894 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
3895 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
3896 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
3897 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
3900 @node Summary Buffer Lines
3901 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
3903 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
3904 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
3905 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
3906 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
3907 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3909 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%) %s\n}.
3911 The following format specification characters are understood:
3917 Subject string. List identifiers stripped,
3918 @code{gnus-list-identifies}. @xref{Article Hiding}.
3920 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
3921 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
3922 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
3924 Full @code{From} header.
3926 The name (from the @code{From} header).
3928 The name, code @code{To} header or the @code{Newsgroups} header
3929 (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
3931 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
3932 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
3933 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
3934 may be more thorough.
3936 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
3939 Number of lines in the article.
3941 Number of characters in the article. This specifier is not supported in some
3942 methods (like nnfolder).
3944 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3946 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
3947 pushes everything after it off the screen).
3949 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
3950 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3952 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
3953 for adopted articles.
3955 One space for each thread level.
3957 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
3962 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
3963 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
3967 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
3969 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
3970 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
3971 default level. If the difference between
3972 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
3973 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
3981 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
3983 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
3989 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
3990 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
3992 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
3993 article has any children.
3999 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
4000 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
4001 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
4002 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
4003 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
4004 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
4007 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
4008 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, gnus will
4009 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
4010 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
4011 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
4012 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
4014 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
4015 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
4017 This restriction may disappear in later versions of gnus.
4020 @node To From Newsgroups
4021 @subsection To From Newsgroups
4025 In some groups (particularly in archive groups), the @code{From} header
4026 isn't very interesting, since all the articles there are written by
4027 you. To display the information in the @code{To} or @code{Newsgroups}
4028 headers instead, you need to decide three things: What information to
4029 gather; where to display it; and when to display it.
4033 @vindex gnus-extra-headers
4034 The reading of extra header information is controlled by the
4035 @code{gnus-extra-headers}. This is a list of header symbols. For
4039 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4040 '(To Newsgroups X-Newsreader))
4043 This will result in Gnus trying to obtain these three headers, and
4044 storing it in header structures for later easy retrieval.
4047 @findex gnus-extra-header
4048 The value of these extra headers can be accessed via the
4049 @code{gnus-extra-header} function. Here's a format line spec that will
4050 access the @code{X-Newsreader} header:
4053 "%~(form (gnus-extra-header 'X-Newsreader))@@"
4057 @vindex gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4058 The @code{gnus-ignored-from-addresses} variable says when the @samp{%f}
4059 summary line spec returns the @code{To}, @code{Newsreader} or
4060 @code{From} header. If this regexp matches the contents of the
4061 @code{From} header, the value of the @code{To} or @code{Newsreader}
4062 headers are used instead.
4066 @vindex nnmail-extra-headers
4067 A related variable is @code{nnmail-extra-headers}, which controls when
4068 to include extra headers when generating overview (@sc{nov}) files. If
4069 you have old overview files, you should regenerate them after changing
4072 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4073 You also have to instruct Gnus to display the data by changing the
4074 @code{%n} spec to the @code{%f} spec in the
4075 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable.
4077 In summary, you'd typically do something like the following:
4080 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4082 (setq nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
4083 (setq gnus-summary-line-format
4084 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20f%]%) %s\n")
4085 (setq gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4089 Now, this is mostly useful for mail groups, where you have control over
4090 the @sc{nov} files that are created. However, if you can persuade your
4097 to the end of her @file{overview.fmt} file, then you can use that just
4098 as you would the extra headers from the mail groups.
4101 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
4102 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
4104 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
4105 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
4106 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
4107 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
4109 Here are the elements you can play with:
4115 Unprefixed group name.
4117 Current article number.
4119 Current article score.
4123 Number of unread articles in this group.
4125 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
4128 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
4129 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
4130 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
4131 and no unselected ones.
4133 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
4134 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
4136 Subject of the current article.
4138 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
4140 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
4142 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4144 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4146 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
4148 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
4152 @node Summary Highlighting
4153 @subsection Summary Highlighting
4157 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4158 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4159 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
4160 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
4161 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4163 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
4164 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
4165 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
4166 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4168 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
4169 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
4170 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
4171 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
4173 @item gnus-summary-highlight
4174 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
4175 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
4176 list where the elements are of the format @code{(@var{form}
4177 . @var{face})}. If you would, for instance, like ticked articles to be
4178 italic and high-scored articles to be bold, you could set this variable
4181 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
4182 ((> score default) . bold))
4184 As you may have guessed, if @var{form} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
4185 @var{face} will be applied to the line.
4189 @node Summary Maneuvering
4190 @section Summary Maneuvering
4191 @cindex summary movement
4193 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
4194 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
4196 None of these commands select articles.
4201 @kindex M-n (Summary)
4202 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
4203 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
4204 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
4205 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
4209 @kindex M-p (Summary)
4210 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
4211 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
4212 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
4213 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
4218 @kindex G j (Summary)
4219 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
4220 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
4221 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
4224 @kindex G g (Summary)
4225 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
4226 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
4227 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
4230 If gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
4231 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
4232 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
4233 to the group buffer.
4235 Variables related to summary movement:
4239 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
4240 @item gnus-auto-select-next
4241 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
4242 no more unread articles after the current one, gnus will offer to go to
4243 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
4244 empty, gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
4245 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, gnus will select the
4246 next group, no matter whether it has any unread articles or not. As a
4247 special case, if this variable is @code{quietly}, gnus will select the
4248 next group without asking for confirmation. If this variable is
4249 @code{almost-quietly}, the same will happen only if you are located on
4250 the last article in the group. Finally, if this variable is
4251 @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n} command will go to the next group
4252 without confirmation. Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
4254 @item gnus-auto-select-same
4255 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
4256 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
4257 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
4258 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
4259 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) If there are no more
4260 articles with the same subject, go to the first unread article.
4262 This variable is not particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
4264 @item gnus-summary-check-current
4265 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
4266 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
4267 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
4268 Instead, they will choose the current article.
4270 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
4271 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
4272 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
4273 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
4274 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
4275 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
4276 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
4277 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
4280 This variable can also be a number. In that case, center the window at
4281 the given number of lines from the top.
4286 @node Choosing Articles
4287 @section Choosing Articles
4288 @cindex selecting articles
4291 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
4292 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
4296 @node Choosing Commands
4297 @subsection Choosing Commands
4299 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
4300 and they all select and display an article.
4304 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4305 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4306 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
4307 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4312 @kindex G n (Summary)
4313 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
4314 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
4315 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
4320 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
4321 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
4322 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
4327 @kindex G N (Summary)
4328 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
4329 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
4334 @kindex G P (Summary)
4335 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
4336 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
4339 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
4340 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
4341 Go to the next article with the same subject
4342 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
4345 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
4346 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
4347 Go to the previous article with the same subject
4348 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
4352 @kindex G f (Summary)
4354 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
4355 Go to the first unread article
4356 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
4360 @kindex G b (Summary)
4362 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
4363 Go to the article with the highest score
4364 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}).
4369 @kindex G l (Summary)
4370 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
4371 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
4374 @kindex G o (Summary)
4375 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
4377 @cindex article history
4378 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
4379 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
4380 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
4381 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
4382 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
4383 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
4387 @node Choosing Variables
4388 @subsection Choosing Variables
4390 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
4393 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4394 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4395 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
4396 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
4397 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
4398 the server and display it in the article buffer.
4400 @item gnus-select-article-hook
4401 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
4402 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
4403 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
4405 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
4406 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
4407 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
4408 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
4409 @findex gnus-unread-mark
4410 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
4411 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
4412 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
4413 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
4414 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
4415 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
4416 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
4417 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
4418 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
4423 @node Paging the Article
4424 @section Scrolling the Article
4425 @cindex article scrolling
4430 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4431 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4432 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
4433 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
4434 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4437 @kindex DEL (Summary)
4438 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
4439 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
4442 @kindex RET (Summary)
4443 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
4444 Scroll the current article one line forward
4445 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
4448 @kindex M-RET (Summary)
4449 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-down
4450 Scroll the current article one line backward
4451 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-down}).
4455 @kindex A g (Summary)
4457 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
4458 @vindex gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
4459 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
4460 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
4461 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
4462 the way it came from the server.
4464 If given a numerical prefix, you can do semi-manual charset stuff.
4465 @kbd{C-u 0 g cn-gb-2312 RET} will decode the message as if it were
4466 encoded in the @code{cn-gb-2312} charset. If you have
4469 (setq gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
4474 then you can say @kbd{C-u 1 g} to get the same effect.
4479 @kindex A < (Summary)
4480 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
4481 Scroll to the beginning of the article
4482 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
4487 @kindex A > (Summary)
4488 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
4489 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
4493 @kindex A s (Summary)
4495 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
4496 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
4497 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
4501 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
4502 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
4507 @node Reply Followup and Post
4508 @section Reply, Followup and Post
4511 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
4512 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
4513 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
4514 * Canceling and Superseding:: ``Whoops, I shouldn't have called him that.''
4518 @node Summary Mail Commands
4519 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
4521 @cindex composing mail
4523 Commands for composing a mail message:
4529 @kindex S r (Summary)
4531 @findex gnus-summary-reply
4532 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
4533 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
4534 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
4535 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
4540 @kindex S R (Summary)
4541 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
4542 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
4543 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
4544 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
4545 command uses the process/prefix convention.
4548 @kindex S w (Summary)
4549 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
4550 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
4551 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
4552 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
4553 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
4556 @kindex S W (Summary)
4557 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
4558 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
4559 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
4560 the process/prefix convention.
4564 @kindex S o m (Summary)
4565 @kindex C-c C-f (Summary)
4566 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
4567 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
4568 Forward the current article to some other person
4569 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
4570 headers of the forwarded article.
4575 @kindex S m (Summary)
4576 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
4577 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
4578 Send a mail to some other person
4579 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}).
4582 @kindex S D b (Summary)
4583 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
4584 @cindex bouncing mail
4585 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
4586 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
4587 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
4588 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
4589 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
4590 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, gnus will try to fetch
4591 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
4592 very well fail, though.
4595 @kindex S D r (Summary)
4596 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
4597 Not to be confused with the previous command,
4598 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
4599 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
4600 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
4601 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
4602 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
4603 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
4604 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
4606 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
4607 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
4608 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
4609 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
4610 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muß sein!
4612 This command understands the process/prefix convention
4613 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4616 @kindex S O m (Summary)
4617 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
4618 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
4619 result using mail (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command
4620 uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4623 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
4624 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
4625 @cindex crossposting
4626 @cindex excessive crossposting
4627 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
4628 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
4630 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
4631 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
4632 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
4633 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
4634 command understands the process/prefix convention
4635 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
4639 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
4642 @node Summary Post Commands
4643 @subsection Summary Post Commands
4645 @cindex composing news
4647 Commands for posting a news article:
4653 @kindex S p (Summary)
4654 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
4655 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
4656 Post an article to the current group
4657 (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}).
4662 @kindex S f (Summary)
4663 @findex gnus-summary-followup
4664 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
4665 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
4669 @kindex S F (Summary)
4671 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
4672 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
4673 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
4674 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
4675 process/prefix convention.
4678 @kindex S n (Summary)
4679 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
4680 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
4681 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
4684 @kindex S N (Summary)
4685 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
4686 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
4687 message through mail and include the original message
4688 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
4689 the process/prefix convention.
4692 @kindex S o p (Summary)
4693 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
4694 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
4695 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
4696 headers of the forwarded article.
4699 @kindex S O p (Summary)
4700 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
4702 @cindex making digests
4703 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
4704 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
4705 process/prefix convention.
4708 @kindex S u (Summary)
4709 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
4710 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
4711 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
4712 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
4715 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
4718 @node Summary Message Commands
4719 @subsection Summary Message Commands
4723 @kindex S y (Summary)
4724 @findex gnus-summary-yank-message
4725 Yank the current article into an already existing Message composition
4726 buffer (@code{gnus-summary-yank-message}). This command prompts for
4727 what message buffer you want to yank into, and understands the
4728 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4733 @node Canceling and Superseding
4734 @subsection Canceling Articles
4735 @cindex canceling articles
4736 @cindex superseding articles
4738 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
4739 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
4741 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
4743 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
4745 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
4746 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
4747 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
4748 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
4749 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
4750 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4752 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
4753 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
4756 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
4757 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
4758 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
4760 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
4761 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
4762 your original article.
4764 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
4766 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
4767 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
4768 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
4771 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
4772 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
4773 have posted almost the same article twice.
4775 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
4776 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
4777 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
4778 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
4779 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
4780 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
4781 header by substituting one of those words for the word
4782 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
4783 you would do normally. The previous article will be
4784 canceled/superseded.
4786 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
4789 @node Marking Articles
4790 @section Marking Articles
4791 @cindex article marking
4792 @cindex article ticking
4795 There are several marks you can set on an article.
4797 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
4798 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
4799 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
4801 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
4804 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
4805 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
4806 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
4810 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
4814 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
4815 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
4816 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
4820 @node Unread Articles
4821 @subsection Unread Articles
4823 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
4828 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
4829 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
4831 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
4832 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
4833 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
4834 tick it. However, articles can be expired, so if you want to keep an
4835 article forever, you'll have to make it persistent (@pxref{Persistent
4839 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
4840 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
4842 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
4843 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
4844 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
4847 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
4848 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
4850 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
4855 @subsection Read Articles
4856 @cindex expirable mark
4858 All the following marks mark articles as read.
4863 @vindex gnus-del-mark
4864 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
4865 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
4868 @vindex gnus-read-mark
4869 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
4872 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
4873 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
4874 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
4877 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
4878 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
4881 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
4882 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
4885 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
4886 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
4889 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
4890 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
4893 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
4894 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
4897 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
4898 @sc{soup}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
4901 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
4902 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
4906 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
4907 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
4908 (@code{gnus-duplicated-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
4912 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
4913 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
4915 One more special mark, though:
4919 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
4920 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
4922 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
4923 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
4924 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
4925 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by gnus at
4931 @subsection Other Marks
4932 @cindex process mark
4935 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
4941 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
4942 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
4943 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
4944 in the article, and gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
4945 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}.
4948 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
4949 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
4950 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
4951 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
4954 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
4955 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
4956 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}.
4959 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
4960 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
4961 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
4962 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
4965 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
4966 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
4967 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
4968 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
4969 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
4972 @vindex gnus-process-mark
4973 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
4974 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
4975 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
4976 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
4977 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
4981 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
4982 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
4983 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
4985 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
4986 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
4987 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
4991 @subsection Setting Marks
4992 @cindex setting marks
4994 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
4999 @kindex M c (Summary)
5000 @kindex M-u (Summary)
5001 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
5002 @cindex mark as unread
5003 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
5004 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
5010 @kindex M t (Summary)
5011 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
5012 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
5013 @xref{Article Caching}.
5018 @kindex M ? (Summary)
5019 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
5020 Mark the current article as dormant
5021 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5025 @kindex M d (Summary)
5027 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
5028 Mark the current article as read
5029 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
5033 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
5034 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
5035 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
5040 @kindex M k (Summary)
5041 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
5042 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
5043 and then select the next unread article
5044 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
5048 @kindex M K (Summary)
5049 @kindex C-k (Summary)
5050 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
5051 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
5052 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
5055 @kindex M C (Summary)
5056 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
5057 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
5058 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
5061 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
5062 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
5063 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
5064 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
5067 @kindex M H (Summary)
5068 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
5069 Catchup the current group to point
5070 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
5073 @kindex C-w (Summary)
5074 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
5075 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
5076 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
5079 @kindex M V k (Summary)
5080 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
5081 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
5082 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
5086 @kindex M e (Summary)
5088 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
5089 Mark the current article as expirable
5090 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
5093 @kindex M b (Summary)
5094 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
5095 Set a bookmark in the current article
5096 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
5099 @kindex M B (Summary)
5100 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
5101 Remove the bookmark from the current article
5102 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
5105 @kindex M V c (Summary)
5106 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
5107 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
5108 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5111 @kindex M V u (Summary)
5112 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
5113 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
5114 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
5117 @kindex M V m (Summary)
5118 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
5119 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
5120 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
5121 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5124 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
5125 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
5126 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
5127 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
5128 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
5129 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
5130 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
5131 The default is @code{t}.
5134 @node Generic Marking Commands
5135 @subsection Generic Marking Commands
5137 Some people would like the command that ticks an article (@kbd{!}) go to
5138 the next article. Others would like it to go to the next unread
5139 article. Yet others would like it to stay on the current article. And
5140 even though I haven't heard of anybody wanting it to go to the
5141 previous (unread) article, I'm sure there are people that want that as
5144 Multiply these five behaviours with five different marking commands, and
5145 you get a potentially complex set of variable to control what each
5148 To sidestep that mess, Gnus provides commands that do all these
5149 different things. They can be found on the @kbd{M M} map in the summary
5150 buffer. Type @kbd{M M C-h} to see them all---there are too many of them
5151 to list in this manual.
5153 While you can use these commands directly, most users would prefer
5154 altering the summary mode keymap. For instance, if you would like the
5155 @kbd{!} command to go to the next article instead of the next unread
5156 article, you could say something like:
5159 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'my-alter-summary-map)
5160 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5161 (local-set-key "!" 'gnus-summary-put-mark-as-ticked-next))
5167 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5168 (local-set-key "!" "MM!n"))
5172 @node Setting Process Marks
5173 @subsection Setting Process Marks
5174 @cindex setting process marks
5181 @kindex M P p (Summary)
5182 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
5183 Mark the current article with the process mark
5184 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
5185 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
5189 @kindex M P u (Summary)
5190 @kindex M-# (Summary)
5191 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
5192 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
5195 @kindex M P U (Summary)
5196 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
5197 Remove the process mark from all articles
5198 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
5201 @kindex M P i (Summary)
5202 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
5203 Invert the list of process marked articles
5204 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
5207 @kindex M P R (Summary)
5208 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
5209 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5210 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
5213 @kindex M P G (Summary)
5214 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp
5215 Unmark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5216 expression (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp}).
5219 @kindex M P r (Summary)
5220 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
5221 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
5224 @kindex M P t (Summary)
5225 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
5226 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5227 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
5230 @kindex M P T (Summary)
5231 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
5232 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5233 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
5236 @kindex M P v (Summary)
5237 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
5238 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
5239 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
5242 @kindex M P s (Summary)
5243 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
5244 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
5247 @kindex M P S (Summary)
5248 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
5249 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
5250 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
5253 @kindex M P a (Summary)
5254 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
5255 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
5258 @kindex M P b (Summary)
5259 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
5260 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
5261 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
5264 @kindex M P k (Summary)
5265 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
5266 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
5267 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
5270 @kindex M P y (Summary)
5271 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
5272 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
5273 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
5276 @kindex M P w (Summary)
5277 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
5278 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
5279 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
5283 Also see the @kbd{&} command in @pxref{Searching for Articles} for how to
5284 set process marks based on article body contents.
5291 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
5292 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
5293 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
5296 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
5297 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
5298 additional articles.
5304 @kindex / / (Summary)
5305 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
5306 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
5307 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}).
5310 @kindex / a (Summary)
5311 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
5312 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
5313 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}).
5316 @kindex / x (Summary)
5317 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-extra
5318 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match one of the ``extra''
5319 headers (@pxref{To From Newsgroups})
5320 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-extra}).
5324 @kindex / u (Summary)
5326 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
5327 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
5328 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
5329 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
5330 dormant articles will also be excluded.
5333 @kindex / m (Summary)
5334 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
5335 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
5336 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
5339 @kindex / t (Summary)
5340 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
5341 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
5342 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-age}). If given a prefix, limit to
5343 articles younger than that number of days.
5346 @kindex / n (Summary)
5347 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
5348 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
5349 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
5350 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5353 @kindex / w (Summary)
5354 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
5355 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
5356 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
5360 @kindex / v (Summary)
5361 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
5362 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
5363 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
5367 @kindex M S (Summary)
5368 @kindex / E (Summary)
5369 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
5370 Include all expunged articles in the limit
5371 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
5374 @kindex / D (Summary)
5375 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
5376 Include all dormant articles in the limit
5377 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
5380 @kindex / * (Summary)
5381 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
5382 Include all cached articles in the limit
5383 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
5386 @kindex / d (Summary)
5387 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
5388 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
5389 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
5392 @kindex / M (Summary)
5393 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks
5394 Exclude all marked articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks}).
5397 @kindex / T (Summary)
5398 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
5399 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
5402 @kindex / c (Summary)
5403 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
5404 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
5405 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
5408 @kindex / C (Summary)
5409 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
5410 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
5411 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
5412 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
5420 @cindex article threading
5422 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
5423 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
5424 hierarchical fashion.
5426 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
5427 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
5428 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
5429 or simply missing. Weird news propagation excarcerbates the problem,
5430 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
5431 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
5432 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
5434 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
5438 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
5441 A tree-like article structure.
5444 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
5447 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
5448 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
5449 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
5450 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
5451 called loose threads.
5453 @item thread gathering
5454 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
5456 @item sparse threads
5457 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
5458 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
5464 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
5465 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
5469 @node Customizing Threading
5470 @subsection Customizing Threading
5471 @cindex customizing threading
5474 * Loose Threads:: How gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
5475 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
5476 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
5477 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
5482 @subsubsection Loose Threads
5485 @cindex loose threads
5488 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
5489 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
5490 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
5491 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
5492 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
5493 read or killed the root in a previous session.
5495 When there is no real root of a thread, gnus will have to fudge
5496 something. This variable says what fudging method gnus should use.
5497 There are four possible values:
5501 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
5502 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-adopt.ps,width=7.5cm}}
5503 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-empty.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
5504 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-none.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
5505 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-dummy.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
5510 @cindex adopting articles
5515 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
5516 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
5517 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
5518 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
5521 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
5522 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
5523 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
5524 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
5525 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
5526 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
5527 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
5530 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
5531 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
5532 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
5536 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
5537 display them after one another.
5540 Don't gather loose threads.
5543 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
5544 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
5545 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
5546 variable is @code{nil}, gnus requires an exact match between the
5547 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
5548 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
5549 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
5550 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
5551 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
5552 variable to a really low number, you'll find that gnus will gather
5553 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
5555 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
5556 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, gnus will
5557 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
5560 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
5561 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
5562 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
5563 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
5564 simplification is used.
5566 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
5567 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
5568 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
5569 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
5571 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
5573 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
5579 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
5580 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
5581 "answer" "reference" "announce"
5582 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
5587 (mapconcat 'identity
5588 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
5590 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
5593 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
5596 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
5597 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
5598 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
5599 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
5600 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
5601 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
5603 Useful functions to put in this list include:
5606 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
5607 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
5608 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
5610 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
5611 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
5614 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
5615 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
5616 Remove excessive whitespace.
5619 You may also write your own functions, of course.
5622 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
5623 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
5624 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
5625 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
5626 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
5627 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
5628 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
5629 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
5631 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5632 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5633 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
5634 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
5635 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
5636 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
5637 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
5638 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
5639 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
5643 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
5644 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
5645 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
5646 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
5648 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
5649 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
5650 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
5653 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
5657 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5658 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
5664 @node Filling In Threads
5665 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
5668 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
5669 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
5670 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
5671 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you
5672 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
5673 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
5674 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
5675 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
5676 fetching old headers only works if the backend you are using carries
5677 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and
5678 @code{nnml}. Also remember that if the root of the thread has been
5679 expired by the server, there's not much gnus can do about that.
5681 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
5682 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
5683 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
5685 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
5686 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
5687 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
5688 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
5689 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
5690 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
5691 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where gnus guesses that an article
5692 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
5693 lines. If you select a gap, gnus will try to fetch the article in
5694 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, gnus will display all these
5695 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
5696 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, gnus won't cut
5697 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
5698 @code{nil} by default.
5703 @node More Threading
5704 @subsubsection More Threading
5707 @item gnus-show-threads
5708 @vindex gnus-show-threads
5709 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
5710 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
5711 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
5712 slower and more awkward.
5714 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
5715 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
5716 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
5719 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
5720 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
5721 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
5722 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
5723 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
5724 threads are expunged.
5726 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
5727 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
5728 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
5731 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
5732 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
5733 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
5734 this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subject change is ignored. If it
5735 is @code{nil}, which is the default, a change in the subject will result
5738 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
5739 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
5740 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
5743 @item gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
5744 @vindex gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
5745 Sometimes, particularly with mailing lists, the order in which mails
5746 arrive locally is not necessarily the same as the order in which they
5747 arrived on the mailing list. Consequently, when sorting sub-threads
5748 using the default @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number}, responses can end
5749 up appearing before the article to which they are responding to.
5750 Setting this variable to an alternate value
5751 (e.g. @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}), in a group's parameters or in an
5752 appropriate hook (e.g. @code{gnus-summary-generate-hook}) can produce a
5753 more logical sub-thread ordering in such instances.
5758 @node Low-Level Threading
5759 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
5763 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
5764 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
5765 Hook run before parsing any headers. The default value is
5766 @code{(gnus-set-summary-default-charset)}, which sets up local value of
5767 @code{default-mime-charset} in summary buffer based on variable
5768 @code{gnus-newsgroup-default-charset-alist}.
5770 @item gnus-alter-header-function
5771 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
5772 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
5773 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
5774 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
5775 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
5776 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
5777 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
5778 meaningful. Here's one example:
5781 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
5783 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
5784 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
5786 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
5788 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
5795 @node Thread Commands
5796 @subsection Thread Commands
5797 @cindex thread commands
5803 @kindex T k (Summary)
5804 @kindex M-C-k (Summary)
5805 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
5806 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
5807 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
5808 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
5813 @kindex T l (Summary)
5814 @kindex M-C-l (Summary)
5815 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
5816 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
5817 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
5820 @kindex T i (Summary)
5821 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
5822 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
5823 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
5826 @kindex T # (Summary)
5827 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
5828 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
5829 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
5832 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
5833 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
5834 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
5835 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
5838 @kindex T T (Summary)
5839 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
5840 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
5843 @kindex T s (Summary)
5844 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
5845 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
5846 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
5849 @kindex T h (Summary)
5850 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
5851 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
5854 @kindex T S (Summary)
5855 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
5856 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
5859 @kindex T H (Summary)
5860 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
5861 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
5864 @kindex T t (Summary)
5865 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
5866 Re-thread the current article's thread
5867 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
5868 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
5871 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
5872 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
5873 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
5874 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
5878 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
5879 understand the numeric prefix.
5884 @kindex T n (Summary)
5886 @kindex M-C-n (Summary)
5888 @kindex M-down (Summary)
5889 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
5890 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
5893 @kindex T p (Summary)
5895 @kindex M-C-p (Summary)
5897 @kindex M-up (Summary)
5898 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
5899 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
5902 @kindex T d (Summary)
5903 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
5904 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
5907 @kindex T u (Summary)
5908 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
5909 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
5912 @kindex T o (Summary)
5913 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
5914 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
5917 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
5918 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
5919 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
5920 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
5921 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
5922 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
5923 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
5924 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
5925 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
5926 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
5927 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
5928 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
5935 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
5936 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
5937 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
5938 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
5939 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
5940 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
5941 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
5942 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
5943 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which can be either a single
5944 function, a list of functions, or a list containing functions and
5945 @code{(not some-function)} elements.
5947 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
5948 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
5949 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
5950 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score}, and
5951 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
5953 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
5954 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
5955 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread.
5957 If you use more than one function, the primary sort key should be the
5958 last function in the list. You should probably always include
5959 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
5960 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
5961 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
5962 ascending article order.
5964 If you would like to sort by reverse score, then by subject, and finally
5965 by number, you could do something like:
5968 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
5969 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
5970 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
5971 (not gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score)))
5974 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
5975 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
5976 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
5977 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
5978 which the articles arrived.
5980 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
5984 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
5986 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
5987 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
5990 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
5991 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
5992 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
5993 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
5996 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
5997 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
5998 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
5999 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
6000 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
6001 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
6002 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or other,
6003 you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions} variable.
6004 It is very similar to the @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that
6005 it uses slightly different functions for article comparison. Available
6006 sorting predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
6007 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject},
6008 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date}, and @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
6010 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
6014 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
6015 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
6016 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
6021 @node Asynchronous Fetching
6022 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
6023 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
6024 @cindex article pre-fetch
6027 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
6028 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
6029 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
6030 article appears. Why can't gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
6031 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
6033 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
6034 article fetching, especially the way gnus does it.
6036 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
6037 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
6038 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
6039 article 3, but since gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
6040 connection is blocked.
6042 To avoid these situations, gnus will open two (count 'em two)
6043 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
6044 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
6045 extra connection takes some time, so gnus startup will be slower.
6047 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
6048 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
6049 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
6050 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
6053 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
6056 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
6057 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
6058 happen automatically.
6060 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
6061 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
6062 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
6063 that when you read an article in the group, the backend will pre-fetch
6064 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the backend will
6065 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
6066 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
6068 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
6069 @findex gnus-async-read-p
6070 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
6071 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This function should
6072 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
6073 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
6074 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
6075 data structure as the only parameter.
6077 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter than 100 lines, you could say something like:
6080 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
6081 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
6082 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
6083 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
6086 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
6089 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
6090 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down gnus too much.
6091 It's probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
6093 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
6094 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
6095 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
6096 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
6100 Remove articles when they are read.
6103 Remove articles when exiting the group.
6106 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
6108 @c @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
6109 @c If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
6110 @c from the next group.
6113 @node Article Caching
6114 @section Article Caching
6115 @cindex article caching
6118 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
6119 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
6120 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
6121 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
6122 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
6124 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
6126 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
6127 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
6128 @vindex gnus-use-cache
6129 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
6130 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
6131 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
6132 cache is flat or hierarchal is controlled by the
6133 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
6135 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
6136 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
6137 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
6138 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
6139 as dormant, and don't worry.
6141 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
6143 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
6144 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
6145 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
6146 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
6147 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
6148 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
6149 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
6150 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
6151 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
6152 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
6154 @findex gnus-jog-cache
6155 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
6156 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
6157 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
6158 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
6159 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
6160 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
6161 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
6162 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
6163 not then be downloaded by this command.
6165 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
6166 @vindex gnus-cacheable-groups
6167 It is likely that you do not want caching on all groups. For instance,
6168 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
6169 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
6170 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space.
6172 To limit the caching, you could set @code{gnus-cacheable-groups} to a
6173 regexp of groups to cache, @samp{^nntp} for instance, or set the
6174 @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to @samp{^nnml}, for instance.
6175 Both variables are @code{nil} by default. If a group matches both
6176 variables, the group is not cached.
6178 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
6179 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
6180 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
6181 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
6182 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
6183 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, gnus
6184 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
6185 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
6186 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
6190 @node Persistent Articles
6191 @section Persistent Articles
6192 @cindex persistent articles
6194 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
6195 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
6196 useful in my opinion.
6198 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
6199 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
6200 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
6201 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
6202 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
6203 the expiry going on at the news server.
6205 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
6206 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
6207 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
6213 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
6214 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
6217 @kindex M-* (Summary)
6218 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
6219 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
6220 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
6224 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
6226 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
6227 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
6228 interested in persistent articles:
6231 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
6235 @node Article Backlog
6236 @section Article Backlog
6238 @cindex article backlog
6240 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
6241 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
6242 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where gnus will buffer
6243 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
6244 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
6245 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
6246 that, turning the backlog on will slow gnus down a little bit, and
6247 increase memory usage some.
6249 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
6250 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, gnus will store
6251 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
6252 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, gnus will store
6253 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
6254 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
6255 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
6257 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
6260 @node Saving Articles
6261 @section Saving Articles
6262 @cindex saving articles
6264 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
6265 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
6266 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
6267 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
6268 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
6270 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
6271 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, gnus will not delete
6272 unwanted headers before saving the article.
6274 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
6275 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
6276 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
6277 deleted before saving.
6283 @kindex O o (Summary)
6285 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
6286 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
6287 Save the current article using the default article saver
6288 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
6291 @kindex O m (Summary)
6292 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
6293 Save the current article in mail format
6294 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
6297 @kindex O r (Summary)
6298 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
6299 Save the current article in rmail format
6300 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
6303 @kindex O f (Summary)
6304 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
6305 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
6306 Save the current article in plain file format
6307 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
6310 @kindex O F (Summary)
6311 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
6312 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
6313 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
6316 @kindex O b (Summary)
6317 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
6318 Save the current article body in plain file format
6319 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
6322 @kindex O h (Summary)
6323 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
6324 Save the current article in mh folder format
6325 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
6328 @kindex O v (Summary)
6329 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
6330 Save the current article in a VM folder
6331 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
6334 @kindex O p (Summary)
6335 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
6336 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
6337 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
6340 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
6341 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
6342 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
6343 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
6344 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
6345 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
6346 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
6347 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
6348 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
6349 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
6350 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
6351 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
6355 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
6356 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
6357 gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the six ready-made
6358 functions below, or you can create your own.
6362 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
6363 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
6364 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
6365 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
6366 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
6367 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6368 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
6370 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
6371 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
6372 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
6373 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
6374 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6375 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
6377 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
6378 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
6379 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
6380 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
6381 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
6382 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6383 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
6385 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
6386 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
6387 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
6388 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6389 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
6391 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
6392 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
6393 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
6394 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
6395 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
6398 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
6399 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
6400 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
6401 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
6402 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
6404 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
6405 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
6406 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
6407 reader to use this setting.
6410 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
6411 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
6412 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
6413 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
6416 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
6417 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
6418 available functions that generate names:
6422 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
6423 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
6424 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
6426 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
6427 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
6428 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
6430 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
6431 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
6432 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
6434 @item gnus-plain-save-name
6435 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
6436 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
6439 @vindex gnus-split-methods
6440 You can have gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
6441 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
6442 save articles related to gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
6443 related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
6447 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
6448 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
6449 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
6450 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
6453 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
6454 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
6455 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
6456 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
6457 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
6458 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
6459 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
6460 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
6461 called returns a string or a list of strings.
6463 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
6464 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
6465 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
6466 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
6468 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
6469 means that gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
6470 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
6473 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
6474 lots of mail groups called things like
6475 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
6476 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
6477 following will do just that:
6480 (defun my-save-name (group)
6481 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
6482 (substring group (match-end 0))))
6484 (setq gnus-split-methods
6485 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
6490 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
6491 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
6492 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
6493 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
6494 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
6495 all the files in the top level directory
6496 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
6497 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
6498 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
6499 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
6501 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
6502 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
6503 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
6504 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
6505 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
6508 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
6512 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
6513 (setq gnus-default-article-saver 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
6516 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
6517 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
6518 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
6519 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
6522 @node Decoding Articles
6523 @section Decoding Articles
6524 @cindex decoding articles
6526 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
6527 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
6530 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
6531 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
6532 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
6533 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
6534 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
6535 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
6539 @cindex article series
6540 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
6541 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
6542 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
6543 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
6544 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
6546 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
6547 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
6548 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
6550 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, gnus
6551 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
6552 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
6554 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
6555 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
6556 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
6559 @node Uuencoded Articles
6560 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
6562 @cindex uuencoded articles
6567 @kindex X u (Summary)
6568 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
6569 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
6570 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
6573 @kindex X U (Summary)
6574 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
6575 Uudecodes and saves the current series
6576 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
6579 @kindex X v u (Summary)
6580 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
6581 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
6584 @kindex X v U (Summary)
6585 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
6586 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
6587 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
6591 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
6592 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
6593 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
6594 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
6595 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
6597 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
6598 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
6599 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
6600 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
6603 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
6604 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
6605 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
6606 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
6607 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
6608 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
6612 @node Shell Archives
6613 @subsection Shell Archives
6615 @cindex shell archives
6616 @cindex shared articles
6618 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
6619 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
6620 some commands to deal with these:
6625 @kindex X s (Summary)
6626 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
6627 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
6630 @kindex X S (Summary)
6631 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
6632 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
6635 @kindex X v s (Summary)
6636 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
6637 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
6640 @kindex X v S (Summary)
6641 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
6642 Unshars, views and saves the current series
6643 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
6647 @node PostScript Files
6648 @subsection PostScript Files
6654 @kindex X p (Summary)
6655 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
6656 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
6659 @kindex X P (Summary)
6660 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
6661 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
6662 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
6665 @kindex X v p (Summary)
6666 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
6667 View the current PostScript series
6668 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
6671 @kindex X v P (Summary)
6672 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
6673 View and save the current PostScript series
6674 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
6679 @subsection Other Files
6683 @kindex X o (Summary)
6684 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
6685 Save the current series
6686 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
6689 @kindex X b (Summary)
6690 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
6691 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
6692 doesn't really work yet.
6696 @node Decoding Variables
6697 @subsection Decoding Variables
6699 Adjective, not verb.
6702 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
6703 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
6704 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
6708 @node Rule Variables
6709 @subsubsection Rule Variables
6710 @cindex rule variables
6712 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
6713 variables are of the form
6716 (list '(regexp1 command2)
6723 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6724 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6726 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
6727 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
6730 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6731 (list '("\\\\.au$" "sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio")))
6734 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
6735 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
6736 This variable is consulted if gnus couldn't make any matches from the
6737 user and default view rules.
6739 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
6740 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
6741 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
6746 @node Other Decode Variables
6747 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
6750 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
6752 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
6753 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
6754 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
6755 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
6756 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
6760 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
6761 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
6764 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
6765 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
6766 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
6769 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
6770 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
6771 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
6772 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
6773 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
6776 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
6777 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
6778 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
6780 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
6781 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
6782 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
6783 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
6784 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
6787 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
6788 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
6789 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
6791 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
6792 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
6793 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
6794 looking for files to display.
6796 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
6797 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
6798 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
6801 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
6802 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
6803 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
6806 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
6807 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
6808 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
6811 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
6812 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
6813 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
6816 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
6817 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
6818 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
6819 decoded articles as unread.
6821 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
6822 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
6823 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
6824 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
6826 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
6827 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
6828 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
6830 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
6831 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
6833 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
6834 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
6835 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
6836 @code{metamail} for viewing.
6838 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
6839 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
6840 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
6841 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
6842 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
6843 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC 1153---no easy way
6844 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
6845 simply dropped them.
6850 @node Uuencoding and Posting
6851 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
6855 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
6856 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
6857 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
6858 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
6859 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
6860 for you when you post the article.
6862 @item gnus-uu-post-length
6863 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
6864 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
6865 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
6867 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
6868 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
6869 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
6870 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
6871 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
6872 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
6873 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
6875 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
6876 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
6877 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
6878 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
6879 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
6880 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
6881 Default is @code{t}.
6887 @subsection Viewing Files
6888 @cindex viewing files
6889 @cindex pseudo-articles
6891 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, gnus will attempt
6892 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
6893 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
6894 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, gnus will
6895 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
6896 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
6897 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
6899 Finally, gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
6900 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
6901 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
6902 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
6904 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
6905 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
6906 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
6908 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
6909 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
6910 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
6911 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
6912 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
6914 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
6915 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
6916 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
6917 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
6918 a list of parameters to that command.
6920 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
6921 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
6922 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
6924 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
6925 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
6926 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
6929 @node Article Treatment
6930 @section Article Treatment
6932 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
6933 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
6934 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
6935 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
6936 these articles easier.
6939 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
6940 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
6941 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
6942 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
6943 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
6944 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
6945 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
6946 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
6950 @node Article Highlighting
6951 @subsection Article Highlighting
6952 @cindex highlighting
6954 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
6955 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
6960 @kindex W H a (Summary)
6961 @findex gnus-article-highlight
6962 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
6963 Do much highlighting of the current article
6964 (@code{gnus-article-highlight}). This function highlights header, cited
6965 text, the signature, and adds buttons to the body and the head.
6968 @kindex W H h (Summary)
6969 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
6970 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
6971 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
6972 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
6973 variable, which is a list where each element has the form
6974 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{name} @var{content})}.
6975 @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
6976 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
6977 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
6978 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
6979 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
6982 @kindex W H c (Summary)
6983 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
6984 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
6986 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
6989 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
6991 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
6992 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
6993 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
6995 @item gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
6996 @vindex gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
6997 Regexp matching the longest possible citation prefix on a line.
6999 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
7000 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
7001 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
7003 @item gnus-cite-face-list
7004 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
7005 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
7006 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
7007 gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
7008 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
7010 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
7011 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
7012 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
7014 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7015 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7016 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
7018 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7019 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7020 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
7021 that it's a citation.
7023 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7024 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7025 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
7027 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7028 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7029 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
7031 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
7032 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
7033 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
7034 cited text belonging to the attribution.
7040 @kindex W H s (Summary)
7041 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
7042 @vindex gnus-signature-face
7043 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
7044 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
7045 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
7046 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
7047 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
7052 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to highlight articles automatically.
7055 @node Article Fontisizing
7056 @subsection Article Fontisizing
7058 @cindex article emphasis
7060 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
7061 @kindex W e (Summary)
7062 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
7063 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*} or @samp{/this/}. Gnus can make
7064 this look nicer by running the article through the @kbd{W e}
7065 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
7067 @vindex gnus-emphasis-alist
7068 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
7069 @code{gnus-emphasis-alist} variable. This is an alist where the first
7070 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
7071 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
7072 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
7073 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
7074 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
7078 (setq gnus-article-emphasis
7079 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
7080 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
7089 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
7090 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
7091 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
7092 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
7093 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
7094 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
7095 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
7096 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
7097 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
7098 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
7099 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
7100 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
7101 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
7103 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
7104 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
7105 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
7109 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
7112 @vindex gnus-group-highlight-words-alist
7114 If you want to highlight arbitrary words, you can use the
7115 @code{gnus-group-highlight-words-alist} variable, which uses the same
7116 syntax as @code{gnus-emphasis-alist}. The @code{highlight-words} group
7117 parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) can also be used.
7119 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to fontize articles automatically.
7122 @node Article Hiding
7123 @subsection Article Hiding
7124 @cindex article hiding
7126 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
7127 too much cruft in most articles.
7132 @kindex W W a (Summary)
7133 @findex gnus-article-hide
7134 Do quite a lot of hiding on the article buffer
7135 (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}). In particular, this function will hide
7136 headers, PGP, cited text and the signature.
7139 @kindex W W h (Summary)
7140 @findex gnus-article-toggle-headers
7141 Toggle hiding of headers (@code{gnus-article-toggle-headers}). @xref{Hiding
7145 @kindex W W b (Summary)
7146 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
7147 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
7148 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
7151 @kindex W W s (Summary)
7152 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
7153 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
7157 @kindex W W l (Summary)
7158 @findex gnus-article-hide-list-identifiers
7159 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
7160 Strip list identifiers specified in @code{gnus-list-identifiers}. These
7161 are strings some mailing list servers add to the beginning of all
7162 @code{Subject} headers---for example, @samp{[zebra 4711]}. Any leading
7163 @samp{Re: } is skipped before stripping. @code{gnus-list-identifiers}
7164 may not contain @code{\\(..\\)}.
7168 @item gnus-list-identifiers
7169 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
7170 A regular expression that matches list identifiers to be removed from
7171 subject. This can also be a list of regular expressions.
7176 @kindex W W p (Summary)
7177 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
7178 @vindex gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
7179 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}). The
7180 @code{gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook} hook will be run after a @sc{pgp}
7181 signature has been hidden. For example, to automatically verify
7182 articles that have signatures in them do:
7184 ;;; Hide pgp cruft if any.
7186 (setq gnus-treat-strip-pgp t)
7188 ;;; After hiding pgp, verify the message;
7189 ;;; only happens if pgp signature is found.
7191 (add-hook 'gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
7194 (set-buffer gnus-original-article-buffer)
7199 @kindex W W P (Summary)
7200 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
7201 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
7202 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
7205 @kindex W W B (Summary)
7206 @findex gnus-article-strip-banner
7209 @cindex stripping advertisments
7210 @cindex advertisments
7211 Strip the banner specified by the @code{banner} group parameter
7212 (@code{gnus-article-strip-banner}). This is mainly used to hide those
7213 annoying banners and/or signatures that some mailing lists and moderated
7214 groups adds to all the messages. The way to use this function is to add
7215 the @code{banner} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to the
7216 group you want banners stripped from. The parameter either be a string,
7217 which will be interpreted as a regular expression matching text to be
7218 removed, or the symbol @code{signature}, meaning that the (last)
7219 signature should be removed, or other symbol, meaning that the
7220 corresponding regular expression in @code{gnus-article-banner-alist} is
7224 @kindex W W c (Summary)
7225 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
7226 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
7227 customizing the hiding:
7231 @item gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
7232 @itemx gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
7233 @vindex gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
7234 @vindex gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
7235 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
7236 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
7237 by these format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
7242 Starting point of the hidden text.
7244 Ending point of the hidden text.
7246 Number of characters in the hidden region.
7248 Number of lines of hidden text.
7251 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
7252 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
7253 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave
7254 shown. This can also be a cons cell with the number of lines at the top
7255 and bottom of the text, respectively, to remain visible.
7260 @kindex W W C-c (Summary)
7261 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe
7263 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe}) depending on the
7264 following two variables:
7267 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
7268 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
7269 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
7270 50), hide the cited text.
7272 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
7273 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
7274 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
7279 @kindex W W C (Summary)
7280 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
7281 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
7282 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
7283 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
7284 have happen automatically (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
7288 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
7289 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
7290 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
7292 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
7293 citation customization.
7295 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to hide article elements
7299 @node Article Washing
7300 @subsection Article Washing
7302 @cindex article washing
7304 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
7305 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
7307 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
7308 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
7314 @kindex W l (Summary)
7315 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
7316 Remove page breaks from the current article
7317 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article}, for page
7321 @kindex W r (Summary)
7322 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
7323 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
7324 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
7325 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
7326 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
7327 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
7329 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
7330 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
7331 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
7332 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
7336 @kindex W t (Summary)
7338 @findex gnus-article-toggle-headers
7339 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
7340 (@code{gnus-article-toggle-headers}).
7343 @kindex W v (Summary)
7344 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-header
7345 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
7346 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-header}).
7349 @kindex W m (Summary)
7350 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-mime
7351 Toggle whether to run the article through @sc{mime} before displaying
7352 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-mime}).
7355 @kindex W o (Summary)
7356 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
7357 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
7360 @kindex W d (Summary)
7361 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
7362 @vindex gnus-article-dumbquotes-map
7364 @cindex M******** sm*rtq**t*s
7366 Treat M******** sm*rtq**t*s according to
7367 @code{gnus-article-dumbquotes-map}
7368 (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}). Note that this function guesses
7369 whether a character is a sm*rtq**t* or not, so it should only be used
7373 @kindex W w (Summary)
7374 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
7375 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}).
7377 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
7381 @kindex W Q (Summary)
7382 @findex gnus-article-fill-long-lines
7383 Fill long lines (@code{gnus-article-fill-long-lines}).
7386 @kindex W C (Summary)
7387 @findex gnus-article-capitalize-sentences
7388 Capitalize the first word in each sentence
7389 (@code{gnus-article-capitalize-sentences}).
7392 @kindex W c (Summary)
7393 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
7394 Translate CRLF pairs (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines) into LF
7395 (this takes care of DOS line endings), and then translate any remaining
7396 CRs into LF (this takes care of Mac line endings)
7397 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
7400 @kindex W 6 (Summary)
7401 @findex gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable
7402 Treat base64 (@code{gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable}).
7403 Base64 is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending non-ASCII
7404 (i. e., 8-bit) articles. Note that the this is usually done
7405 automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
7406 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} header that says that this encoding has
7410 @kindex W Z (Summary)
7411 @findex gnus-article-decode-HZ
7412 Treat HZ or HZP (@code{gnus-article-decode-HZ}). HZ (or HZP) is one
7413 common encoding employed when sending Chinese articles. It typically
7414 makes strings look like @samp{~@{<:Ky2;S@{#,NpJ)l6HK!#~@}}.
7417 @kindex W h (Summary)
7418 @findex gnus-article-wash-html
7419 Treat HTML (@code{gnus-article-wash-html}).
7420 Note that the this is usually done automatically by Gnus if the message
7421 in question has a @code{Content-Type} header that says that this type
7425 @kindex W f (Summary)
7427 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
7428 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
7429 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
7430 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
7436 Look for and display any X-Face headers
7437 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}). The command executed by this
7438 function is given by the @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable.
7439 If this variable is a string, this string will be executed in a
7440 sub-shell. If it is a function, this function will be called with the
7441 face as the argument. If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which
7442 is a regexp) matches the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
7443 The default action under Emacs is to fork off the @code{display}
7444 program@footnote{@code{display} is from the ImageMagick package. For the
7445 @code{uncompface} and @code{icontopbm} programs look for a package
7446 like `compface' or `faces-xface' on a GNU/Linux system.}
7447 to view the face. Under XEmacs or Emacs 21+ with suitable image
7448 support, the default action is to display the face before the
7449 @code{From} header. (It's nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with X-Face
7450 support---that will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native
7451 X-Face support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
7452 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and
7453 friends.@footnote{On a GNU/Linux system look for packages with names
7454 like @code{netpbm} or @code{libgr-progs}.}) If you
7455 want to have this function in the display hook, it should probably come
7459 @kindex W b (Summary)
7460 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
7461 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
7462 @xref{Article Buttons}.
7465 @kindex W B (Summary)
7466 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
7467 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
7468 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
7471 @kindex W W H (Summary)
7472 @findex gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body
7473 Strip headers like the @code{X-No-Archive} header from the beginning of
7474 article bodies (@code{gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body}).
7477 @kindex W E l (Summary)
7478 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
7479 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
7480 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
7483 @kindex W E m (Summary)
7484 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
7485 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
7486 lines with a single empty line.
7487 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
7490 @kindex W E t (Summary)
7491 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
7492 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
7493 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
7496 @kindex W E a (Summary)
7497 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
7498 Do all the three commands above
7499 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
7502 @kindex W E A (Summary)
7503 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
7504 Remove all blank lines
7505 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
7508 @kindex W E s (Summary)
7509 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
7510 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
7511 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
7514 @kindex W E e (Summary)
7515 @findex gnus-article-strip-trailing-space
7516 Remove all white space from the end of all lines of the article
7517 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-trailing-space}).
7521 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to wash articles automatically.
7524 @node Article Buttons
7525 @subsection Article Buttons
7528 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
7529 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
7530 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
7531 button on these references.
7533 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
7534 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses and Message-IDs. This is controlled by
7535 two variables, one that handles article bodies and one that handles
7540 @item gnus-button-alist
7541 @vindex gnus-button-alist
7542 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
7545 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
7551 All text that match this regular expression will be considered an
7552 external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches embedded URLs:
7553 @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}.
7556 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
7557 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
7558 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
7561 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
7562 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
7563 avoid false matches.
7566 This function will be called when you click on this button.
7569 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
7570 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
7574 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
7577 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
7580 @item gnus-header-button-alist
7581 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
7582 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
7583 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
7584 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
7587 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
7590 @var{header} is a regular expression.
7592 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
7593 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
7594 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
7595 default values of the variables above.
7597 @item gnus-article-button-face
7598 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
7599 Face used on buttons.
7601 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
7602 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
7603 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
7607 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to buttonize articles automatically.
7611 @subsection Article Date
7613 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
7614 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
7615 when the article was sent.
7620 @kindex W T u (Summary)
7621 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
7622 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
7623 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
7626 @kindex W T i (Summary)
7627 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
7629 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
7630 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
7633 @kindex W T l (Summary)
7634 @findex gnus-article-date-local
7635 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
7638 @kindex W T s (Summary)
7639 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
7640 @findex gnus-article-date-user
7641 @findex format-time-string
7642 Display the date using a user-defined format
7643 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
7644 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
7645 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
7646 for a list of possible format specs.
7649 @kindex W T e (Summary)
7650 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
7651 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
7652 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
7653 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
7654 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). It looks something like:
7657 X-Sent: 9 years, 6 weeks, 4 days, 9 hours, 3 minutes, 28 seconds ago
7660 The value of @code{gnus-article-date-lapsed-new-header} determines
7661 whether this header will just be added below the old Date one, or will
7664 An advantage of using Gnus to read mail is that it converts simple bugs
7665 into wonderful absurdities.
7667 If you want to have this line updated continually, you can put
7670 (gnus-start-date-timer)
7673 in your @file{.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
7674 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
7678 @kindex W T o (Summary)
7679 @findex gnus-article-date-original
7680 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
7681 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
7682 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
7683 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
7684 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
7688 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to display the date in your
7689 preferred format automatically.
7692 @node Article Signature
7693 @subsection Article Signature
7695 @cindex article signature
7697 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
7698 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
7699 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
7700 that says what is to be considered a signature is
7701 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
7702 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
7703 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
7704 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
7705 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
7708 (setq gnus-signature-separator
7709 '("^-- $" ; The standard
7710 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
7711 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
7712 ; line of dashes. Shame!
7713 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
7714 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
7715 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
7718 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
7721 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
7722 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
7723 signature when displaying articles.
7727 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
7730 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
7733 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
7734 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
7736 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
7737 in question is not a signature.
7740 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
7741 listed above. Here's an example:
7744 (setq gnus-signature-limit
7745 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
7748 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
7749 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
7750 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
7751 signature after all.
7754 @node Article Miscellania
7755 @subsection Article Miscellania
7759 @kindex A t (Summary)
7760 @findex gnus-article-babel
7761 Translate the article from one language to another
7762 (@code{gnus-article-babel}).
7768 @section @sc{mime} Commands
7769 @cindex MIME decoding
7771 @cindex viewing attachments
7773 The following commands all understand the numerical prefix. For
7774 instance, @kbd{3 b} means ``view the third @sc{mime} part''.
7780 @kindex K v (Summary)
7781 View the @sc{mime} part.
7784 @kindex K o (Summary)
7785 Save the @sc{mime} part.
7788 @kindex K c (Summary)
7789 Copy the @sc{mime} part.
7792 @kindex K e (Summary)
7793 View the @sc{mime} part externally.
7796 @kindex K i (Summary)
7797 View the @sc{mime} part internally.
7800 @kindex K | (Summary)
7801 Pipe the @sc{mime} part to an external command.
7804 The rest of these @sc{mime} commands do not use the numerical prefix in
7809 @kindex K b (Summary)
7810 Make all the @sc{mime} parts have buttons in front of them. This is
7811 mostly useful if you wish to save (or perform other actions) on inlined
7815 @kindex K m (Summary)
7816 @findex gnus-summary-repair-multipart
7817 Some multipart messages are transmitted with missing or faulty headers.
7818 This command will attempt to ``repair'' these messages so that they can
7819 be viewed in a more pleasant manner
7820 (@code{gnus-summary-repair-multipart}).
7823 @kindex X m (Summary)
7824 @findex gnus-summary-save-parts
7825 Save all parts matching a @sc{mime} type to a directory
7826 (@code{gnus-summary-save-parts}). Understands the process/prefix
7827 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7830 @kindex M-t (Summary)
7831 @findex gnus-summary-display-buttonized
7832 Toggle the buttonized display of the article buffer
7833 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized}).
7836 @kindex W M w (Summary)
7837 Decode RFC 2047-encoded words in the article headers
7838 (@code{gnus-article-decode-mime-words}).
7841 @kindex W M c (Summary)
7842 Decode encoded article bodies as well as charsets
7843 (@code{gnus-article-decode-charset}).
7845 This command looks in the @code{Content-Type} header to determine the
7846 charset. If there is no such header in the article, you can give it a
7847 prefix, which will prompt for the charset to decode as. In regional
7848 groups where people post using some common encoding (but do not include
7849 MIME headers), you can set the @code{charset} group/topic parameter to
7850 the required charset (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
7853 @kindex W M v (Summary)
7854 View all the @sc{mime} parts in the current article
7855 (@code{gnus-mime-view-all-parts}).
7862 @item gnus-ignored-mime-types
7863 @vindex gnus-ignored-mime-types
7864 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
7865 this list will be completely ignored by Gnus. The default value is
7868 To have all Vcards be ignored, you'd say something like this:
7871 (setq gnus-ignored-mime-types
7875 @item gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
7876 @vindex gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
7877 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
7878 this list won't have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
7879 displayed. The default value is @code{(".*/.*")}.
7881 @item gnus-article-mime-part-function
7882 @vindex gnus-article-mime-part-function
7883 For each @sc{mime} part, this function will be called with the @sc{mime}
7884 handle as the parameter. The function is meant to be used to allow
7885 users to gather information from the article (e. g., add Vcard info to
7886 the bbdb database) or to do actions based on parts (e. g., automatically
7887 save all jpegs into some directory).
7889 Here's an example function the does the latter:
7892 (defun my-save-all-jpeg-parts (handle)
7893 (when (equal (car (mm-handle-type handle)) "image/jpeg")
7895 (insert (mm-get-part handle))
7896 (write-region (point-min) (point-max)
7897 (read-file-name "Save jpeg to: ")))))
7898 (setq gnus-article-mime-part-function
7899 'my-save-all-jpeg-parts)
7902 @vindex gnus-mime-multipart-functions
7903 @item gnus-mime-multipart-functions
7904 Alist of @sc{mime} multipart types and functions to handle them.
7913 People use different charsets, and we have @sc{mime} to let us know what
7914 charsets they use. Or rather, we wish we had. Many people use
7915 newsreaders and mailers that do not understand or use @sc{mime}, and
7916 just send out messages without saying what character sets they use. To
7917 help a bit with this, some local news hierarchies have policies that say
7918 what character set is the default. For instance, the @samp{fj}
7919 hierarchy uses @code{iso-2022-jp-2}.
7921 @vindex gnus-group-charset-alist
7922 This knowledge is encoded in the @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}
7923 variable, which is an alist of regexps (to match group names) and
7924 default charsets to be used when reading these groups.
7926 In addition, some people do use soi-disant @sc{mime}-aware agents that
7927 aren't. These blitely mark messages as being in @code{iso-8859-1} even
7928 if they really are in @code{koi-8}. To help here, the
7929 @code{gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets} variable can be used. The
7930 charsets that are listed here will be ignored. The variable can be set
7931 on a group-by-group basis using the group parameters (@pxref{Group
7932 Parameters}). The default value is @code{(unknown-8bit)}, which is
7933 something some agents insist on having in there.
7935 @vindex gnus-group-posting-charset-alist
7936 When posting, @code{gnus-group-posting-charset-alist} is used to
7937 determine which charsets should not be encoded using the @sc{mime}
7938 encodings. For instance, some hierarchies discourage using
7939 quoted-printable header encoding.
7941 This variable is an alist of regexps and permitted unencoded charsets
7942 for posting. Each element of the alist has the form @code{(}@var{test
7943 header body-list}@code{)}, where:
7947 is either a regular expression matching the newsgroup header or a
7950 is the charset which may be left unencoded in the header (@code{nil}
7951 means encode all charsets),
7953 is a list of charsets which may be encoded using 8bit content-transfer
7954 encoding in the body, or one of the special values @code{nil} (always
7955 encode using quoted-printable) or @code{t} (always use 8bit).
7962 @cindex coding system aliases
7963 @cindex preferred charset
7965 Other charset tricks that may be useful, although not Gnus-specific:
7967 If there are several @sc{mime} charsets that encode the same Emacs
7968 charset, you can choose what charset to use by saying the following:
7971 (put-charset-property 'cyrillic-iso8859-5
7972 'preferred-coding-system 'koi8-r)
7975 This means that Russian will be encoded using @code{koi8-r} instead of
7976 the default @code{iso-8859-5} @sc{mime} charset.
7978 If you want to read messages in @code{koi8-u}, you can cheat and say
7981 (define-coding-system-alias 'koi8-u 'koi8-r)
7984 This will almost do the right thing.
7986 And finally, to read charsets like @code{windows-1251}, you can say
7990 (codepage-setup 1251)
7991 (define-coding-system-alias 'windows-1251 'cp1251)
7995 @node Article Commands
7996 @section Article Commands
8003 @kindex A P (Summary)
8004 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
8005 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
8006 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
8007 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will be
8008 run just before printing the buffer.
8013 @node Summary Sorting
8014 @section Summary Sorting
8015 @cindex summary sorting
8017 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
8018 can't really see why you'd want that.
8023 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
8024 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
8025 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
8028 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
8029 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
8030 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
8033 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
8034 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
8035 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
8038 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
8039 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
8040 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
8043 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
8044 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
8045 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
8048 @kindex C-c C-s C-c (Summary)
8049 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-chars
8050 Sort by article length (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-chars}).
8053 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
8054 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
8055 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
8058 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
8059 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
8060 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
8061 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
8062 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
8066 @node Finding the Parent
8067 @section Finding the Parent
8068 @cindex parent articles
8069 @cindex referring articles
8074 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
8075 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
8076 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
8077 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
8078 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
8079 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
8080 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
8081 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
8082 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
8084 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
8085 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
8086 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, gnus will fetch the parent, the
8087 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
8088 @kbd{-3 ^}, gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
8092 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
8093 @kindex A R (Summary)
8094 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
8095 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
8098 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
8099 @kindex A T (Summary)
8100 Display the full thread where the current article appears
8101 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
8102 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
8103 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
8104 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
8105 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
8106 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
8108 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
8109 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
8110 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
8111 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
8112 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
8113 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
8116 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
8117 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
8119 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
8120 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
8121 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
8122 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
8123 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
8124 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
8125 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
8128 The current select method will be used when fetching by
8129 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
8130 by giving this command a prefix.
8132 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
8133 If the group you are reading is located on a backend that does not
8134 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
8135 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
8136 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
8137 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
8140 It can also be a list of select methods, as well as the special symbol
8141 @code{current}, which means to use the current select method. If it
8142 is a list, Gnus will try all the methods in the list until it finds a
8145 Here's an example setting that will first try the current method, and
8146 then ask Deja if that fails:
8149 (setq gnus-refer-article-method
8151 (nnweb "refer" (nnweb-type dejanews))))
8154 Most of the mail backends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but do
8155 not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox} and
8156 @code{nnbabyl} are able to locate articles from any groups, while
8157 @code{nnml} and @code{nnfolder} are only able to locate articles that
8158 have been posted to the current group. (Anything else would be too time
8159 consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not support this at all.
8162 @node Alternative Approaches
8163 @section Alternative Approaches
8165 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
8166 gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
8169 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
8170 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
8175 @subsection Pick and Read
8176 @cindex pick and read
8178 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
8179 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
8180 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
8181 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
8183 @findex gnus-pick-mode
8184 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
8185 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
8186 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
8187 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
8188 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
8190 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
8195 @findex gnus-pick-article-or-thread
8196 Pick the article or thread on the current line
8197 (@code{gnus-pick-article-or-thread}). If the variable
8198 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key selects the
8199 entire thread when used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise,
8200 it selects just the article. If given a numerical prefix, go to that
8201 thread or article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
8202 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
8205 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
8206 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
8207 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
8208 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
8212 @findex gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread.
8213 Unpick the thread or article
8214 (@code{gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread}). If the variable
8215 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key unpicks the
8216 thread if used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise it unpicks
8217 just the article. You can give this key a numerical prefix to unpick
8218 the thread or article at that line.
8222 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
8223 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
8224 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
8225 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
8226 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
8227 will still be visible when you are reading.
8231 All the normal summary mode commands are still available in the
8232 pick-mode, with the exception of @kbd{u}. However @kbd{!} is available
8233 which is mapped to the same function
8234 @code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}.
8236 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
8239 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
8242 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
8243 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
8245 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
8246 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
8247 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
8249 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
8250 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
8251 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
8252 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
8253 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
8254 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
8255 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
8259 @subsection Binary Groups
8260 @cindex binary groups
8262 @findex gnus-binary-mode
8263 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
8264 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
8265 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
8266 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
8267 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
8268 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
8271 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
8272 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
8273 command, when you have turned on this mode
8274 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
8276 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
8277 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
8281 @section Tree Display
8284 @vindex gnus-use-trees
8285 If you don't like the normal gnus summary display, you might try setting
8286 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
8287 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
8290 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
8293 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
8294 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
8295 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
8297 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
8298 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
8299 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
8300 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
8301 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
8303 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
8304 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
8305 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
8306 default is @code{modeline}.
8308 @item gnus-tree-line-format
8309 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
8310 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
8311 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
8312 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
8313 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
8314 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
8320 The name of the poster.
8322 The @code{From} header.
8324 The number of the article.
8326 The opening bracket.
8328 The closing bracket.
8333 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
8335 Variables related to the display are:
8338 @item gnus-tree-brackets
8339 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
8340 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
8341 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @code{((@var{real-open} . @var{real-close})
8342 (@var{sparse-open} . @var{sparse-close}) (@var{dummy-open} . @var{dummy-close}))}, and the
8343 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
8345 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
8346 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
8347 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
8348 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
8352 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
8353 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
8354 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, gnus will try to keep the tree
8355 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other gnus
8356 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
8357 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
8358 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
8359 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
8360 other windows displayed next to it.
8362 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
8363 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
8364 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
8365 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
8366 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
8367 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
8368 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
8372 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
8375 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
8385 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
8389 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
8390 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
8392 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
8394 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
8399 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
8400 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
8401 following to your @file{.gnus.el} file:
8404 (setq gnus-use-trees t
8405 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
8406 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
8407 (gnus-add-configuration
8411 (summary 0.75 point)
8416 @xref{Windows Configuration}.
8419 @node Mail Group Commands
8420 @section Mail Group Commands
8421 @cindex mail group commands
8423 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
8424 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
8426 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
8427 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
8432 @kindex B e (Summary)
8433 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
8434 Expire all expirable articles in the group
8435 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}).
8438 @kindex B M-C-e (Summary)
8439 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
8440 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
8441 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
8442 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
8443 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
8446 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
8447 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
8448 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
8449 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
8450 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
8451 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
8454 @kindex B m (Summary)
8456 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
8457 @vindex gnus-preserve-marks
8458 Move the article from one mail group to another
8459 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}). Marks will be preserved if
8460 @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
8463 @kindex B c (Summary)
8465 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
8466 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
8467 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
8468 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}). Marks will be preserved if
8469 @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
8472 @kindex B B (Summary)
8473 @cindex crosspost mail
8474 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
8475 Crosspost the current article to some other group
8476 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
8477 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
8478 be properly updated.
8481 @kindex B i (Summary)
8482 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
8483 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
8484 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
8485 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
8488 @kindex B r (Summary)
8489 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
8490 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-respool-article}).
8491 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
8492 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
8493 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
8494 Marks will be preserved if @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil}
8495 (which is the default).
8499 @kindex B w (Summary)
8501 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
8502 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
8503 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
8504 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
8505 (@kbd{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
8506 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, gnus won't re-highlight the article.
8509 @kindex B q (Summary)
8510 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
8511 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
8512 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
8513 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
8516 @kindex B t (Summary)
8517 @findex gnus-summary-respool-trace
8518 Similarly, this command will display all fancy splitting patterns used
8519 when repooling, if any (@code{gnus-summary-respool-trace}).
8522 @kindex B p (Summary)
8523 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
8524 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
8525 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
8526 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
8527 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
8528 article from your news server (or rather, from
8529 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
8530 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
8531 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
8532 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
8533 just not have arrived yet.
8537 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
8538 @cindex moving articles
8539 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have gnus
8540 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
8541 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
8542 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
8543 suggestions you find reasonable.
8546 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
8547 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
8548 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
8549 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
8553 @node Various Summary Stuff
8554 @section Various Summary Stuff
8557 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
8558 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
8559 * Summary Generation Commands:: (Re)generating the summary buffer.
8560 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
8564 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
8565 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
8566 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
8568 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
8569 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
8570 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
8571 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
8572 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
8573 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
8576 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
8577 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
8578 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
8579 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
8580 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
8582 @vindex gnus-summary-prepared-hook
8583 @item gnus-summary-prepared-hook
8584 A hook called as the very last thing after the summary buffer has been
8587 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
8588 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
8589 When gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
8590 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
8591 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
8592 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
8593 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), gnus will rename the
8594 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
8595 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
8596 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
8598 @vindex gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
8599 @item gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
8600 This function, which takes two parameters (the group name and the list
8601 of articles to be selected), is called to allow the user to alter the
8602 list of articles to be selected.
8604 For instance, the following function adds the list of cached articles to
8605 the list in one particular group:
8608 (defun my-add-cached-articles (group articles)
8609 (if (string= group "some.group")
8610 (append gnus-newsgroup-cached articles)
8617 @node Summary Group Information
8618 @subsection Summary Group Information
8623 @kindex H f (Summary)
8624 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
8625 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
8626 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
8627 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
8628 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
8629 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
8630 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
8631 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
8632 be used for fetching the file.
8635 @kindex H d (Summary)
8636 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
8637 Give a brief description of the current group
8638 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
8639 rereading the description from the server.
8642 @kindex H h (Summary)
8643 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
8644 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
8645 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
8648 @kindex H i (Summary)
8649 @findex gnus-info-find-node
8650 Go to the gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
8654 @node Searching for Articles
8655 @subsection Searching for Articles
8660 @kindex M-s (Summary)
8661 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
8662 Search through all subsequent articles for a regexp
8663 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
8666 @kindex M-r (Summary)
8667 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
8668 Search through all previous articles for a regexp
8669 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
8673 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
8674 This command will prompt you for a header, a regular expression to match
8675 on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
8676 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If the header is an empty
8677 string, the match is done on the entire article. If given a prefix,
8678 search backward instead.
8680 For instance, @kbd{& RET some.*string #} will put the process mark on
8681 all articles that have heads or bodies that match @samp{some.*string}.
8684 @kindex M-& (Summary)
8685 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
8686 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
8687 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
8690 @node Summary Generation Commands
8691 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
8696 @kindex Y g (Summary)
8697 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
8698 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
8701 @kindex Y c (Summary)
8702 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
8703 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
8704 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
8709 @node Really Various Summary Commands
8710 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
8716 @kindex C-d (Summary)
8717 @kindex A D (Summary)
8718 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
8719 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
8720 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
8721 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
8722 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
8723 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
8724 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
8725 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
8729 @kindex M-C-d (Summary)
8730 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
8731 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
8732 several documents into one biiig group
8733 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
8734 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
8735 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
8736 command understands the process/prefix convention
8737 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
8740 @kindex C-t (Summary)
8741 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
8742 Toggle truncation of summary lines
8743 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
8744 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
8745 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
8749 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
8750 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
8751 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
8754 @kindex M-C-e (Summary)
8755 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
8756 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
8757 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
8760 @kindex M-C-a (Summary)
8761 @findex gnus-summary-customize-parameters
8762 Customize the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
8763 group (@code{gnus-summary-customize-parameters}).
8768 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
8769 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
8770 @cindex summary exit
8771 @cindex exiting groups
8773 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
8774 group and return you to the group buffer.
8780 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
8782 @findex gnus-summary-exit
8783 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
8784 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
8785 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
8786 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
8787 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
8788 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
8789 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
8790 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
8791 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
8792 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
8796 @kindex Z E (Summary)
8798 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
8799 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
8800 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
8804 @kindex Z c (Summary)
8806 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
8807 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
8808 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
8809 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
8812 @kindex Z C (Summary)
8813 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
8814 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
8815 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
8818 @kindex Z n (Summary)
8819 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
8820 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
8821 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
8824 @kindex Z R (Summary)
8825 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
8826 Exit this group, and then enter it again
8827 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
8828 all articles, both read and unread.
8832 @kindex Z G (Summary)
8833 @kindex M-g (Summary)
8834 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
8835 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
8836 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
8837 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
8838 articles, both read and unread.
8841 @kindex Z N (Summary)
8842 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
8843 Exit the group and go to the next group
8844 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
8847 @kindex Z P (Summary)
8848 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
8849 Exit the group and go to the previous group
8850 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
8853 @kindex Z s (Summary)
8854 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
8855 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
8856 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
8857 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
8858 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
8861 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
8862 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current group
8863 with an ``updating'' exit. For instance @kbd{Q}
8864 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}) does not call this hook.
8866 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
8867 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
8868 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
8869 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
8870 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
8871 If you do that, gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
8872 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
8873 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
8874 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
8875 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
8876 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
8877 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
8879 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
8881 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
8882 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
8883 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
8884 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
8885 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
8886 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
8887 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
8888 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
8889 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
8892 @node Crosspost Handling
8893 @section Crosspost Handling
8897 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
8898 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
8899 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
8900 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
8901 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
8902 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
8905 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
8906 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
8907 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
8908 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
8909 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
8911 @cindex cross-posting
8914 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
8915 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
8916 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
8917 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
8918 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
8919 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
8920 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
8921 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
8922 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
8923 the cross reference mechanism.
8925 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
8926 @cindex overview.fmt
8927 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
8928 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
8929 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
8930 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
8931 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
8932 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
8935 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
8936 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
8937 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
8942 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
8945 @node Duplicate Suppression
8946 @section Duplicate Suppression
8948 By default, gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
8949 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
8950 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
8951 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various
8956 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
8957 is evil and not very common.
8960 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
8961 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
8964 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
8965 different @sc{nntp} servers.
8968 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
8971 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
8972 well, but these four are the most common situations.
8974 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
8975 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
8976 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
8977 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
8978 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
8979 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
8980 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
8983 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
8984 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
8985 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
8986 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
8987 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
8991 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
8992 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
8993 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
8995 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
8996 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
8997 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
8998 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
8999 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single gnus
9000 session are suppressed.
9002 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
9003 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
9004 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
9005 suppression list. The default is 10000.
9007 @item gnus-duplicate-file
9008 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
9009 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
9010 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
9013 If you have a tendency to stop and start gnus often, setting
9014 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
9015 you leave gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
9016 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
9017 so that means that if you stop and start gnus often, you should set
9018 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
9019 to you to figure out, I think.
9022 @node The Article Buffer
9023 @chapter The Article Buffer
9024 @cindex article buffer
9026 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
9027 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
9028 tell gnus otherwise.
9031 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
9032 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
9033 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
9034 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
9035 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
9039 @node Hiding Headers
9040 @section Hiding Headers
9041 @cindex hiding headers
9042 @cindex deleting headers
9044 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
9045 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
9047 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
9048 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
9049 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
9050 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
9051 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
9052 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
9053 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
9054 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
9055 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
9057 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
9061 @item gnus-visible-headers
9062 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
9063 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
9064 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
9065 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
9067 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
9068 the article and the subject, you'd say:
9071 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
9074 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
9077 @item gnus-ignored-headers
9078 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
9079 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
9080 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
9081 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
9082 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
9084 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} field
9085 and the @code{Xref} field, you might say:
9088 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
9091 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
9094 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
9095 variable will have no effect.
9099 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
9100 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
9101 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
9102 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
9103 the headers are to be displayed.
9105 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
9106 and then the subject, you might say something like:
9109 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
9112 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
9113 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed in this variable.
9115 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
9116 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
9117 You can hide further boring headers by setting
9118 @code{gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers} to @code{head}. What this function
9119 does depends on the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a
9120 list, but this list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is
9121 lists various @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove
9124 These conditions are:
9127 Remove all empty headers.
9129 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
9130 @code{Newsgroups} header.
9132 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
9135 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
9138 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
9141 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
9143 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
9146 To include the four three elements, you could say something like;
9149 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
9150 '(empty followup-to reply-to))
9153 This is also the default value for this variable.
9157 @section Using @sc{mime}
9160 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
9161 while people stand around yawning.
9163 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
9164 while all newsreaders die of fear.
9166 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
9167 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
9168 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
9170 @vindex gnus-show-mime
9171 @vindex gnus-article-display-method-for-mime
9172 @vindex gnus-strict-mime
9173 @findex gnus-article-display-mime-message
9174 Gnus handles @sc{mime} by pushing the articles through
9175 @code{gnus-article-display-method-for-mime}, which is
9176 @code{gnus-article-display-mime-message} by default. This function
9177 calls the SEMI MIME-View program to actually do the work. For more
9178 information on SEMI MIME-View, see its manual page (however it is not
9179 existed yet, sorry).
9181 Set @code{gnus-show-mime} to @code{t} if you want to use
9182 @sc{mime} all the time. However, if @code{gnus-strict-mime} is
9183 non-@code{nil}, the @sc{mime} method will only be used if there are
9184 @sc{mime} headers in the article. If you have @code{gnus-show-mime}
9185 set, then you'll see some unfortunate display glitches in the article
9186 buffer. These can't be avoided.
9188 In GNUS or Gnus, it might be best to just use the toggling functions
9189 from the summary buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance,
9190 you enter the group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it,
9191 @sc{mime} has decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible
9192 sing-a-long song comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find
9193 the volume button, because there isn't one, and people are starting to
9194 look at you, and you try to stop the program, but you can't, and you
9195 can't find the program to control the volume, and everybody else in the
9196 room suddenly decides to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel
9199 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
9201 To avoid such kind of situation, gnus stops to use
9202 @code{metamail-buffer}. So now, you can set @code{gnus-show-mime} to
9203 non-@code{nil} every-time, then you can push button in the article
9204 buffer when there are nobody else.
9206 Also see @pxref{MIME Commands}.
9209 @node Customizing Articles
9210 @section Customizing Articles
9211 @cindex article customization
9213 A slew of functions for customizing how the articles are to look like
9214 exist. You can call these functions interactively, or you can have them
9215 called automatically when you select the articles.
9217 To have them called automatically, you should set the corresponding
9218 ``treatment'' variable. For instance, to have headers hidden, you'd set
9219 @code{gnus-treat-hide-headers}. Below is a list of variables that can
9220 be set, but first we discuss the values these variables can have.
9222 Note: Some values, while valid, make little sense. Check the list below
9223 for sensible values.
9227 @code{nil}: Don't do this treatment.
9230 @code{t}: Do this treatment on all body parts.
9233 @code{head}: Do the treatment on the headers.
9236 @code{last}: Do this treatment on the last part.
9239 An integer: Do this treatment on all body parts that have a length less
9243 A list of strings: Do this treatment on all body parts that are in
9244 articles that are read in groups that have names that match one of the
9245 regexps in the list.
9248 A list where the first element is not a string:
9250 The list is evaluated recursively. The first element of the list is a
9251 predicate. The following predicates are recognized: @code{or},
9252 @code{and}, @code{not} and @code{typep}. Here's an example:
9256 (typep "text/x-vcard"))
9260 @code{mime}: Do this treatment if the value of @code{gnus-show-mime}' is
9265 You may have noticed that the word @dfn{part} is used here. This refers
9266 to the fact that some messages are @sc{mime} multipart articles that may
9267 be divided into several parts. Articles that are not multiparts are
9268 considered to contain just a single part.
9270 @vindex gnus-article-treat-types
9271 Are the treatments applied to all sorts of multipart parts? Yes, if you
9272 want to, but by default, only @samp{text/plain} parts are given the
9273 treatment. This is controlled by the @code{gnus-article-treat-types}
9274 variable, which is a list of regular expressions that are matched to the
9275 type of the part. This variable is ignored if the value of the
9276 controlling variable is a predicate list, as described above.
9278 The following treatment options are available. The easiest way to
9279 customize this is to examine the @code{gnus-article-treat} customization
9280 group. Values in parenthesis are suggested sensible values. Others are
9281 possible but those listed are probably sufficient for most people.
9284 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature (t, last)
9285 @item gnus-treat-buttonize (t, integer)
9286 @item gnus-treat-buttonize-head (head)
9287 @item gnus-treat-emphasize (t, head, integer)
9288 @item gnus-treat-fill-article (t, integer)
9289 @item gnus-treat-strip-cr (t, integer)
9290 @item gnus-treat-hide-headers (head)
9291 @item gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers (head)
9292 @item gnus-treat-hide-signature (t, last)
9293 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation (t, integer)
9294 @item gnus-treat-strip-pgp (t, last, integer)
9295 @item gnus-treat-strip-pem (t, last, integer)
9296 @item gnus-treat-highlight-headers (head)
9297 @item gnus-treat-highlight-citation (t, integer)
9298 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature (t, last, integer)
9299 @item gnus-treat-date-ut (head)
9300 @item gnus-treat-date-local (head)
9301 @item gnus-treat-date-lapsed (head)
9302 @item gnus-treat-date-original (head)
9303 @item gnus-treat-strip-headers-in-body (t, integer)
9304 @item gnus-treat-strip-trailing-blank-lines (t, last, integer)
9305 @item gnus-treat-strip-leading-blank-lines (t, integer)
9306 @item gnus-treat-strip-multiple-blank-lines (t, integer)
9307 @item gnus-treat-overstrike (t, integer)
9308 @item gnus-treat-display-xface (head)
9309 @item gnus-treat-display-smileys (t, integer)
9310 @item gnus-treat-display-picons (head)
9311 @item gnus-treat-capitalize-sentences (t, integer)
9312 @item gnus-treat-fill-long-lines (t, integer)
9313 @item gnus-treat-play-sounds
9314 @item gnus-treat-translate
9315 @item gnus-treat-decode-article-as-default-mime-charset
9318 @vindex gnus-part-display-hook
9319 You can, of course, write your own functions to be called from
9320 @code{gnus-part-display-hook}. The functions are called narrowed to the
9321 part, and you can do anything you like, pretty much. There is no
9322 information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can change
9326 @node Article Keymap
9327 @section Article Keymap
9329 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
9330 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
9331 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
9332 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
9335 A few additional keystrokes are available:
9340 @kindex SPACE (Article)
9341 @findex gnus-article-next-page
9342 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
9345 @kindex DEL (Article)
9346 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
9347 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
9350 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
9351 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
9352 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
9353 @kbd{C-c ^}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
9354 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
9357 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
9358 @findex gnus-article-mail
9359 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
9360 given a prefix, include the mail.
9364 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
9365 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
9366 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
9370 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
9371 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
9372 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
9375 @kindex TAB (Article)
9376 @findex gnus-article-next-button
9377 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
9378 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
9381 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
9382 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
9383 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
9389 @section Misc Article
9393 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
9394 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
9395 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
9396 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
9399 @vindex gnus-article-decode-hook
9400 @item gnus-article-decode-hook
9402 Hook used to decode @sc{mime} articles. The default value is
9403 @code{(article-decode-charset article-decode-encoded-words)}
9405 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
9406 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
9407 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
9408 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
9409 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
9410 the contents of the article buffer.
9412 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
9413 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
9414 Hook called in article mode buffers.
9416 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
9417 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
9418 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
9419 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
9421 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
9422 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
9423 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
9424 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
9425 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with two
9430 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
9431 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
9434 The number of @sc{mime} parts in the article.
9437 @vindex gnus-break-pages
9439 @item gnus-break-pages
9440 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
9441 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
9442 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
9443 paging will not be done.
9445 @item gnus-page-delimiter
9446 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
9447 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
9452 @node Composing Messages
9453 @chapter Composing Messages
9454 @cindex composing messages
9457 @cindex sending mail
9463 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
9464 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
9465 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the
9466 article by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Top, message, The
9467 Message Manual}. Where the message will be posted/mailed to depends
9468 on your setup (@pxref{Posting Server}).
9471 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
9472 * Post:: Posting and following up.
9473 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
9474 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
9475 * Archived Messages:: Where gnus stores the messages you've sent.
9476 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
9477 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
9478 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
9479 * Using GPG:: How to use GPG and MML to sign and encrypt messages
9482 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
9483 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
9489 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
9492 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
9493 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
9494 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
9495 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched.
9497 @item gnus-add-to-list
9498 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
9499 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
9500 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
9502 @item message-send-mail-partially-limit
9503 @vindex message-send-mail-partially-limit
9504 The limitation of messages sent as message/partial.
9505 The lower bound of message size in characters, beyond which the message
9506 should be sent in several parts. If it is nil, the size is unlimited.
9514 Variables for composing news articles:
9517 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-file
9518 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-file
9519 Gnus will keep a @code{Message-ID} history file of all the mails it has
9520 sent. If it discovers that it has already sent a mail, it will ask the
9521 user whether to re-send the mail. (This is primarily useful when
9522 dealing with @sc{soup} packets and the like where one is apt to send the
9523 same packet multiple times.) This variable says what the name of this
9524 history file is. It is @file{~/News/Sent-Message-IDs} by default. Set
9525 this variable to @code{nil} if you don't want gnus to keep a history
9528 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-length
9529 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-length
9530 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the history
9531 file. It is 1000 by default.
9536 @node Posting Server
9537 @section Posting Server
9539 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
9540 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
9542 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
9544 @vindex gnus-post-method
9546 It can be quite complicated. Normally, gnus will use the same native
9547 server. However. If your native server doesn't allow posting, just
9548 reading, you probably want to use some other server to post your
9549 (extremely intelligent and fabulously interesting) articles. You can
9550 then set the @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
9553 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
9556 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
9557 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
9558 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
9559 the ``current'' server for posting.
9561 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
9562 gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
9564 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
9565 If that's the case, gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
9568 Finally, if you want to always post using the same select method as
9569 you're reading from (which might be convenient if you're reading lots of
9570 groups from different private servers), you can set this variable to
9575 @section Mail and Post
9577 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
9581 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
9582 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
9583 @cindex mailing lists
9585 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
9586 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
9587 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
9588 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
9589 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
9590 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
9591 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
9592 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
9593 still a pain, though.
9597 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
9598 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
9599 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
9602 @findex ispell-message
9604 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
9607 If you want to change the @code{ispell} dictionary based on what group
9608 you're in, you could say something like the following:
9611 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
9614 ((string-match "^de\\." gnus-newsgroup-name)
9615 (ispell-change-dictionary "deutsch"))
9617 (ispell-change-dictionary "english")))))
9620 Modify to suit your needs.
9623 @node Archived Messages
9624 @section Archived Messages
9625 @cindex archived messages
9626 @cindex sent messages
9628 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
9629 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
9630 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
9631 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
9634 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
9635 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server gnus is to
9636 use to store sent messages. The default is:
9640 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
9641 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
9642 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
9643 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
9646 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
9647 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likeable select method
9648 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
9649 directory chosen, you could say something like:
9652 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
9653 '(nnfolder "archive"
9654 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
9655 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
9656 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
9659 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
9661 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
9662 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
9663 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
9665 This variable can be used to do the following:
9669 Messages will be saved in that group.
9671 Note that you can include a select method in the group name, then the
9672 message will not be stored in the select method given by
9673 @code{gnus-message-archive-method}, but in the select method specified
9674 by the group name, instead. Suppose @code{gnus-message-archive-method}
9675 has the default value shown above. Then setting
9676 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{"foo"} means that outgoing
9677 messages are stored in @samp{nnfolder+archive:foo}, but if you use the
9678 value @code{"nnml:foo"}, then outgoing messages will be stored in
9680 @item a list of strings
9681 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
9682 @item an alist of regexps, functions and forms
9683 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
9685 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
9690 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
9692 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
9695 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
9697 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
9700 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
9702 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
9703 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
9704 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
9705 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
9710 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
9711 '((if (message-news-p)
9716 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
9717 messages in one file per month:
9720 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
9721 '((if (message-news-p)
9723 (concat "mail." (format-time-string "%Y-%m")))))
9726 (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
9727 use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
9729 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
9730 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
9731 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
9732 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
9733 gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
9734 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
9735 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
9736 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
9737 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
9738 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
9740 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
9741 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
9742 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
9743 this will disable archiving.
9746 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
9747 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
9748 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
9749 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
9750 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
9753 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
9754 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
9755 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
9758 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
9759 but the latter is the preferred method.
9763 @node Posting Styles
9764 @section Posting Styles
9765 @cindex posting styles
9768 All them variables, they make my head swim.
9770 So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
9771 on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
9772 and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
9775 @vindex gnus-posting-styles
9776 One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
9777 variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
9778 came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
9779 a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
9784 (signature "Peace and happiness")
9785 (organization "What me?"))
9787 (signature "Death to everybody"))
9788 ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
9789 (organization "Emacs is it")))
9792 As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
9793 @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
9794 ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
9795 over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
9796 applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
9797 the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
9798 @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
9799 signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
9801 The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
9802 string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
9803 If it is the symbol @code{header}, then Gnus will look for header that
9804 match the next element in the match, and compare that to the last header
9805 in the match. If it's a function symbol, that function will be called
9806 with no arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the variable will be
9807 referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be @code{eval}ed. In
9808 any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value, then the style is said
9811 Each style may contain a arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
9812 attribute consists of a @code{(@var{name} . @var{value})} pair. The
9813 attribute name can be one of @code{signature}, @code{signature-file},
9814 @code{organization}, @code{address}, @code{name} or @code{body}. The
9815 attribute name can also be a string. In that case, this will be used as
9816 a header name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the
9817 article; if the value is @code{nil}, the header name will be removed.
9818 If the attribute name is @code{eval}, the form is evaluated, and the
9819 result is thrown away.
9821 The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function with
9822 zero arguments (the return value will be used), a variable (its value
9823 will be used) or a list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value
9824 will be used). The functions and sexps are called/@code{eval}ed in the
9825 message buffer that is being set up. The headers of the current article
9826 are available through the @code{message-reply-headers} variable.
9828 If you wish to check whether the message you are about to compose is
9829 meant to be a news article or a mail message, you can check the values
9830 of the @code{message-news-p} and @code{message-mail-p} functions.
9832 @findex message-mail-p
9833 @findex message-news-p
9835 So here's a new example:
9838 (setq gnus-posting-styles
9840 (signature-file "~/.signature")
9842 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
9843 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
9845 (signature my-funny-signature-randomizer))
9846 ((equal (system-name) "gnarly")
9847 (signature my-quote-randomizer))
9849 (signature my-news-signature))
9850 (header "From\\|To" "larsi.*org"
9851 (Organization "Somewhere, Inc."))
9852 ((posting-from-work-p)
9853 (signature-file "~/.work-signature")
9854 (address "user@@bar.foo")
9855 (body "You are fired.\n\nSincerely, your boss.")
9856 (organization "Important Work, Inc"))
9858 (signature-file "~/.mail-signature"))))
9866 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
9867 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
9868 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
9869 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
9870 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
9872 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
9873 some sort using the gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
9874 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
9875 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
9876 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
9880 @vindex nndraft-directory
9881 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
9882 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
9883 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
9884 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
9885 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
9886 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
9888 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
9889 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
9892 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
9893 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
9894 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
9895 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
9896 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
9897 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
9898 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
9899 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
9900 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
9901 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
9902 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
9903 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
9904 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
9905 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
9907 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
9908 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
9909 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
9911 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
9913 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
9914 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
9915 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
9917 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
9920 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
9921 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
9922 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
9923 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
9924 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
9925 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
9926 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
9929 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
9930 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
9931 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
9934 @node Rejected Articles
9935 @section Rejected Articles
9936 @cindex rejected articles
9938 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
9939 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
9940 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
9941 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
9943 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of gnus.
9944 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
9945 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
9946 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So gnus saves these
9947 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
9949 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
9950 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
9951 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
9957 Gnus has an ALPHA support to GPG that's provided by @file{gpg.el} and
9958 @file{mml2015.el}. When viewing signed or encrypted messages, Gnus automatically
9959 asks if you want to verify or decrypt them.
9961 To use this correctly with GPG, you'll need the following lisp code in your
9962 @file{~/.emacs} or @file{~/.gnus}:
9965 (setq mml2015-use 'gpg)
9966 (setq gpg-temp-directory "~/.gnupg/tmp")
9969 The @code{gpg-temp-directory} need to point to a directory with permissions set
9970 to 700, for your own safety.
9972 If you want to benefit of PGP2.6 compatibility, you might create a script named
9973 @file{gpg-2comp} with these instructions:
9977 exec gpg --rfc1991 "$@@"
9980 If you don't want to use such compatibility, you can add the following line to
9981 your @file{~/.emacs} or @file{~/.gnus}:
9984 (setq gpg-command-default-alist (quote ((gpg . "gpg") (gpg-2comp . "gpg"))))
9987 To sign or encrypt your message you may choose to use the MML Security menu or
9988 @kbd{M-m s p} to sign your message using PGP/MIME, @kbd{M-m s s} to sign your
9989 message using S/MIME. There's also @kbd{M-m c p} to encrypt your message with
9990 PGP/MIME and @kbd{M-m c s} to encrypt using S/MIME.
9992 Gnus will ask for your passphrase three times and then it will send your
9993 message, if you've typed it correctly.
9996 @node Select Methods
9997 @chapter Select Methods
9998 @cindex foreign groups
9999 @cindex select methods
10001 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
10002 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
10003 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
10004 personal mail group.
10006 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
10007 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
10008 list where the first element says what backend to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
10009 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
10010 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
10011 value may have special meaning for the backend in question.
10013 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
10014 we do just that (@pxref{The Server Buffer}).
10016 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the backend will recognize the
10019 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
10020 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
10021 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
10022 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
10023 backend just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
10025 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
10028 * The Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
10029 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
10030 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
10031 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
10032 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
10033 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
10034 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
10038 @node The Server Buffer
10039 @section The Server Buffer
10041 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
10042 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
10043 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
10044 one backend or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
10045 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
10046 backend represents a virtual server.
10048 For instance, the @code{nntp} backend may be used to connect to several
10049 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
10050 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which backend to
10051 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
10053 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
10054 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
10055 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
10056 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
10057 Anyways, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
10058 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
10059 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
10061 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
10062 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
10065 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
10066 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
10067 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
10068 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
10069 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
10070 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
10071 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
10074 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
10075 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
10078 @node Server Buffer Format
10079 @subsection Server Buffer Format
10080 @cindex server buffer format
10082 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
10083 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
10084 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
10085 variable, with some simple extensions:
10090 How the news is fetched---the backend name.
10093 The name of this server.
10096 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
10099 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
10102 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
10103 The mode line can also be customized by using the
10104 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
10105 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
10115 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
10118 @node Server Commands
10119 @subsection Server Commands
10120 @cindex server commands
10126 @findex gnus-server-add-server
10127 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
10131 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
10132 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
10135 @kindex SPACE (Server)
10136 @findex gnus-server-read-server
10137 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
10141 @findex gnus-server-exit
10142 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
10146 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
10147 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
10151 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
10152 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
10156 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
10157 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
10161 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
10162 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
10166 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
10167 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
10168 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
10173 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
10174 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
10175 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
10176 a mail backend that has gotten out of synch.
10181 @node Example Methods
10182 @subsection Example Methods
10184 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
10187 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
10190 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
10196 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
10197 backend, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
10200 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
10201 @code{(@var{variable} @var{form})} pairs.
10203 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
10204 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
10208 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
10211 You should read the documentation to each backend to find out what
10212 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
10214 @code{nnmh} is a mail backend that reads a spool-like structure. Say
10215 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
10216 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
10220 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
10223 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
10226 Here's the method for a public spool:
10230 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
10231 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
10237 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
10238 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
10239 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
10240 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
10241 should probably look something like this:
10245 (nntp-address "the.firewall.machine")
10246 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
10247 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
10248 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
10249 ("telnet" "the.real.nntp.host" "nntp")))
10252 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
10253 compressed connection over the modem line, you could create a virtual
10254 server that would look something like this:
10258 (nntp-address "copper.uio.no")
10259 (nntp-rlogin-program "ssh")
10260 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
10261 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
10262 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
10263 ("telnet" "news.uio.no" "nntp")))
10266 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
10267 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
10268 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
10269 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
10272 @node Creating a Virtual Server
10273 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
10275 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
10276 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
10278 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
10279 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
10280 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
10282 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
10284 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
10285 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
10286 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
10287 will contain the following:
10297 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
10298 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
10299 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
10302 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
10303 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
10304 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
10307 @node Server Variables
10308 @subsection Server Variables
10310 One sticky point when defining variables (both on backends and in Emacs
10311 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
10312 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
10313 change the "base" variable after the variables have been loaded, you
10314 won't change the "derived" variables.
10316 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
10317 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
10318 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
10319 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
10320 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
10321 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
10322 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
10323 variables for each backend, see each backend's section later in this
10324 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
10328 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
10329 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
10330 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
10334 @node Servers and Methods
10335 @subsection Servers and Methods
10337 Wherever you would normally use a select method
10338 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
10339 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
10340 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
10344 @node Unavailable Servers
10345 @subsection Unavailable Servers
10347 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
10348 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
10349 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
10350 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
10351 actually the case or not.
10353 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
10354 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
10355 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
10356 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
10357 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
10358 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
10359 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
10360 it will regard that server as ``down''.
10362 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
10363 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
10365 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{The Server Buffer}) and poke it
10366 with the following commands:
10372 @findex gnus-server-open-server
10373 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
10374 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
10378 @findex gnus-server-close-server
10379 Close the connection (if any) to the server
10380 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
10384 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
10385 Mark the current server as unreachable
10386 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
10389 @kindex M-o (Server)
10390 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
10391 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
10392 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
10395 @kindex M-c (Server)
10396 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
10397 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
10398 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
10402 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
10403 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
10404 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
10410 @section Getting News
10411 @cindex reading news
10412 @cindex news backends
10414 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
10415 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
10416 or it can read from a local spool.
10419 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
10420 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
10425 @subsection @sc{nntp}
10428 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
10429 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
10430 server as the, uhm, address.
10432 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
10433 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
10434 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
10435 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
10437 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
10438 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
10439 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
10441 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
10446 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
10447 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
10448 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
10450 @cindex authentification
10451 @cindex nntp authentification
10452 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
10453 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
10454 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
10455 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
10456 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
10457 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
10458 present in this hook.
10460 @item nntp-authinfo-function
10461 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
10462 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
10463 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
10464 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
10465 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
10466 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
10467 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
10468 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
10469 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
10470 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
10471 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
10475 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
10478 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs.
10481 The valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password},
10482 @samp{default}. Gnus introduce two new tokens, not present in the
10483 original @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp} syntax, namely @samp{port} and
10484 @samp{force}. (This is the only way the @file{.authinfo} file format
10485 deviates from the @file{.netrc} file format.) @samp{port} is used to
10486 indicate what port on the server the credentials apply to, @samp{force}
10487 is explained below.
10489 Here's an example file:
10492 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
10493 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
10496 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
10497 have to be first, for instance.
10499 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
10500 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
10501 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
10502 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
10503 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
10504 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
10505 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
10507 You can also add @samp{default} lines that will apply to all servers
10508 that don't have matching @samp{machine} lines.
10514 This will force sending @samp{AUTHINFO} commands to all servers not
10515 previously mentioned.
10517 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
10519 @item nntp-server-action-alist
10520 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
10521 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
10522 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
10523 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
10526 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
10527 '(("innd" (ding))))
10530 You probably don't want to do that, though.
10532 The default value is
10535 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
10536 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
10539 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
10540 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
10542 @item nntp-maximum-request
10543 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
10544 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this backend
10545 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
10546 speed things up, the backend sends lots of these commands without
10547 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
10548 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
10549 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
10551 @item nntp-connection-timeout
10552 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
10553 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
10554 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
10555 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
10556 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
10557 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
10558 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} backend should wait for a
10559 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
10560 no timeouts are done.
10562 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
10563 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
10564 @c @cindex PPP connections
10565 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
10566 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
10567 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
10568 @c changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
10569 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
10570 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
10571 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
10572 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
10573 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
10574 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
10576 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
10577 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
10578 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
10579 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
10580 @c described above.
10582 @item nntp-server-hook
10583 @vindex nntp-server-hook
10584 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
10587 @findex nntp-open-rlogin
10588 @findex nntp-open-telnet
10589 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
10590 @item nntp-open-connection-function
10591 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
10592 This function is used to connect to the remote system. Four pre-made
10593 functions are supplied:
10596 @item nntp-open-network-stream
10597 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
10600 @item nntp-open-rlogin
10601 Does an @samp{rlogin} on the
10602 remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet} to the @sc{nntp} server
10605 @code{nntp-open-rlogin}-related variables:
10609 @item nntp-rlogin-program
10610 @vindex nntp-rlogin-program
10611 Program used to log in on remote machines. The default is @samp{rsh},
10612 but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
10614 @item nntp-rlogin-parameters
10615 @vindex nntp-rlogin-parameters
10616 This list will be used as the parameter list given to @code{rsh}.
10618 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
10619 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
10620 User name on the remote system.
10624 @item nntp-open-telnet
10625 Does a @samp{telnet} to the remote system and then another @samp{telnet}
10626 to get to the @sc{nntp} server.
10628 @code{nntp-open-telnet}-related variables:
10631 @item nntp-telnet-command
10632 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
10633 Command used to start @code{telnet}.
10635 @item nntp-telnet-switches
10636 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
10637 List of strings to be used as the switches to the @code{telnet} command.
10639 @item nntp-telnet-user-name
10640 @vindex nntp-telnet-user-name
10641 User name for log in on the remote system.
10643 @item nntp-telnet-passwd
10644 @vindex nntp-telnet-passwd
10645 Password to use when logging in.
10647 @item nntp-telnet-parameters
10648 @vindex nntp-telnet-parameters
10649 A list of strings executed as a command after logging in
10652 @item nntp-telnet-shell-prompt
10653 @vindex nntp-telnet-shell-prompt
10654 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the remote machine. The default is
10655 @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
10657 @item nntp-open-telnet-envuser
10658 @vindex nntp-open-telnet-envuser
10659 If non-@code{nil}, the @code{telnet} session (client and server both)
10660 will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for login name.
10661 This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
10665 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
10666 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
10667 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use this
10668 you must have SSLay installed
10669 (@file{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}, and you also need
10670 @file{ssl.el} (from the W3 distributeion, for instance). You then
10671 define a server as follows:
10674 ;; Type `C-c C-c' after you've finished editing.
10676 ;; "snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
10678 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
10679 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
10680 (nntp-port-number "snews")
10681 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
10686 @item nntp-end-of-line
10687 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
10688 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
10689 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
10690 using @code{rlogin} to talk to the server.
10692 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
10693 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
10694 User name on the remote system when using the @code{rlogin} connect
10698 @vindex nntp-address
10699 The address of the remote system running the @sc{nntp} server.
10701 @item nntp-port-number
10702 @vindex nntp-port-number
10703 Port number to connect to when using the @code{nntp-open-network-stream}
10706 @item nntp-list-options
10707 @vindex nntp-list-options
10708 List of newsgroup name used for a option of the LIST command to restrict
10709 the listing output to only the specified newsgroups. Each newsgroup name
10710 can be a shell-style wildcard, for instance, @dfn{fj.*}, @dfn{japan.*},
10711 etc. Fortunately, if the server can accept such a option, it will
10712 probably make gnus run faster. You may use it as a server variable as
10716 (setq gnus-select-method
10717 '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"
10718 (nntp-list-options ("fj.*" "japan.*"))))
10721 @item nntp-options-subscribe
10722 @vindex nntp-options-subscribe
10723 Regexp matching the newsgroup names which will be subscribed
10724 unconditionally. Use @dfn{ } instead of @dfn{$} for a regexp string.
10725 It may be effective as well as @code{nntp-list-options} even though the
10726 server could not accept a shell-style wildcard as a option of the LIST
10727 command. You may use it as a server variable as follows:
10730 (setq gnus-select-method
10731 '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"
10732 (nntp-options-subscribe "^fj\\.\\|^japan\\.")))
10735 @item nntp-options-not-subscribe
10736 @vindex nntp-options-not-subscribe
10737 Regexp matching the newsgroup names which will not be subscribed
10738 unconditionally. Use @dfn{ } instead of @dfn{$} for a regexp string.
10739 It may be effective as well as @code{nntp-list-options} even though the
10740 server could not accept a shell-style wildcard as a option of the LIST
10741 command. You may use it as a server variable as follows:
10744 (setq gnus-select-method
10745 '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"
10746 (nntp-options-not-subscribe "\\.binaries\\.")))
10749 @item nntp-buggy-select
10750 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
10751 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
10753 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
10754 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
10755 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
10756 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
10759 @item nntp-xover-commands
10760 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
10763 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
10764 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
10768 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
10769 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
10770 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
10771 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
10772 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
10773 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
10774 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
10775 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
10776 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
10777 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
10778 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
10780 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
10781 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
10782 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
10784 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
10785 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
10786 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
10787 server closes connection.
10789 @item nntp-record-commands
10790 @vindex nntp-record-commands
10791 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
10792 @sc{nntp} server (along with a timestep) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
10793 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@sc{nntp} connection
10794 that doesn't seem to work.
10800 @subsection News Spool
10804 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
10805 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
10806 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
10809 Anyways, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
10810 anything else) as the address.
10812 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
10813 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
10814 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
10815 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
10819 @item nnspool-inews-program
10820 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
10821 Program used to post an article.
10823 @item nnspool-inews-switches
10824 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
10825 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
10827 @item nnspool-spool-directory
10828 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
10829 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
10830 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
10832 @item nnspool-nov-directory
10833 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
10834 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
10835 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
10837 @item nnspool-lib-dir
10838 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
10839 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
10841 @item nnspool-active-file
10842 @vindex nnspool-active-file
10843 The path to the active file.
10845 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
10846 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
10847 The path to the group descriptions file.
10849 @item nnspool-history-file
10850 @vindex nnspool-history-file
10851 The path to the news history file.
10853 @item nnspool-active-times-file
10854 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
10855 The path to the active date file.
10857 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
10858 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
10859 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
10862 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
10863 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
10865 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
10866 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
10867 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
10873 @section Getting Mail
10874 @cindex reading mail
10877 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
10881 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
10882 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
10883 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
10884 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
10885 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
10886 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
10887 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
10888 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
10889 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
10890 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
10891 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
10892 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
10893 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
10897 @node Mail in a Newsreader
10898 @subsection Mail in a Newsreader
10900 If you are used to traditional mail readers, but have decided to switch
10901 to reading mail with Gnus, you may find yourself experiencing something
10902 of a culture shock.
10904 Gnus does not behave like traditional mail readers. If you want to make
10905 it behave that way, you can, but it's an uphill battle.
10907 Gnus, by default, handles all its groups using the same approach. This
10908 approach is very newsreaderly---you enter a group, see the new/unread
10909 messages, and when you read the messages, they get marked as read, and
10910 you don't see them any more. (Unless you explicitly ask for them.)
10912 In particular, you do not do anything explicitly to delete messages.
10914 Does this mean that all the messages that have been marked as read are
10915 deleted? How awful!
10917 But, no, it means that old messages are @dfn{expired} according to some
10918 scheme or other. For news messages, the expire process is controlled by
10919 the news administrator; for mail, the expire process is controlled by
10920 you. The expire process for mail is covered in depth in @pxref{Expiring
10923 What many Gnus users find, after using it a while for both news and
10924 mail, is that the transport mechanism has very little to do with how
10925 they want to treat a message.
10927 Many people subscribe to several mailing lists. These are transported
10928 via SMTP, and are therefore mail. But we might go for weeks without
10929 answering, or even reading these messages very carefully. We may not
10930 need to save them because if we should need to read one again, they are
10931 archived somewhere else.
10933 Some people have local news groups which have only a handful of readers.
10934 These are transported via @sc{nntp}, and are therefore news. But we may need
10935 to read and answer a large fraction of the messages very carefully in
10936 order to do our work. And there may not be an archive, so we may need
10937 to save the interesting messages the same way we would personal mail.
10939 The important distinction turns out to be not the transport mechanism,
10940 but other factors such as how interested we are in the subject matter,
10941 or how easy it is to retrieve the message if we need to read it again.
10943 Gnus provides many options for sorting mail into ``groups'' which behave
10944 like newsgroups, and for treating each group (whether mail or news)
10947 Some users never get comfortable using the Gnus (ahem) paradigm and wish
10948 that Gnus should grow up and be a male, er, mail reader. It is possible
10949 to whip Gnus into a more mailreaderly being, but, as said before, it's
10950 not easy. People who prefer proper mail readers should try @sc{vm}
10951 instead, which is an excellent, and proper, mail reader.
10953 I don't mean to scare anybody off, but I want to make it clear that you
10954 may be required to learn a new way of thinking about messages. After
10955 you've been subjected to The Gnus Way, you will come to love it. I can
10956 guarantee it. (At least the guy who sold me the Emacs Subliminal
10957 Brain-Washing Functions that I've put into Gnus did guarantee it. You
10958 Will Be Assimilated. You Love Gnus. You Love The Gnus Mail Way.
10962 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
10963 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
10965 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
10966 mail backend of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
10967 and things will happen automatically.
10969 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a "one file per
10970 mail" backend), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
10973 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
10974 '((nnml "private")))
10977 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this backend will be queried for new
10978 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
10979 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
10980 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
10981 like any other group.
10983 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
10986 (setq nnmail-split-methods
10987 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
10988 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
10992 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
10993 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
10994 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
10997 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
10998 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
10999 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Backend} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
11002 @node Splitting Mail
11003 @subsection Splitting Mail
11004 @cindex splitting mail
11005 @cindex mail splitting
11007 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
11008 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
11009 to be split into groups.
11012 (setq nnmail-split-methods
11013 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
11014 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
11015 ("mail.other" "")))
11018 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
11019 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
11020 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
11021 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
11022 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
11023 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
11024 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
11027 ("list.\\1" "From:.* \\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
11030 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
11031 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
11032 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
11033 mail belongs in that group.
11035 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
11036 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any mails
11037 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
11038 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
11039 rule to make a match will "win", unless you have crossposting enabled.
11040 In that case, all matching rules will "win".)
11042 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
11043 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
11044 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
11045 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
11046 thinks should carry this mail message.
11048 Note that the mail backends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
11049 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
11050 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
11051 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
11053 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
11054 The mail backends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
11055 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
11056 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
11057 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
11059 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
11062 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
11063 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
11064 links. If that's the case for you, set
11065 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
11066 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
11068 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
11069 @kindex nnmail-split-history
11070 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
11071 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command. If you wish to see
11072 where re-spooling messages would put the messages, you can use
11073 @code{gnus-summary-respool-trace} and related commands (@pxref{Mail
11076 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
11077 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
11078 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
11079 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
11080 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
11081 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
11082 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
11083 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
11084 month's rent money.
11088 @subsection Mail Sources
11090 Mail can be gotten from many different sources---the mail spool, from a
11091 POP mail server, from a procmail directory, or from a maildir, for
11095 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
11096 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
11097 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
11101 @node Mail Source Specifiers
11102 @subsubsection Mail Source Specifiers
11104 @cindex mail server
11107 @cindex mail source
11109 You tell Gnus how to fetch mail by setting @code{mail-sources}
11110 (@pxref{Fetching Mail}) to a @dfn{mail source specifier}.
11115 (pop :server "pop3.mailserver.com" :user "myname")
11118 As can be observed, a mail source specifier is a list where the first
11119 element is a @dfn{mail source type}, followed by an arbitrary number of
11120 @dfn{keywords}. Keywords that are not explicitly specified are given
11123 The following mail source types are available:
11127 Get mail from a single file; typically from the mail spool.
11133 The path of the file. Defaults to the value of the @code{MAIL}
11134 environment variable or @file{/usr/mail/spool/user-name}.
11137 An example file mail source:
11140 (file :path "/usr/spool/mail/user-name")
11143 Or using the default path:
11149 If the mail spool file is not located on the local machine, it's best to
11150 use POP or @sc{imap} or the like to fetch the mail. You can not use ange-ftp
11151 file names here---it has no way to lock the mail spool while moving the
11154 If it's impossible to set up a proper server, you can use ssh instead.
11158 '((file :prescript "ssh host bin/getmail >%t")))
11161 The @samp{getmail} script would look something like the following:
11165 # getmail - move mail from spool to stdout
11168 MOVEMAIL=/usr/lib/emacs/20.3/i386-redhat-linux/movemail
11170 rm -f $TMP; $MOVEMAIL $MAIL $TMP >/dev/null && cat $TMP
11173 Alter this script to fit find the @samp{movemail} you want to use.
11177 Get mail from several files in a directory. This is typically used when
11178 you have procmail split the incoming mail into several files. Setting
11179 @code{nnmail-scan-directory-mail-source-once} to non-nil force Gnus to
11180 scan the mail source only once.
11186 The path of the directory where the files are. There is no default
11190 Only files ending with this suffix are used. The default is
11194 Only files that have this predicate return non-@code{nil} are returned.
11195 The default is @code{identity}. This is used as an additional
11196 filter---only files that have the right suffix @emph{and} satisfy this
11197 predicate are considered.
11201 Script run before/after fetching mail.
11205 An example directory mail source:
11208 (directory :path "/home/user-name/procmail-dir/"
11213 Get mail from a POP server.
11219 The name of the POP server. The default is taken from the
11220 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
11223 The port number of the POP server. This can be a number (eg,
11224 @samp{:port 1234}) or a string (eg, @samp{:port "pop3"}). If it is a
11225 string, it should be a service name as listed in @file{/etc/services} on
11226 Unix systems. The default is @samp{"pop3"}.
11229 The user name to give to the POP server. The default is the login
11233 The password to give to the POP server. If not specified, the user is
11237 The program to use to fetch mail from the POP server. This is should be
11238 a @code{format}-like string. Here's an example:
11241 fetchmail %u@@%s -P %p %t
11244 The valid format specifier characters are:
11248 The name of the file the mail is to be moved to. This must always be
11249 included in this string.
11252 The name of the server.
11255 The port number of the server.
11258 The user name to use.
11261 The password to use.
11264 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
11265 corresponding keywords.
11268 A script to be run before fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
11269 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
11272 A script to be run after fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
11273 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
11276 The function to use to fetch mail from the POP server. The function is
11277 called with one parameter---the name of the file where the mail should
11280 @item :authentication
11281 This can be either the symbol @code{password} or the symbol @code{apop}
11282 and says what authentication scheme to use. The default is
11287 If the @code{:program} and @code{:function} keywords aren't specified,
11288 @code{pop3-movemail} will be used.
11290 Here are some examples. Fetch from the default POP server, using the
11291 default user name, and default fetcher:
11297 Fetch from a named server with a named user and password:
11300 (pop :server "my.pop.server"
11301 :user "user-name" :password "secret")
11304 Use @samp{movemail} to move the mail:
11307 (pop :program "movemail po:%u %t %p")
11311 Get mail from a maildir. This is a type of mailbox that is supported by
11312 at least qmail and postfix, where each file in a special directory
11313 contains exactly one mail.
11319 The path of the directory where the mails are stored. The default is
11320 taken from the @code{MAILDIR} environment variable or
11323 The subdirectories of the Maildir. The default is
11324 @samp{("new" "cur")}.
11326 @c If you sometimes look at your mail through a pop3 daemon before fetching
11327 @c them with Gnus, you may also have to fetch your mails from the
11328 @c @code{cur} directory inside the maildir, like in the first example
11331 You can also get mails from remote hosts (because maildirs don't suffer
11332 from locking problems).
11336 Two example maildir mail sources:
11339 (maildir :path "/home/user-name/Maildir/" :subdirs ("cur" "new"))
11343 (maildir :path "/user@@remotehost.org:~/Maildir/" :subdirs ("new"))
11347 Get mail from a @sc{imap} server. If you don't want to use @sc{imap} as
11348 intended, as a network mail reading protocol (ie with nnimap), for some
11349 reason or other, Gnus let you treat it similar to a POP server and
11350 fetches articles from a given @sc{imap} mailbox.
11356 The name of the @sc{imap} server. The default is taken from the
11357 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
11360 The port number of the @sc{imap} server. The default is @samp{143}, or
11361 @samp{993} for SSL connections.
11364 The user name to give to the @sc{imap} server. The default is the login
11368 The password to give to the @sc{imap} server. If not specified, the user is
11372 What stream to use for connecting to the server, this is one of the
11373 symbols in @code{imap-stream-alist}. Right now, this means
11374 @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{ssl} or the default @samp{network}.
11376 @item :authentication
11377 Which authenticator to use for authenticating to the server, this is one
11378 of the symbols in @code{imap-authenticator-alist}. Right now, this
11379 means @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{cram-md5}, @samp{anonymous} or the default
11383 The name of the mailbox to get mail from. The default is @samp{INBOX}
11384 which normally is the mailbox which receive incoming mail.
11387 The predicate used to find articles to fetch. The default, @samp{UNSEEN
11388 UNDELETED}, is probably the best choice for most people, but if you
11389 sometimes peek in your mailbox with a @sc{imap} client and mark some
11390 articles as read (or; SEEN) you might want to set this to @samp{nil}.
11391 Then all articles in the mailbox is fetched, no matter what. For a
11392 complete list of predicates, see RFC 2060 §6.4.4.
11395 How to flag fetched articles on the server, the default @samp{\Deleted}
11396 will mark them as deleted, an alternative would be @samp{\Seen} which
11397 would simply mark them as read. These are the two most likely choices,
11398 but more flags are defined in RFC 2060 §2.3.2.
11401 If non-nil, don't remove all articles marked as deleted in the mailbox
11402 after finishing the fetch.
11406 An example @sc{imap} mail source:
11409 (imap :server "mail.mycorp.com" :stream kerberos4 :fetchflag "\\Seen")
11413 Get mail from a webmail server, such as www.hotmail.com,
11414 webmail.netscape.com, www.netaddress.com, www.my-deja.com.
11416 NOTE: Now mail.yahoo.com provides POP3 service, so @sc{pop} mail source
11419 NOTE: Webmail largely depends cookies. A "one-line-cookie" patch is
11420 required for url "4.0pre.46".
11422 WARNING: Mails may lost. NO WARRANTY.
11428 The type of the webmail server. The default is @code{hotmail}. The
11429 alternatives are @code{netscape}, @code{netaddress}, @code{my-deja}.
11432 The user name to give to the webmail server. The default is the login
11436 The password to give to the webmail server. If not specified, the user is
11440 If non-nil, only fetch unread articles and don't move them to trash
11441 folder after finishing the fetch.
11445 An example webmail source:
11448 (webmail :subtype 'hotmail :user "user-name" :password "secret")
11453 @item Common Keywords
11454 Common keywords can be used in any type of mail source.
11460 If non-nil, fetch the mail even when Gnus is unplugged. If you use
11461 directory source to get mail, you can specify it as in this example:
11465 '((directory :path "/home/pavel/.Spool/"
11470 Gnus will then fetch your mail even when you are unplugged. This is
11471 useful when you use local mail and news.
11476 @subsubheading Function Interface
11478 Some of the above keywords specify a Lisp function to be executed.
11479 For each keyword @code{:foo}, the Lisp variable @code{foo} is bound to
11480 the value of the keyword while the function is executing. For example,
11481 consider the following mail-source setting:
11484 (setq mail-sources '((pop :user "jrl"
11485 :server "pophost" :function fetchfunc)))
11488 While the function @code{fetchfunc} is executing, the symbol @code{user}
11489 is bound to @code{"jrl"}, and the symbol @code{server} is bound to
11490 @code{"pophost"}. The symbols @code{port}, @code{password},
11491 @code{program}, @code{prescript}, @code{postscript}, @code{function},
11492 and @code{authentication} are also bound (to their default values).
11494 See above for a list of keywords for each type of mail source.
11497 @node Mail Source Customization
11498 @subsubsection Mail Source Customization
11500 The following is a list of variables that influence how the mail is
11501 fetched. You would normally not need to set or change any of these
11505 @item mail-source-crash-box
11506 @vindex mail-source-crash-box
11507 File where mail will be stored while processing it. The default is
11508 @file{~/.emacs-mail-crash-box}.
11510 @item mail-source-delete-incoming
11511 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
11512 If non-@code{nil}, delete incoming files after handling them.
11514 @item mail-source-directory
11515 @vindex mail-source-directory
11516 Directory where files (if any) will be stored. The default is
11517 @file{~/Mail/}. At present, the only thing this is used for is to say
11518 where the incoming files will be stored if the previous variable is
11521 @item mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
11522 @vindex mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
11523 Prefix for file name for storing incoming mail. The default is
11524 @file{Incoming}, in which case files will end up with names like
11525 @file{Incoming30630D_} or @file{Incoming298602ZD}. This is really only
11526 relevant if @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} is @code{nil}.
11528 @item mail-source-default-file-modes
11529 @vindex mail-source-default-file-modes
11530 All new mail files will get this file mode. The default is 384.
11535 @node Fetching Mail
11536 @subsubsection Fetching Mail
11538 @vindex mail-sources
11539 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
11540 The way to actually tell Gnus where to get new mail from is to set
11541 @code{mail-sources} to a list of mail source specifiers
11542 (@pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}).
11544 If this variable (and the obsolescent @code{nnmail-spool-file}) is
11545 @code{nil}, the mail backends will never attempt to fetch mail by
11548 If you want to fetch mail both from your local spool as well as a POP
11549 mail server, you'd say something like:
11554 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
11555 :password "secret")))
11558 Or, if you don't want to use any of the keyword defaults:
11562 '((file :path "/var/spool/mail/user-name")
11563 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
11566 :password "secret")))
11570 When you use a mail backend, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
11571 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
11572 mail if you're not using a mail backend---you have to do a lot of magic
11573 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
11574 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
11575 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
11579 @node Mail Backend Variables
11580 @subsection Mail Backend Variables
11582 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
11586 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
11587 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
11588 The mail backends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
11589 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
11591 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
11592 @item nnmail-split-hook
11593 @findex article-decode-encoded-words
11594 @findex RFC 1522 decoding
11595 @findex RFC 2047 decoding
11596 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
11597 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
11598 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
11599 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
11600 in the buffer will show up in any files.
11601 @code{gnus-article-decode-encoded-words} is one likely function to add
11604 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
11605 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
11606 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
11607 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
11608 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
11609 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
11610 starting to handle the new mail) and
11611 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
11612 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
11613 default file modes the new mail files get:
11616 (add-hook 'gnus-pre-get-new-mail-hook
11617 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
11619 (add-hook 'gnus-post-get-new-mail-hook
11620 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
11623 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
11624 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
11625 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will use long file and directory
11626 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
11627 (assuming use of @code{nnml} backend) or files (assuming use of
11628 @code{nnfolder} backend) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
11629 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
11631 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
11632 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
11633 @findex delete-file
11634 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
11636 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
11637 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
11638 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
11639 the backend (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
11640 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
11645 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
11646 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
11647 @cindex mail splitting
11648 @cindex fancy mail splitting
11650 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
11651 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
11652 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
11653 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
11654 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
11655 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
11657 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
11660 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
11661 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
11662 ;; from real errors.
11663 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
11665 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
11666 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
11667 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
11668 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
11669 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
11670 ;; Other mailing lists...
11671 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
11672 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
11673 ;; Both lists below have the same suffix, so prevent
11674 ;; cross-posting to mkpkg.list of messages posted only to
11675 ;; the bugs- list, but allow cross-posting when the
11676 ;; message was really cross-posted.
11677 (any "bugs-mypackage@@somewhere" "mypkg.bugs")
11678 (any "mypackage@@somewhere\" - "bugs-mypackage" "mypkg.list")
11680 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
11681 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
11685 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
11686 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
11687 the five possible split syntaxes:
11692 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group
11693 name. Normal regexp match expansion will be done. See below for
11697 @code{(@var{field} @var{value} @code{[-} @var{restrict}
11698 @code{[@dots{}]}@code{]} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, the
11699 first element of which is a string, then store the message as
11700 specified by @var{split}, if header @var{field} (a regexp) contains
11701 @var{value} (also a regexp). If @var{restrict} (yet another regexp)
11702 matches some string after @var{field} and before the end of the
11703 matched @var{value}, the @var{split} is ignored. If none of the
11704 @var{restrict} clauses match, @var{split} is processed.
11707 @code{(| @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
11708 element is @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each @var{split} until
11709 one of them matches. A @var{split} is said to match if it will cause
11710 the mail message to be stored in one or more groups.
11713 @code{(& @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
11714 element is @code{&}, then process all @var{split}s in the list.
11717 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
11718 this message. Use with extreme caution.
11721 @code{(: @var{function} @var{arg1} @var{arg2} @dots{})}: If the split is
11722 a list, and the first element is @code{:}, then the second element will
11723 be called as a function with @var{args} given as arguments. The
11724 function should return a @var{split}.
11726 For instance, the following function could be used to split based on the
11727 body of the messages:
11730 (defun split-on-body ()
11732 (set-buffer " *nnmail incoming*")
11733 (goto-char (point-min))
11734 (when (re-search-forward "Some.*string" nil t)
11739 @code{(! @var{func} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, and the first
11740 element is @code{!}, then SPLIT will be processed, and FUNC will be
11741 called as a function with the result of SPLIT as argument. FUNC should
11745 @code{nil}: If the split is @code{nil}, it is ignored.
11749 In these splits, @var{field} must match a complete field name.
11750 @var{value} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
11751 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
11752 field names or words. In other words, all @var{value}'s are wrapped in
11753 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
11755 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
11756 @var{field} and @var{value} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
11757 are expanded as specified by the variable
11758 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
11759 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
11762 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
11763 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
11764 when all this splitting is performed.
11766 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
11767 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
11768 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
11771 (any "debian-\\b\\(\\w+\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
11774 In this example, messages sent to @samp{debian-foo@@lists.debian.org}
11775 will be filed in @samp{mail.debian.foo}.
11777 If the string contains the element @samp{\&}, then the previously
11778 matched string will be substituted. Similarly, the elements @samp{\\1}
11779 up to @samp{\\9} will be substituted with the text matched by the
11780 groupings 1 through 9.
11782 @findex nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent
11783 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} is a function which allows you to
11784 split followups into the same groups their parents are in. Sometimes
11785 you can't make splitting rules for all your mail. For example, your
11786 boss might send you personal mail regarding different projects you are
11787 working on, and as you can't tell your boss to put a distinguishing
11788 string into the subject line, you have to resort to manually moving the
11789 messages into the right group. With this function, you only have to do
11790 it once per thread.
11792 To use this feature, you have to set @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to a
11793 non-nil value. And then you can include
11794 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} using the colon feature, like so:
11796 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
11797 '(| (: nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent)
11798 ;; other splits go here
11802 This feature works as follows: when @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} is
11803 non-nil, Gnus records the message id of every message it sees in the
11804 file specified by the variable @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file},
11805 together with the group it is in (the group is omitted for non-mail
11806 messages). When mail splitting is invoked, the function
11807 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} then looks at the References (and
11808 In-Reply-To) header of each message to split and searches the file
11809 specified by @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file} for the message ids.
11810 When it has found a parent, it returns the corresponding group name. It
11811 is recommended that you set @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length} to a
11812 somewhat higher number than the default so that the message ids are
11813 still in the cache. (A value of 5000 appears to create a file some
11814 300 kBytes in size.)
11817 @node Group Mail Splitting
11818 @subsection Group Mail Splitting
11819 @cindex mail splitting
11820 @cindex group mail splitting
11822 @findex gnus-group-split
11823 If you subscribe to dozens of mailing lists but you don't want to
11824 maintain mail splitting rules manually, group mail splitting is for you.
11825 You just have to set @var{to-list} and/or @var{to-address} in group
11826 parameters or group customization and set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to
11827 @code{gnus-group-split}. This splitting function will scan all groups
11828 for those parameters and split mail accordingly, i.e., messages posted
11829 from or to the addresses specified in the parameters @var{to-list} or
11830 @var{to-address} of a mail group will be stored in that group.
11832 Sometimes, mailing lists have multiple addresses, and you may want mail
11833 splitting to recognize them all: just set the @var{extra-aliases} group
11834 parameter to the list of additional addresses and it's done. If you'd
11835 rather use a regular expression, set @var{split-regexp}.
11837 All these parameters in a group will be used to create an
11838 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split, in which the @var{field} is @samp{any},
11839 the @var{value} is a single regular expression that matches
11840 @var{to-list}, @var{to-address}, all of @var{extra-aliases} and all
11841 matches of @var{split-regexp}, and the @var{split} is the name of the
11842 group. @var{restrict}s are also supported: just set the
11843 @var{split-exclude} parameter to a list of regular expressions.
11845 If you can't get the right split to be generated using all these
11846 parameters, or you just need something fancier, you can set the
11847 parameter @var{split-spec} to an @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split. In
11848 this case, all other aforementioned parameters will be ignored by
11849 @code{gnus-group-split}. In particular, @var{split-spec} may be set to
11850 @code{nil}, in which case the group will be ignored by
11851 @code{gnus-group-split}.
11853 @vindex gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group
11854 @code{gnus-group-split} will do cross-posting on all groups that match,
11855 by defining a single @code{&} fancy split containing one split for each
11856 group. If a message doesn't match any split, it will be stored in the
11857 group named in @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}, unless
11858 some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all}, in which case
11859 that group is used as the catch-all group. Note that, in this case,
11860 there's no cross-posting, as a @code{|} fancy split encloses the
11861 @code{&} split and the catch-all group.
11863 It's time for an example. Assume the following group parameters have
11868 ((to-address . "bar@@femail.com")
11869 (split-regexp . ".*@@femail\\.com"))
11871 ((to-list . "foo@@nowhere.gov")
11872 (extra-aliases "foo@@localhost" "foo-redist@@home")
11873 (split-exclude "bugs-foo" "rambling-foo")
11874 (admin-address . "foo-request@@nowhere.gov"))
11876 ((split-spec . catch-all))
11879 Setting @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{gnus-group-split} will
11880 behave as if @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been selected and variable
11881 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been set as follows:
11884 (| (& (any "\\(bar@@femail\\.com\\|.*@@femail\\.com\\)" "mail.bar")
11885 (any "\\(foo@@nowhere\\.gov\\|foo@@localhost\\|foo-redist@@home\\)"
11886 - "bugs-foo" - "rambling-foo" "mail.foo"))
11890 @findex gnus-group-split-fancy
11891 If you'd rather not use group splitting for all your mail groups, you
11892 may use it for only some of them, by using @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
11896 (: gnus-mlsplt-fancy GROUPS NO-CROSSPOST CATCH-ALL)
11899 @var{groups} may be a regular expression or a list of group names whose
11900 parameters will be scanned to generate the output split.
11901 @var{no-crosspost} can be used to disable cross-posting; in this case, a
11902 single @code{|} split will be output. @var{catch-all} may be the name
11903 of a group to be used as the default catch-all group. If
11904 @var{catch-all} is @code{nil}, or if @var{split-regexp} matches the
11905 empty string in any selected group, no catch-all split will be issued.
11906 Otherwise, if some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all},
11907 this group will override the value of the @var{catch-all} argument.
11909 @findex gnus-group-split-setup
11910 Unfortunately, scanning all groups and their parameters can be quite
11911 slow, especially considering that it has to be done for every message.
11912 But don't despair! The function @code{gnus-group-split-setup} can be
11913 used to select @code{gnus-group-split} in a much more efficient way. It
11914 sets @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy} and sets
11915 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} to the split produced by
11916 @code{gnus-group-split-fancy}. Thus, the group parameters are only
11917 scanned once, no matter how many messages are split.
11919 @findex gnus-group-split-update
11920 However, if you change group parameters, you have to update
11921 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} manually. You can do it by running
11922 @code{gnus-group-split-update}. If you'd rather have it updated
11923 automatically, just tell @code{gnus-group-split-setup} to do it for
11924 you. For example, add to your @file{.gnus}:
11927 (gnus-group-split-setup AUTO-UPDATE CATCH-ALL)
11930 If @var{auto-update} is non-@code{nil}, @code{gnus-group-split-update}
11931 will be added to @code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook}, so you won't ever
11932 have to worry about updating @code{nnmail-split-fancy} again. If you
11933 don't omit @var{catch-all} (it's optional),
11934 @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group} will be set to its
11937 @vindex gnus-group-split-updated-hook
11938 Because you may want to change @code{nnmail-split-fancy} after it is set
11939 by @code{gnus-group-split-update}, this function will run
11940 @code{gnus-group-split-updated-hook} just before finishing.
11942 @node Incorporating Old Mail
11943 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
11945 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
11946 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
11947 backends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
11950 Doing so can be quite easy.
11952 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
11953 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
11954 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
11955 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
11956 your @code{nnml} groups.
11962 Go to the group buffer.
11965 Type `G f' and give the path to the mbox file when prompted to create an
11966 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
11969 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
11972 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
11973 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
11976 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
11977 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
11980 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
11981 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
11982 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
11983 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
11984 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
11986 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
11987 backend to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
11988 using the new mail backend.
11991 @node Expiring Mail
11992 @subsection Expiring Mail
11993 @cindex article expiry
11995 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
11996 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
11997 different approach to mail reading.
11999 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
12000 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
12001 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
12002 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
12003 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
12004 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
12007 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
12008 articles as @dfn{expirable}. This does not mean that the articles will
12009 disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
12010 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
12011 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
12012 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
12013 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
12014 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
12016 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
12017 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Groups that
12018 match the regular expression @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will
12019 have all articles that you read marked as expirable automatically. All
12020 articles marked as expirable have an @samp{E} in the first
12021 column in the summary buffer.
12023 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
12024 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
12025 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
12026 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
12029 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
12031 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
12032 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
12033 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
12036 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
12037 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
12038 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
12039 groups expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
12040 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
12042 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
12043 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
12046 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
12047 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
12050 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
12051 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
12053 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
12054 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
12055 don't really mix very well.
12057 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
12058 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
12059 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
12060 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
12063 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
12064 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
12065 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
12066 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
12069 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
12071 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
12073 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
12075 ((string= group "mail.junk")
12077 ((string= group "important")
12083 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
12084 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
12086 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
12087 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
12088 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
12091 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
12092 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
12094 @vindex nnmail-expiry-target
12095 The normal action taken when expiring articles is to delete them.
12096 However, in some circumstances it might make more sense to move them to
12097 other groups instead of deleting them. The variable @code{nnmail-expiry-target}
12098 (and the @code{expiry-target} group parameter) controls this. The
12099 variable supplies a default value for all groups, which can be
12100 overridden for specific groups by the group parameter.
12101 default value is @code{delete}, but this can also be a string (which
12102 should be the name of the group the message should be moved to), or a
12103 function (which will be called in a buffer narrowed to the message in
12104 question, and with the name of the group being moved from as its
12105 parameter) which should return a target -- either a group name or
12108 Here's an example for specifying a group name:
12110 (setq nnmail-expiry-target "nnml:expired")
12114 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
12115 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
12116 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
12117 easier for procmail users.
12119 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
12120 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
12121 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
12122 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
12123 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
12124 caution. Even more dangerous is the
12125 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
12126 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
12127 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
12128 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
12129 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
12130 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
12131 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
12134 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
12136 @vindex gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire
12137 If @code{gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire} is non-@code{nil}, user marking
12138 commands will not mark an article as expirable, even if the group has
12139 auto-expire turned on.
12143 @subsection Washing Mail
12144 @cindex mail washing
12145 @cindex list server brain damage
12146 @cindex incoming mail treatment
12148 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
12149 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC 822 doesn't explicitly
12150 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
12151 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
12152 Yes, but RFC 822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
12153 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
12155 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
12156 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
12157 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
12160 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
12161 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
12162 storing the mail to disc. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
12163 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
12166 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
12167 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
12168 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
12169 grand, sweeping gestures. It is called in a buffer that contains all
12170 the new, incoming mail. Functions to be used include:
12173 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
12174 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
12175 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
12176 Emacs running on MS machines.
12180 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
12181 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
12182 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
12183 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
12186 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
12187 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
12188 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
12189 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
12191 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
12192 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
12193 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
12194 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
12195 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
12196 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
12197 also be a list of regexp. @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} may not contain
12200 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
12201 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
12204 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
12205 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
12208 This can also be done non-destructively with
12209 @code{gnus-list-identifiers}, @xref{Article Hiding}.
12211 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
12212 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
12213 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
12215 @item nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
12216 @findex nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
12218 Eudora produces broken @code{References} headers, but OK
12219 @code{In-Reply-To} headers. This function will get rid of the
12220 @code{References} headers.
12224 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
12225 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
12226 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
12230 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
12231 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
12232 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
12239 @subsection Duplicates
12241 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
12242 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
12243 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
12244 @cindex duplicate mails
12245 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
12246 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
12247 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
12248 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
12249 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
12250 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
12251 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
12252 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
12253 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
12254 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
12255 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
12256 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
12257 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
12259 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
12260 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
12261 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
12262 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
12264 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
12267 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
12268 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
12272 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
12273 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
12274 ("gnus-warning" "duplication of message" "duplicate")
12275 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
12276 (any mail "mail.misc")
12283 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12284 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:")
12289 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
12290 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
12291 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
12292 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
12293 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
12296 @node Not Reading Mail
12297 @subsection Not Reading Mail
12299 If you start using any of the mail backends, they have the annoying
12300 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
12301 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
12303 If you set @code{mail-sources} and @code{nnmail-spool-file} to
12304 @code{nil}, none of the backends will ever attempt to read incoming
12305 mail, which should help.
12307 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
12308 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
12309 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
12310 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
12311 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
12312 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
12313 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
12314 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All backends have
12315 variables called backend-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
12316 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
12317 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
12319 All the mail backends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
12320 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
12324 @node Choosing a Mail Backend
12325 @subsection Choosing a Mail Backend
12327 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
12328 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
12329 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
12331 There are five different mail backends in the standard Gnus, and more
12332 backends are available separately. The mail backend most people use
12333 (because it is the fastest and most flexible) is @code{nnml}
12334 (@pxref{Mail Spool}).
12337 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
12338 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
12339 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
12340 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
12341 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
12342 * Comparing Mail Backends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
12346 @node Unix Mail Box
12347 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
12349 @cindex unix mail box
12351 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
12352 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
12353 The @dfn{nnmbox} backend will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
12354 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
12355 which group it belongs in.
12357 Virtual server settings:
12360 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
12361 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
12362 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory.
12364 @item nnmbox-active-file
12365 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
12366 The name of the active file for the mail box.
12368 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
12369 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
12370 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
12376 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
12380 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
12381 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
12382 The @dfn{nnbabyl} backend will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
12383 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each
12384 mail article to say which group it belongs in.
12386 Virtual server settings:
12389 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
12390 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
12391 The name of the rmail mbox file.
12393 @item nnbabyl-active-file
12394 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
12395 The name of the active file for the rmail box.
12397 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
12398 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
12399 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail.
12404 @subsubsection Mail Spool
12406 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
12408 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
12409 format. It should be used with some caution.
12411 @vindex nnml-directory
12412 If you use this backend, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
12413 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
12414 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
12415 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
12417 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
12420 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
12421 in your account, you should not use this backend. As each mail gets its
12422 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
12423 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
12424 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
12425 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
12426 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
12427 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
12429 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest backend when it comes to article
12430 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
12431 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it the fastest
12432 backend when it comes to reading mail.
12434 Virtual server settings:
12437 @item nnml-directory
12438 @vindex nnml-directory
12439 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
12441 @item nnml-active-file
12442 @vindex nnml-active-file
12443 The active file for the @code{nnml} server.
12445 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
12446 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
12447 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
12450 @item nnml-get-new-mail
12451 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
12452 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail.
12454 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
12455 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
12456 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{nov} files.
12458 @item nnml-nov-file-name
12459 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
12460 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
12462 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
12463 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
12464 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
12468 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
12469 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
12470 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
12471 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
12472 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
12473 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
12474 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
12479 @subsubsection MH Spool
12481 @cindex mh-e mail spool
12483 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
12484 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file. This makes
12485 @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower backend than @code{nnml}, but it also
12486 makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
12488 Virtual server settings:
12491 @item nnmh-directory
12492 @vindex nnmh-directory
12493 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory.
12495 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
12496 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
12497 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail.
12500 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
12501 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
12502 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
12503 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
12504 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
12505 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
12506 to set this variable to @code{t}.
12511 @subsubsection Mail Folders
12513 @cindex mbox folders
12514 @cindex mail folders
12516 @code{nnfolder} is a backend for storing each mail group in a separate
12517 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
12518 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
12521 Virtual server settings:
12524 @item nnfolder-directory
12525 @vindex nnfolder-directory
12526 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
12528 @item nnfolder-active-file
12529 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
12530 The name of the active file.
12532 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
12533 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
12534 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File Format}.
12536 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
12537 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
12538 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail.
12540 @item nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
12541 @vindex nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
12542 @cindex backup files
12543 Hook run before saving the folders. Note that Emacs does the normal
12544 backup renaming of files even with the @code{nnfolder} buffers. If you
12545 wish to switch this off, you could say something like the following in
12546 your @file{.emacs} file:
12549 (defun turn-off-backup ()
12550 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
12552 (add-hook 'nnfolder-save-buffer-hook 'turn-off-backup)
12555 @item nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
12556 @vindex nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
12557 Hook run in a buffer narrowed to the message that is to be deleted.
12558 This function can be used to copy the message to somewhere else, or to
12559 extract some information from it before removing it.
12564 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
12565 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
12566 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
12567 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
12568 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
12569 @code{nnfolder-directory}. This only works if you use long file names,
12572 @node Comparing Mail Backends
12573 @subsubsection Comparing Mail Backends
12575 First, just for terminology, the @dfn{backend} is the common word for a
12576 low-level access method---a transport, if you will, by which something
12577 is acquired. The sense is that one's mail has to come from somewhere,
12578 and so selection of a suitable backend is required in order to get that
12579 mail within spitting distance of Gnus.
12581 The same concept exists for Usenet itself: Though access to articles is
12582 typically done by @sc{nntp} these days, once upon a midnight dreary, everyone
12583 in the world got at Usenet by running a reader on the machine where the
12584 articles lay (the machine which today we call an @sc{nntp} server), and
12585 access was by the reader stepping into the articles' directory spool
12586 area directly. One can still select between either the @code{nntp} or
12587 @code{nnspool} backends, to select between these methods, if one happens
12588 actually to live on the server (or can see its spool directly, anyway,
12591 The goal in selecting a mail backend is to pick one which
12592 simultaneously represents a suitable way of dealing with the original
12593 format plus leaving mail in a form that is convenient to use in the
12594 future. Here are some high and low points on each:
12599 UNIX systems have historically had a single, very common, and well-
12600 defined format. All messages arrive in a single @dfn{spool file}, and
12601 they are delineated by a line whose regular expression matches
12602 @samp{^From_}. (My notational use of @samp{_} is to indicate a space,
12603 to make it clear in this instance that this is not the RFC-specified
12604 @samp{From:} header.) Because Emacs and therefore Gnus emanate
12605 historically from the Unix environment, it is simplest if one does not
12606 mess a great deal with the original mailbox format, so if one chooses
12607 this backend, Gnus' primary activity in getting mail from the real spool
12608 area to Gnus' preferred directory is simply to copy it, with no
12609 (appreciable) format change in the process. It is the ``dumbest'' way
12610 to move mail into availability in the Gnus environment. This makes it
12611 fast to move into place, but slow to parse, when Gnus has to look at
12616 Once upon a time, there was the DEC-10 and DEC-20, running operating
12617 systems called TOPS and related things, and the usual (only?) mail
12618 reading environment was a thing called Babyl. I don't know what format
12619 was used for mail landing on the system, but Babyl had its own internal
12620 format to which mail was converted, primarily involving creating a
12621 spool-file-like entity with a scheme for inserting Babyl-specific
12622 headers and status bits above the top of each message in the file.
12623 RMAIL was Emacs' first mail reader, it was written by Richard Stallman,
12624 and Stallman came out of that TOPS/Babyl environment, so he wrote RMAIL
12625 to understand the mail files folks already had in existence. Gnus (and
12626 VM, for that matter) continue to support this format because it's
12627 perceived as having some good qualities in those mailer-specific
12628 headers/status bits stuff. RMAIL itself still exists as well, of
12629 course, and is still maintained by Stallman.
12631 Both of the above forms leave your mail in a single file on your
12632 filesystem, and they must parse that entire file each time you take a
12637 @code{nnml} is the backend which smells the most as though you were
12638 actually operating with an @code{nnspool}-accessed Usenet system. (In
12639 fact, I believe @code{nnml} actually derived from @code{nnspool} code,
12640 lo these years ago.) One's mail is taken from the original spool file,
12641 and is then cut up into individual message files, 1:1. It maintains a
12642 Usenet-style active file (analogous to what one finds in an INN- or
12643 CNews-based news system in (for instance) @file{/var/lib/news/active},
12644 or what is returned via the @samp{NNTP LIST} verb) and also creates
12645 @dfn{overview} files for efficient group entry, as has been defined for
12646 @sc{nntp} servers for some years now. It is slower in mail-splitting,
12647 due to the creation of lots of files, updates to the @code{nnml} active
12648 file, and additions to overview files on a per-message basis, but it is
12649 extremely fast on access because of what amounts to the indexing support
12650 provided by the active file and overviews.
12652 @code{nnml} costs @dfn{inodes} in a big way; that is, it soaks up the
12653 resource which defines available places in the filesystem to put new
12654 files. Sysadmins take a dim view of heavy inode occupation within
12655 tight, shared filesystems. But if you live on a personal machine where
12656 the filesystem is your own and space is not at a premium, @code{nnml}
12659 It is also problematic using this backend if you are living in a
12660 FAT16-based Windows world, since much space will be wasted on all these
12665 The Rand MH mail-reading system has been around UNIX systems for a very
12666 long time; it operates by splitting one's spool file of messages into
12667 individual files, but with little or no indexing support -- @code{nnmh}
12668 is considered to be semantically equivalent to ``@code{nnml} without
12669 active file or overviews''. This is arguably the worst choice, because
12670 one gets the slowness of individual file creation married to the
12671 slowness of access parsing when learning what's new in one's groups.
12675 Basically the effect of @code{nnfolder} is @code{nnmbox} (the first
12676 method described above) on a per-group basis. That is, @code{nnmbox}
12677 itself puts *all* one's mail in one file; @code{nnfolder} provides a
12678 little bit of optimization to this so that each of one's mail groups has
12679 a Unix mail box file. It's faster than @code{nnmbox} because each group
12680 can be parsed separately, and still provides the simple Unix mail box
12681 format requiring minimal effort in moving the mail around. In addition,
12682 it maintains an ``active'' file making it much faster for Gnus to figure
12683 out how many messages there are in each separate group.
12685 If you have groups that are expected to have a massive amount of
12686 messages, @code{nnfolder} is not the best choice, but if you receive
12687 only a moderate amount of mail, @code{nnfolder} is probably the most
12688 friendly mail backend all over.
12693 @node Browsing the Web
12694 @section Browsing the Web
12696 @cindex browsing the web
12700 Web-based discussion forums are getting more and more popular. On many
12701 subjects, the web-based forums have become the most important forums,
12702 eclipsing the importance of mailing lists and news groups. The reason
12703 is easy to understand---they are friendly to new users; you just point
12704 and click, and there's the discussion. With mailing lists, you have to
12705 go through a cumbersome subscription procedure, and most people don't
12706 even know what a news group is.
12708 The problem with this scenario is that web browsers are not very good at
12709 being newsreaders. They do not keep track of what articles you've read;
12710 they do not allow you to score on subjects you're interested in; they do
12711 not allow off-line browsing; they require you to click around and drive
12712 you mad in the end.
12714 So---if web browsers suck at reading discussion forums, why not use Gnus
12717 Gnus has been getting a bit of a collection of backends for providing
12718 interfaces to these sources.
12721 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
12722 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
12723 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
12724 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
12725 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
12728 All the web sources require Emacs/w3 and the url library to work.
12730 The main caveat with all these web sources is that they probably won't
12731 work for a very long time. Gleaning information from the @sc{html} data
12732 is guesswork at best, and when the layout is altered, the Gnus backend
12733 will fail. If you have reasonably new versions of these backends,
12734 though, you should be ok.
12736 One thing all these Web methods have in common is that the Web sources
12737 are often down, unavailable or just plain too slow to be fun. In those
12738 cases, it makes a lot of sense to let the Gnus Agent (@pxref{Gnus
12739 Unplugged}) handle downloading articles, and then you can read them at
12740 leisure from your local disk. No more World Wide Wait for you.
12744 @subsection Web Searches
12748 @cindex InReference
12749 @cindex Usenet searches
12750 @cindex searching the Usenet
12752 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
12753 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
12754 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
12755 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
12756 searches without having to use a browser.
12758 The @code{nnweb} backend allows an easy interface to the mighty search
12759 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
12760 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
12761 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
12762 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
12764 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
12765 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
12766 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
12767 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
12768 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
12769 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
12770 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
12771 engines (DejaNews, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
12772 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
12773 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
12776 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
12777 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
12778 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
12779 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
12780 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
12781 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
12783 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
12784 to use @code{nnweb}.
12786 Virtual server variables:
12791 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
12792 are @code{dejanews}, @code{dejanewsold}, @code{altavista} and
12796 @vindex nnweb-search
12797 The search string to feed to the search engine.
12799 @item nnweb-max-hits
12800 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
12801 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
12804 @item nnweb-type-definition
12805 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
12806 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
12807 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
12812 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
12816 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
12819 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
12822 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
12826 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
12833 @subsection Slashdot
12837 Slashdot (@file{http://slashdot.org/}) is a popular news site, with
12838 lively discussion following the news articles. @code{nnslashdot} will
12839 let you read this forum in a convenient manner.
12841 The easiest way to read this source is to put something like the
12842 following in your @file{.gnus.el} file:
12845 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
12846 '((nnslashdot "")))
12849 This will make Gnus query the @code{nnslashdot} backend for new comments
12850 and groups. The @kbd{F} command will subscribe each new news article as
12851 a new Gnus group, and you can read the comments by entering these
12852 groups. (Note that the default subscription method is to subscribe new
12853 groups as zombies. Other methods are available (@pxref{Subscription
12856 If you want to remove an old @code{nnslashdot} group, the @kbd{G DEL}
12857 command is the most handy tool (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
12859 When following up to @code{nnslashdot} comments (or posting new
12860 comments), some light @sc{html}izations will be performed. In
12861 particular, text quoted with @samp{> } will be quoted with
12862 @code{blockquote} instead, and signatures will have @code{br} added to
12863 the end of each line. Other than that, you can just write @sc{html}
12864 directly into the message buffer. Note that Slashdot filters out some
12867 The following variables can be altered to change its behavior:
12870 @item nnslashdot-threaded
12871 Whether @code{nnslashdot} should display threaded groups or not. The
12872 default is @code{t}. To be able to display threads, @code{nnslashdot}
12873 has to retrieve absolutely all comments in a group upon entry. If a
12874 threaded display is not required, @code{nnslashdot} will only retrieve
12875 the comments that are actually wanted by the user. Threading is nicer,
12876 but much, much slower than untreaded.
12878 @item nnslashdot-login-name
12879 @vindex nnslashdot-login-name
12880 The login name to use when posting.
12882 @item nnslashdot-password
12883 @vindex nnslashdot-password
12884 The password to use when posting.
12886 @item nnslashdot-directory
12887 @vindex nnslashdot-directory
12888 Where @code{nnslashdot} will store its files. The default value is
12889 @samp{~/News/slashdot/}.
12891 @item nnslashdot-active-url
12892 @vindex nnslashdot-active-url
12893 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the information on
12894 news articles and comments. The default is
12895 @samp{http://slashdot.org/search.pl?section=&min=%d}.
12897 @item nnslashdot-comments-url
12898 @vindex nnslashdot-comments-url
12899 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch comments. The
12901 @samp{http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=%s&threshold=%d&commentsort=%d&mode=flat&startat=%d}.
12903 @item nnslashdot-article-url
12904 @vindex nnslashdot-article-url
12905 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the news article. The
12907 @samp{http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=%s&mode=nocomment}.
12909 @item nnslashdot-threshold
12910 @vindex nnslashdot-threshold
12911 The score threshold. The default is -1.
12913 @item nnslashdot-group-number
12914 @vindex nnslashdot-group-number
12915 The number of old groups, in addition to the ten latest, to keep
12916 updated. The default is 0.
12923 @subsection Ultimate
12925 @cindex Ultimate Bulletin Board
12927 The Ultimate Bulletin Board (@file{http://www.ultimatebb.com/}) is
12928 probably the most popular Web bulletin board system used. It has a
12929 quite regular and nice interface, and it's possible to get the
12930 information Gnus needs to keep groups updated.
12932 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnultimate} is to say
12933 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnultimate RET
12934 http://www.tcj.com/messboard/ubbcgi/ RET}. (Substitute the @sc{url}
12935 (not including @samp{Ultimate.cgi} or the like at the end) for a forum
12936 you're interested in; there's quite a list of them on the Ultimate web
12937 site.) Then subscribe to the groups you're interested in from the
12938 server buffer, and read them from the group buffer.
12940 The following @code{nnultimate} variables can be altered:
12943 @item nnultimate-directory
12944 @vindex nnultimate-directory
12945 The directory where @code{nnultimate} stores its files. The default is
12946 @samp{~/News/ultimate/}.
12951 @subsection Web Archive
12953 @cindex Web Archive
12955 Some mailing lists only have archives on Web servers, such as
12956 @file{http://www.egroups.com/} and
12957 @file{http://www.mail-archive.com/}. It has a quite regular and nice
12958 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
12961 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnwarchive} is to say
12962 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{M-x
12963 gnus-group-make-warchive-group RET an_egroup RET egroups RET
12964 www.egroups.com RET your@@email.address RET}. (Substitute the
12965 @sc{an_egroup} with the mailing list you subscribed, the
12966 @sc{your@@email.address} with your email address.), or to browse the
12967 backend by @kbd{B nnwarchive RET mail-archive RET}.
12969 The following @code{nnwarchive} variables can be altered:
12972 @item nnwarchive-directory
12973 @vindex nnwarchive-directory
12974 The directory where @code{nnwarchive} stores its files. The default is
12975 @samp{~/News/warchive/}.
12977 @item nnwarchive-login
12978 @vindex nnwarchive-login
12979 The account name on the web server.
12981 @item nnwarchive-passwd
12982 @vindex nnwarchive-passwd
12983 The password for your account on the web server.
12987 @node Customizing w3
12988 @subsection Customizing w3
12994 Gnus uses the url library to fetch web pages and Emacs/w3 to display web
12995 pages. Emacs/w3 is documented in its own manual, but there are some
12996 things that may be more relevant for Gnus users.
12998 For instance, a common question is how to make Emacs/w3 follow links
12999 using the @code{browse-url} functions (which will call some external web
13000 browser like Netscape). Here's one way:
13003 (eval-after-load "w3"
13005 (fset 'w3-fetch-orig (symbol-function 'w3-fetch))
13006 (defun w3-fetch (&optional url target)
13007 (interactive (list (w3-read-url-with-default)))
13008 (if (eq major-mode 'gnus-article-mode)
13010 (w3-fetch-orig url target)))))
13013 Put that in your @file{.emacs} file, and hitting links in w3-rendered
13014 @sc{html} in the Gnus article buffers will use @code{browse-url} to
13018 @node Other Sources
13019 @section Other Sources
13021 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
13022 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
13026 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
13027 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
13028 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
13029 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
13030 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
13031 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
13035 @node Directory Groups
13036 @subsection Directory Groups
13038 @cindex directory groups
13040 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
13041 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
13044 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
13045 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
13046 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
13047 backend to read directories. Big deal.
13049 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
13050 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
13051 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
13052 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
13053 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
13055 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
13057 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' backend---you can't delete or expire
13058 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
13059 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
13060 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
13063 @node Anything Groups
13064 @subsection Anything Groups
13067 From the @code{nndir} backend (which reads a single spool-like
13068 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
13069 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
13072 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
13073 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
13074 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
13075 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're forgetting.
13076 @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it snoops each
13077 file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e., the first
13078 few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head. If this is
13079 just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source file),
13080 @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It will use
13081 file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
13084 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
13085 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
13086 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
13087 in the article buffer, just as usual.
13089 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
13090 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
13091 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
13092 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
13094 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
13095 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
13096 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
13097 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
13098 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
13099 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
13100 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
13101 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
13106 @item nneething-map-file-directory
13107 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
13108 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
13109 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
13111 @item nneething-exclude-files
13112 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
13113 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
13114 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
13116 @item nneething-include-files
13117 @vindex nneething-include-files
13118 Regexp saying what files to include in the group. If this variable is
13119 non-@code{nil}, only files matching this regexp will be included.
13121 @item nneething-map-file
13122 @vindex nneething-map-file
13123 Name of the map files.
13127 @node Document Groups
13128 @subsection Document Groups
13130 @cindex documentation group
13133 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
13134 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
13141 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
13146 The standard Unix mbox file.
13148 @cindex MMDF mail box
13150 The MMDF mail box format.
13153 Several news articles appended into a file.
13156 @cindex rnews batch files
13157 The rnews batch transport format.
13158 @cindex forwarded messages
13161 Forwarded articles.
13164 Netscape mail boxes.
13167 MIME multipart messages.
13169 @item standard-digest
13170 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
13173 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
13176 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
13177 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
13178 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
13181 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
13182 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
13183 group. And that's it.
13185 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
13186 new & spiffy Gnus mail backend, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
13187 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
13188 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
13189 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
13190 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
13191 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
13192 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
13193 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
13194 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
13196 Virtual server variables:
13199 @item nndoc-article-type
13200 @vindex nndoc-article-type
13201 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
13202 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
13203 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts}, @code{standard-digest},
13204 @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs}, @code{nsmail} or @code{guess}.
13206 @item nndoc-post-type
13207 @vindex nndoc-post-type
13208 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
13209 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
13214 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
13218 @node Document Server Internals
13219 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
13221 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
13222 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
13223 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
13224 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
13226 First, here's an example document type definition:
13230 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
13231 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
13234 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
13235 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
13236 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
13237 types can be defined with very few settings:
13240 @item first-article
13241 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
13242 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
13245 @item article-begin
13246 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
13247 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
13249 @item head-begin-function
13250 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
13253 @item nndoc-head-begin
13254 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
13257 @item nndoc-head-end
13258 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
13259 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
13261 @item body-begin-function
13262 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
13266 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
13269 @item body-end-function
13270 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
13274 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
13277 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
13278 regexp will be totally ignored.
13282 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
13283 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
13284 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
13285 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
13286 something that's palatable for Gnus:
13289 @item prepare-body-function
13290 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
13291 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
13292 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
13294 @item article-transform-function
13295 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
13296 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
13297 body of the article.
13299 @item generate-head-function
13300 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
13301 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
13302 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
13303 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
13307 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
13312 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
13313 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
13314 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
13315 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
13316 (head-end . "^ ?$")
13317 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
13318 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
13319 (subtype digest guess))
13322 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
13323 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
13324 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
13325 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
13326 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
13328 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
13329 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
13330 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
13331 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
13332 traversed sequentially, and @code{nndoc-TYPE-type-p} is called for a given type @code{TYPE}. So @code{nndoc-mmdf-type-p} is called to see whether a document
13333 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
13334 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
13335 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
13336 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
13337 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
13345 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
13346 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
13347 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
13349 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
13350 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
13351 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
13354 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something that's a bit
13355 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
13356 that interested in doing things properly.
13358 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
13359 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
13362 First some terminology:
13367 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
13368 get news and/or mail from.
13371 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
13372 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
13375 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
13379 @item message packets
13380 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
13381 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
13382 default, where @var{x} is a number.
13384 @item response packets
13385 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
13386 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
13387 default, where @var{x} is a number.
13397 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
13398 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
13399 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
13400 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
13403 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
13406 You put the packet in your home directory.
13409 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} backend as
13410 the native or secondary server.
13413 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
13414 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
13417 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
13421 You transfer this packet to the server.
13424 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
13427 You then repeat until you die.
13431 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
13432 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
13435 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
13436 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
13437 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
13441 @node SOUP Commands
13442 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
13444 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
13448 @kindex G s b (Group)
13449 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
13450 Pack all unread articles in the current group
13451 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
13452 process/prefix convention.
13455 @kindex G s w (Group)
13456 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
13457 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
13460 @kindex G s s (Group)
13461 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
13462 Send all replies from the replies packet
13463 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
13466 @kindex G s p (Group)
13467 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
13468 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
13471 @kindex G s r (Group)
13472 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
13473 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
13476 @kindex O s (Summary)
13477 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
13478 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
13479 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
13480 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
13485 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
13490 @item gnus-soup-directory
13491 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
13492 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
13493 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
13495 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
13496 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
13497 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
13498 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
13500 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
13501 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
13502 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
13503 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
13505 @item gnus-soup-packer
13506 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
13507 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
13508 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
13510 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
13511 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
13512 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
13513 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
13515 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
13516 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
13517 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
13519 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
13520 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
13521 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
13522 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
13528 @subsubsection @sc{soup} Groups
13531 @code{nnsoup} is the backend for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
13532 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
13533 you can read them at leisure.
13535 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
13539 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
13540 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
13541 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
13542 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
13544 @item nnsoup-directory
13545 @vindex nnsoup-directory
13546 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
13547 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
13549 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
13550 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
13551 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
13552 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
13554 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
13555 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
13556 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
13557 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
13558 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
13560 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
13561 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
13562 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
13563 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
13565 @item nnsoup-active-file
13566 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
13567 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
13568 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
13569 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
13570 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
13572 @item nnsoup-packer
13573 @vindex nnsoup-packer
13574 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
13575 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
13577 @item nnsoup-unpacker
13578 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
13579 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
13580 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
13582 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
13583 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
13584 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
13587 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
13588 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
13589 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
13592 @item nnsoup-always-save
13593 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
13594 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
13600 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
13602 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
13603 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
13604 more for that to happen.
13606 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
13607 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
13608 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
13611 In specific, this is what it does:
13614 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
13615 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
13618 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
13619 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
13620 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
13623 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
13624 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
13625 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
13628 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
13629 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
13630 The @code{nngateway} backend provides the interface.
13632 Note that you can't read anything from this backend---it can only be
13638 @item nngateway-address
13639 @vindex nngateway-address
13640 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
13642 @item nngateway-header-transformation
13643 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
13644 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
13645 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
13646 transformation should be called, and defaults to
13647 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
13648 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
13651 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
13652 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
13653 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
13656 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
13659 will get this @code{From} header inserted:
13662 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
13665 The following pre-defined functions exist:
13667 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
13670 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
13671 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
13672 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
13674 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
13676 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
13677 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
13678 @code{nngateway-address}.
13683 (setq gnus-post-method
13684 '(nngateway "mail2news@@replay.com"
13685 (nngateway-header-transformation
13686 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
13694 So, to use this, simply say something like:
13697 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
13703 @subsection @sc{imap}
13707 @sc{imap} is a network protocol for reading mail (or news, or ...),
13708 think of it as a modernized @sc{nntp}. Connecting to a @sc{imap} server
13709 is much similar to connecting to a news server, you just specify the
13710 network address of the server.
13712 A server configuration in @code{~/.gnus} with a few @sc{imap} servers
13713 might look something like this:
13716 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
13717 '((nnimap "simpleserver") ; no special configuration
13718 ; perhaps a ssh port forwarded server:
13720 (nnimap-address "localhost")
13721 (nnimap-server-port 1430))
13722 ; a UW server running on localhost
13724 (nnimap-server-port 143)
13725 (nnimap-address "localhost")
13726 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "mail/*")))
13727 ; anonymous public cyrus server:
13728 (nnimap "cyrus.andrew.cmu.edu"
13729 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous)
13730 (nnimap-list-pattern "archive.*")
13731 (nnimap-stream network))
13732 ; a ssl server on a non-standard port:
13734 (nnimap-address "vic20.somewhere.com")
13735 (nnimap-server-port 9930)
13736 (nnimap-stream ssl))))
13739 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nnimap}
13744 @item nnimap-address
13745 @vindex nnimap-address
13747 The address of the remote @sc{imap} server. Defaults to the virtual
13748 server name if not specified.
13750 @item nnimap-server-port
13751 @vindex nnimap-server-port
13752 Port on server to contact. Defaults to port 143, or 993 for SSL.
13754 Note that this should be a integer, example server specification:
13757 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
13758 (nnimap-server-port 4711))
13761 @item nnimap-list-pattern
13762 @vindex nnimap-list-pattern
13763 String or list of strings of mailboxes to limit available groups to.
13764 This is used when the server has very many mailboxes and you're only
13765 interested in a few -- some servers export your home directory via
13766 @sc{imap}, you'll probably want to limit the mailboxes to those in
13767 @file{~/Mail/*} then.
13769 The string can also be a cons of REFERENCE and the string as above, what
13770 REFERENCE is used for is server specific, but on the University of
13771 Washington server it's a directory that will be concatenated with the
13774 Example server specification:
13777 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
13778 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "Mail/*" "alt.sex.*"
13779 ("~friend/Mail/" . "list/*"))))
13782 @item nnimap-stream
13783 @vindex nnimap-stream
13784 The type of stream used to connect to your server. By default, nnimap
13785 will detect and automatically use all of the below, with the exception
13786 of SSL. (SSL is being replaced by STARTTLS, which can be automatically
13787 detected, but it's not widely deployed yet).
13789 Example server specification:
13792 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
13793 (nnimap-stream ssl))
13796 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-stream} is a symbol!
13800 @dfn{gssapi:} Connect with GSSAPI (usually kerberos 5). Require the
13801 @samp{imtest} program.
13803 @dfn{kerberos4:} Connect with kerberos 4. Require the @samp{imtest} program.
13805 @dfn{starttls:} Connect via the STARTTLS extension (similar to
13806 SSL). Require the external library @samp{starttls.el} and program
13809 @dfn{ssl:} Connect through SSL. Require OpenSSL (the
13810 program @samp{openssl}) or SSLeay (@samp{s_client}).
13812 @dfn{shell:} Use a shell command to start IMAP connection.
13814 @dfn{network:} Plain, TCP/IP network connection.
13817 @vindex imap-kerberos4-program
13818 The @samp{imtest} program is shipped with Cyrus IMAPD, nnimap support
13819 both @samp{imtest} version 1.5.x and version 1.6.x. The variable
13820 @code{imap-kerberos4-program} contain parameters to pass to the imtest
13823 @vindex imap-ssl-program
13824 For SSL connections, the OpenSSL program is available from
13825 @file{http://www.openssl.org/}. OpenSSL was formerly known as SSLeay,
13826 and nnimap support it too - although the most recent versions of
13827 SSLeay, 0.9.x, are known to have serious bugs making it
13828 useless. Earlier versions, especially 0.8.x, of SSLeay are known to
13829 work. The variable @code{imap-ssl-program} contain parameters to pass
13832 @vindex imap-shell-program
13833 @vindex imap-shell-host
13834 For IMAP connections using the @code{shell} stream, the variable
13835 @code{imap-shell-program} specify what program to call.
13837 @item nnimap-authenticator
13838 @vindex nnimap-authenticator
13840 The authenticator used to connect to the server. By default, nnimap
13841 will use the most secure authenticator your server is capable of.
13843 Example server specification:
13846 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
13847 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous))
13850 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-authenticator} is a symbol!
13854 @dfn{gssapi:} GSSAPI (usually kerberos 5) authentication. Require
13855 external program @code{imtest}.
13857 @dfn{kerberos4:} Kerberos authentication. Require external program
13860 @dfn{digest-md5:} Encrypted username/password via DIGEST-MD5. Require
13861 external library @code{digest-md5.el}.
13863 @dfn{cram-md5:} Encrypted username/password via CRAM-MD5.
13865 @dfn{login:} Plain-text username/password via LOGIN.
13867 @dfn{anonymous:} Login as `anonymous', supplying your emailadress as password.
13870 @item nnimap-expunge-on-close
13872 @vindex nnimap-expunge-on-close
13873 Unlike Parmenides the @sc{imap} designers has decided that things that
13874 doesn't exist actually does exist. More specifically, @sc{imap} has
13875 this concept of marking articles @code{Deleted} which doesn't actually
13876 delete them, and this (marking them @code{Deleted}, that is) is what
13877 nnimap does when you delete a article in Gnus (with @kbd{G DEL} or
13880 Since the articles aren't really removed when we mark them with the
13881 @code{Deleted} flag we'll need a way to actually delete them. Feel like
13882 running in circles yet?
13884 Traditionally, nnimap has removed all articles marked as @code{Deleted}
13885 when closing a mailbox but this is now configurable by this server
13888 The possible options are:
13893 The default behaviour, delete all articles marked as "Deleted" when
13896 Never actually delete articles. Currently there is no way of showing
13897 the articles marked for deletion in nnimap, but other @sc{imap} clients
13898 may allow you to do this. If you ever want to run the EXPUNGE command
13899 manually, @xref{Expunging mailboxes}.
13901 When closing mailboxes, nnimap will ask if you wish to expunge deleted
13906 @item nnimap-authinfo-file
13907 @vindex nnimap-authinfo-file
13909 A file containing credentials used to log in on servers. The format
13910 is (almost) the same as the @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file. See
13911 `nntp-authinfo-file' for exact syntax.
13913 A file containing credentials used to log in on servers. The format is
13914 (almost) the same as the @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file. See the
13915 variable @code{nntp-authinfo-file} for exact syntax; also see
13921 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
13922 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
13923 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
13928 @node Splitting in IMAP
13929 @subsubsection Splitting in @sc{imap}
13930 @cindex splitting imap mail
13932 Splitting is something Gnus users has loved and used for years, and now
13933 the rest of the world is catching up. Yeah, dream on, not many
13934 @sc{imap} server has server side splitting and those that have splitting
13935 seem to use some non-standard protocol. This means that @sc{imap}
13936 support for Gnus has to do it's own splitting.
13940 Here are the variables of interest:
13944 @item nnimap-split-crosspost
13945 @cindex splitting, crosspost
13947 @vindex nnimap-split-crosspost
13949 If non-nil, do crossposting if several split methods match the mail. If
13950 nil, the first match in @code{nnimap-split-rule} found will be used.
13952 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-crosspost}.
13954 @item nnimap-split-inbox
13955 @cindex splitting, inbox
13957 @vindex nnimap-split-inbox
13959 A string or a list of strings that gives the name(s) of @sc{imap}
13960 mailboxes to split from. Defaults to nil, which means that splitting is
13964 (setq nnimap-split-inbox
13965 '("INBOX" ("~/friend/Mail" . "lists/*") "lists.imap"))
13968 No nnmail equivalent.
13970 @item nnimap-split-rule
13971 @cindex Splitting, rules
13972 @vindex nnimap-split-rule
13974 New mail found in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be split according to
13977 This variable contains a list of lists, where the first element in the
13978 sublist gives the name of the @sc{imap} mailbox to move articles
13979 matching the regexp in the second element in the sublist. Got that?
13980 Neither did I, we need examples.
13983 (setq nnimap-split-rule
13984 '(("INBOX.nnimap" "^Sender: owner-nnimap@@vic20.globalcom.se")
13985 ("INBOX.junk" "^Subject:.*MAKE MONEY")
13986 ("INBOX.private" "")))
13989 This will put all articles from the nnimap mailing list into mailbox
13990 INBOX.nnimap, all articles containing MAKE MONEY in the Subject: line
13991 into INBOX.spam and everything else in INBOX.private.
13993 The first string may contain `\\1' forms, like the ones used by
13994 replace-match to insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For
13998 ("INBOX.lists.\\1" "^Sender: owner-\\([a-z-]+\\)@@")
14001 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
14002 called with the first element of the rule as the argument, in a buffer
14003 containing the headers of the article. It should return a non-nil value
14004 if it thinks that the mail belongs in that group.
14006 Nnmail users might recollect that the last regexp had to be empty to
14007 match all articles (like in the example above). This is not required in
14008 nnimap. Articles not matching any of the regexps will not be moved out
14009 of your inbox. (This might might affect performance if you keep lots of
14010 unread articles in your inbox, since the splitting code would go over
14011 them every time you fetch new mail.)
14013 These rules are processed from the beginning of the alist toward the
14014 end. The first rule to make a match will "win", unless you have
14015 crossposting enabled. In that case, all matching rules will "win".
14017 This variable can also have a function as its value, the function will
14018 be called with the headers narrowed and should return a group where it
14019 thinks the article should be splitted to. See @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
14021 The splitting code tries to create mailboxes if it need too.
14023 To allow for different split rules on different virtual servers, and
14024 even different split rules in different inboxes on the same server,
14025 the syntax of this variable have been extended along the lines of:
14028 (setq nnimap-split-rule
14029 '(("my1server" (".*" (("ding" "ding@@gnus.org")
14030 ("junk" "From:.*Simon")))
14031 ("my2server" ("INBOX" nnimap-split-fancy))
14032 ("my[34]server" (".*" (("private" "To:.*Simon")
14033 ("junk" my-junk-func)))))
14036 The virtual server name is in fact a regexp, so that the same rules
14037 may apply to several servers. In the example, the servers
14038 @code{my3server} and @code{my4server} both use the same rules.
14039 Similarly, the inbox string is also a regexp. The actual splitting
14040 rules are as before, either a function, or a list with group/regexp or
14041 group/function elements.
14043 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
14045 @item nnimap-split-predicate
14047 @vindex nnimap-split-predicate
14049 Mail matching this predicate in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be
14050 splitted, it is a string and the default is @samp{UNSEEN UNDELETED}.
14052 This might be useful if you use another @sc{imap} client to read mail in
14053 your inbox but would like Gnus to split all articles in the inbox
14054 regardless of readedness. Then you might change this to
14057 @item nnimap-split-fancy
14058 @cindex splitting, fancy
14059 @findex nnimap-split-fancy
14060 @vindex nnimap-split-fancy
14062 It's possible to set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
14063 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} if you want to use fancy
14064 splitting. @xref{Fancy Mail Splitting}.
14066 However, to be able to have different fancy split rules for nnmail and
14067 nnimap backends you can set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
14068 @code{nnimap-split-fancy} and define the nnimap specific fancy split
14069 rule in @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
14074 (setq nnimap-split-rule 'nnimap-split-fancy
14075 nnimap-split-fancy ...)
14078 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-fancy}.
14082 @node Editing IMAP ACLs
14083 @subsubsection Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
14084 @cindex editing imap acls
14085 @cindex Access Control Lists
14086 @cindex Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
14088 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-edit-acl
14090 ACL stands for Access Control List. ACLs are used in @sc{imap} for
14091 limiting (or enabling) other users access to your mail boxes. Not all
14092 @sc{imap} servers support this, this function will give an error if it
14095 To edit a ACL for a mailbox, type @kbd{G l}
14096 (@code{gnus-group-edit-nnimap-acl}) and you'll be presented with a ACL
14097 editing window with detailed instructions.
14099 Some possible uses:
14103 Giving "anyone" the "lrs" rights (lookup, read, keep seen/unseen flags)
14104 on your mailing list mailboxes enables other users on the same server to
14105 follow the list without subscribing to it.
14107 At least with the Cyrus server, you are required to give the user
14108 "anyone" posting ("p") capabilities to have "plussing" work (that is,
14109 mail sent to user+mailbox@@domain ending up in the @sc{imap} mailbox
14113 @node Expunging mailboxes
14114 @subsubsection Expunging mailboxes
14118 @cindex Manual expunging
14120 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-expunge
14122 If you're using the @code{never} setting of @code{nnimap-expunge-close},
14123 you may want the option of expunging all deleted articles in a mailbox
14124 manually. This is exactly what @kbd{G x} does.
14126 Currently there is no way of showing deleted articles, you can just
14131 @node Combined Groups
14132 @section Combined Groups
14134 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
14138 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
14139 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
14143 @node Virtual Groups
14144 @subsection Virtual Groups
14146 @cindex virtual groups
14147 @cindex merging groups
14149 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
14152 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
14153 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
14154 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
14156 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
14157 regexp to match component groups.
14159 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
14160 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
14161 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it came.
14162 (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be shown in
14163 the virtual group.)
14165 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
14166 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
14169 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
14172 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
14173 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
14175 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
14176 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
14177 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
14178 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
14181 "^nntp\\+server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
14184 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
14185 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
14186 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
14188 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
14189 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
14190 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
14191 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
14192 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
14194 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
14195 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
14196 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
14198 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
14199 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
14200 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
14201 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
14202 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
14203 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
14204 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
14205 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
14206 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
14207 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
14208 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
14210 @code{nnvirtual} can have both mail and news groups as component groups.
14211 When responding to articles in @code{nnvirtual} groups, @code{nnvirtual}
14212 has to ask the backend of the component group the article comes from
14213 whether it is a news or mail backend. However, when you do a @kbd{^},
14214 there is typically no sure way for the component backend to know this,
14215 and in that case @code{nnvirtual} tells Gnus that the article came from a
14216 not-news backend. (Just to be on the safe side.)
14218 @kbd{C-c C-t} in the message buffer will insert the @code{Newsgroups}
14219 line from the article you respond to in these cases.
14223 @node Kibozed Groups
14224 @subsection Kibozed Groups
14228 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
14229 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a backend that will do this for
14230 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
14231 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
14233 @kindex G k (Group)
14234 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
14237 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
14238 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
14239 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
14240 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
14242 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
14243 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
14244 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
14246 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
14247 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
14248 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
14249 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
14250 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
14251 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
14252 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
14253 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
14255 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
14256 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
14257 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
14258 Stranger things have happened.
14260 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
14261 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
14263 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
14264 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
14265 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
14266 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
14267 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
14268 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
14270 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
14271 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
14274 @node Gnus Unplugged
14275 @section Gnus Unplugged
14280 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
14282 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
14283 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
14284 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
14285 read news. Believe it or not.
14287 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
14288 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
14289 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
14290 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
14291 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
14293 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
14294 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
14295 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
14296 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
14297 reading news on a machine.
14299 Using Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple.
14303 First, set up Gnus as you would do if you were running it on a machine
14304 that has full connection to the net. Go ahead. I'll still be waiting
14308 Then, put the following magical incantation at the end of your
14309 @file{.gnus.el} file:
14316 That's it. Gnus is now an ``offline'' newsreader.
14318 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
14321 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
14322 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
14323 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
14324 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
14325 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
14326 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
14327 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
14328 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
14329 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
14330 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
14335 @subsection Agent Basics
14337 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
14339 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
14340 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
14341 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
14342 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
14344 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
14345 connected to the net continuously.
14347 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
14348 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
14350 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
14355 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
14356 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
14357 already fetched while in this mode.
14360 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
14361 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
14362 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged} and use @kbd{g} to check for new mail
14363 as usual. To check for new mail in unplugged mode, see (@pxref{Mail
14364 Source Specifiers}).
14367 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
14368 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{g}
14369 to check if there are any new news and then @kbd{J
14370 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
14371 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
14374 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
14375 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
14376 then you read the news offline.
14379 And then you go to step 2.
14382 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
14388 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
14389 backend, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
14390 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
14391 @kbd{J a} the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
14392 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}). This will typically be only the
14393 primary select method, which is listed on the bottom in the buffer.
14396 Decide on download policy. @xref{Agent Categories}.
14403 @node Agent Categories
14404 @subsection Agent Categories
14406 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
14407 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
14408 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
14409 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
14410 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
14411 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
14412 you're interested in the articles anyway.
14414 The main way to control what is to be downloaded is to create a
14415 @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all) groups to this category.
14416 Groups that do not belong in any other category belong to the
14417 @code{default} category. Gnus has its own buffer for creating and
14418 managing categories.
14421 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
14422 * The Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
14423 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
14427 @node Category Syntax
14428 @subsubsection Category Syntax
14430 A category consists of two things.
14434 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
14435 are eligible for downloading; and
14438 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
14439 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
14440 score} is not necessarily related to normal scores.)
14443 A predicate in its simplest form can be a single predicate such as
14444 @code{true} or @code{false}. These two will download every available
14445 article or nothing respectively. In the case of these two special
14446 predicates an additional score rule is superfluous.
14448 Predicates of @code{high} or @code{low} download articles in respect of
14449 their scores in relationship to @code{gnus-agent-high-score} and
14450 @code{gnus-agent-low-score} as descibed below.
14452 To gain even finer control of what is to be regarded eligible for
14453 download a predicate can consist of a number of predicates with logical
14454 operators sprinkled in between.
14456 Perhaps some examples are in order.
14458 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
14459 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
14465 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
14466 short (for some value of ``short'').
14468 Here's a more complex predicate:
14477 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
14478 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
14481 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
14482 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
14483 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
14485 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
14486 you want to do, you can write your own.
14490 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
14491 lines; default 100.
14494 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
14495 lines; default 200.
14498 True iff the article has a download score less than
14499 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
14502 True iff the article has a download score greater than
14503 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
14506 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
14507 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
14508 checksum and sees whether articles match.
14517 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
14518 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
14519 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
14522 For example, you could decide that you don't want to download articles
14523 that were posted more than a certain number of days ago (e.g. posted
14524 more than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} ago) you might write a function
14525 something along the lines of the following:
14528 (defun my-article-old-p ()
14529 "Say whether an article is old."
14530 (< (time-to-days (date-to-time (mail-header-date gnus-headers)))
14531 (- (time-to-days (current-time)) gnus-agent-expire-days)))
14534 with the predicate then defined as:
14537 (not my-article-old-p)
14540 or you could append your predicate to the predefined
14541 @code{gnus-category-predicate-alist} in your @file{~/.gnus.el} or
14542 wherever. (Note: this would have to be at a point *after*
14543 @code{gnus-agent} has been loaded via @code{(gnus-agentize)})
14546 (defvar gnus-category-predicate-alist
14547 (append gnus-category-predicate-alist
14548 '((old . my-article-old-p))))
14551 and simply specify your predicate as:
14557 If/when using something like the above, be aware that there are many
14558 misconfigured systems/mailers out there and so an article's date is not
14559 always a reliable indication of when it was posted. Hell, some people
14560 just don't give a damm.
14562 The above predicates apply to *all* the groups which belong to the
14563 category. However, if you wish to have a specific predicate for an
14564 individual group within a category, or you're just too lazy to set up a
14565 new category, you can enter a group's individual predicate in it's group
14566 parameters like so:
14569 (agent-predicate . short)
14572 This is the group parameter equivalent of the agent category default.
14573 Note that when specifying a single word predicate like this, the
14574 @code{agent-predicate} specification must be in dotted pair notation.
14576 The equivalent of the longer example from above would be:
14579 (agent-predicate or high (and (not low) (not long)))
14582 The outer parenthesis required in the category specification are not
14583 entered here as, not being in dotted pair notation, the value of the
14584 predicate is assumed to be a list.
14587 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
14588 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
14589 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
14590 following headers can be scored on: @code{Subject}, @code{From},
14591 @code{Date}, @code{Message-ID}, @code{References}, @code{Chars},
14592 @code{Lines}, and @code{Xref}.
14594 As with predicates, the specification of the @code{download score rule}
14595 to use in respect of a group can be in either the category definition if
14596 it's to be applicable to all groups in therein, or a group's parameters
14597 if it's to be specific to that group.
14599 In both of these places the @code{download score rule} can take one of
14606 This has the same syntax as a normal gnus score file except only a
14607 subset of scoring keywords are available as mentioned above.
14613 Category specification
14617 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
14623 Group Parameter specification
14626 (agent-score ("from"
14627 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
14632 Again, note the omission of the outermost parenthesis here.
14638 These score files must *only* contain the permitted scoring keywords
14645 Category specification
14648 ("~/News/agent.SCORE")
14654 ("~/News/agent.SCORE" "~/News/agent.group.SCORE")
14658 Group Parameter specification
14661 (agent-score "~/News/agent.SCORE")
14664 Additional score files can be specified as above. Need I say anything
14669 Use @code{normal} score files
14671 If you dont want to maintain two sets of scoring rules for a group, and
14672 your desired @code{downloading} criteria for a group are the same as your
14673 @code{reading} criteria then you can tell the agent to refer to your
14674 @code{normal} score files when deciding what to download.
14676 These directives in either the category definition or a group's
14677 parameters will cause the agent to read in all the applicable score
14678 files for a group, *filtering out* those those sections that do not
14679 relate to one of the permitted subset of scoring keywords.
14683 Category Specification
14690 Group Parameter specification
14693 (agent-score . file)
14698 @node The Category Buffer
14699 @subsubsection The Category Buffer
14701 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
14702 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
14703 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
14705 The following commands are available in this buffer:
14709 @kindex q (Category)
14710 @findex gnus-category-exit
14711 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
14714 @kindex k (Category)
14715 @findex gnus-category-kill
14716 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
14719 @kindex c (Category)
14720 @findex gnus-category-copy
14721 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
14724 @kindex a (Category)
14725 @findex gnus-category-add
14726 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
14729 @kindex p (Category)
14730 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
14731 Edit the predicate of the current category
14732 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
14735 @kindex g (Category)
14736 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
14737 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
14738 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
14741 @kindex s (Category)
14742 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
14743 Edit the download score rule of the current category
14744 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
14747 @kindex l (Category)
14748 @findex gnus-category-list
14749 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
14753 @node Category Variables
14754 @subsubsection Category Variables
14757 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
14758 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
14759 Hook run in category buffers.
14761 @item gnus-category-line-format
14762 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
14763 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
14764 Variables}). Valid elements are:
14768 The name of the category.
14771 The number of groups in the category.
14774 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
14775 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
14776 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
14778 @item gnus-agent-short-article
14779 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
14780 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
14782 @item gnus-agent-long-article
14783 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
14784 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
14786 @item gnus-agent-low-score
14787 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
14788 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
14791 @item gnus-agent-high-score
14792 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
14793 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
14799 @node Agent Commands
14800 @subsection Agent Commands
14802 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
14803 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged} command works in all modes, and
14804 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
14808 * Group Agent Commands::
14809 * Summary Agent Commands::
14810 * Server Agent Commands::
14813 You can run a complete batch fetch from the command line with the
14814 following incantation:
14816 @cindex gnus-agent-batch-fetch
14818 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-agent-batch-fetch
14823 @node Group Agent Commands
14824 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
14828 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
14829 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
14830 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
14831 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
14834 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
14835 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
14836 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
14839 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
14840 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
14841 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
14842 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
14845 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
14846 @findex gnus-group-send-drafts
14847 Send all sendable messages in the draft group
14848 (@code{gnus-group-send-drafts}). @xref{Drafts}.
14851 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
14852 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
14853 Add the current group to an Agent category
14854 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}). This command understands the
14855 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
14858 @kindex J r (Agent Group)
14859 @findex gnus-agent-remove-group
14860 Remove the current group from its category, if any
14861 (@code{gnus-agent-remove-group}). This command understands the
14862 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
14865 @kindex J Y (Agent Group)
14866 @findex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
14867 Synchronize flags changed while unplugged with remote server, if any.
14873 @node Summary Agent Commands
14874 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
14878 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
14879 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
14880 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
14883 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
14884 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
14885 Remove the downloading mark from the article
14886 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
14889 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
14890 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
14891 Toggle whether to download the article (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}).
14894 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
14895 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
14896 Mark all undownloaded articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}).
14901 @node Server Agent Commands
14902 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
14906 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
14907 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
14908 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
14909 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
14912 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
14913 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
14914 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
14915 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
14921 @subsection Agent Expiry
14923 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
14924 @findex gnus-agent-expire
14925 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire
14926 @cindex Agent expiry
14927 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
14930 @code{nnagent} doesn't handle expiry. Instead, there's a special
14931 @code{gnus-agent-expire} command that will expire all read articles that
14932 are older than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} days. It can be run
14933 whenever you feel that you're running out of space. It's not
14934 particularly fast or efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to
14935 interrupt it (with @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started it.
14937 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
14938 if @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, this command will
14939 expire all articles---unread, read, ticked and dormant. If @code{nil}
14940 (which is the default), only read articles are eligible for expiry, and
14941 unread, ticked and dormant articles will be kept indefinitely.
14944 @node Agent and IMAP
14945 @subsection Agent and IMAP
14947 The Agent work with any Gnus backend, including nnimap. However, since
14948 there are some conceptual differences between NNTP and IMAP, this
14949 section (should) provide you with some information to make Gnus Agent
14950 work smoother as a IMAP Disconnected Mode client.
14952 The first thing to keep in mind is that all flags (read, ticked, etc)
14953 are kept on the IMAP server, rather than in @code{.newsrc} as is the
14954 case for nntp. Thus Gnus need to remember flag changes when
14955 disconnected, and synchronize these flags when you plug back in.
14957 Gnus keep track of flag changes when reading nnimap groups under the
14958 Agent by default. When you plug back in, by default Gnus will check if
14959 you have any changed any flags and ask if you wish to synchronize theese
14960 with the server. This behaviour is customizable with
14961 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags}.
14963 @vindex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
14964 If @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} is @code{nil}, the Agent will
14965 never automatically synchronize flags. If it is @code{ask}, the
14966 default, the Agent will check if you made any changes and if so ask if
14967 you wish to synchronize these when you re-connect. If it has any other
14968 value, all flags will be synchronized automatically.
14970 If you do not wish to automatically synchronize flags when you
14971 re-connect, this can be done manually with the
14972 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} command that is bound to @kbd{J Y}
14973 in the group buffer by default.
14975 Some things are currently not implemented in the Agent that you'd might
14976 expect from a disconnected IMAP client, including:
14981 Copying/moving articles into nnimap groups when unplugged.
14984 Creating/deleting nnimap groups when unplugged.
14988 Technical note: the synchronization algorithm does not work by "pushing"
14989 all local flags to the server, but rather incrementally update the
14990 server view of flags by changing only those flags that were changed by
14991 the user. Thus, if you set one flag on a article, quit the group and
14992 re-select the group and remove the flag; the flag will be set and
14993 removed from the server when you "synchronize". The queued flag
14994 operations can be found in the per-server @code{flags} file in the Agent
14995 directory. It's emptied when you synchronize flags.
14998 @node Outgoing Messages
14999 @subsection Outgoing Messages
15001 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
15002 stored in the draft groups (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view them there
15003 after posting, and edit them at will.
15005 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
15006 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
15007 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
15008 messages in the draft group.
15012 @node Agent Variables
15013 @subsection Agent Variables
15016 @item gnus-agent-directory
15017 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
15018 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
15019 @file{~/News/agent/}.
15021 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
15022 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
15023 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
15024 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
15025 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
15028 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
15029 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
15030 Hook run when connecting to the network.
15032 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
15033 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
15034 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
15039 @node Example Setup
15040 @subsection Example Setup
15042 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
15043 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
15044 @file{.gnus.el} file to get started.
15047 ;;; Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over @sc{nntp}
15048 ;;; from your ISP's server.
15049 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.your-isp.com"))
15051 ;;; Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from
15052 ;;; your ISP's POP server.
15053 (setq mail-sources '((pop :server "pop.your-isp.com")))
15055 ;;; Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.
15056 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
15058 ;;; Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.
15062 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
15063 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
15066 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
15067 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
15068 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
15069 @sc{nntp} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
15070 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
15073 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
15074 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
15075 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
15076 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
15077 back all the killed groups.)
15079 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
15080 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
15081 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
15084 @node Batching Agents
15085 @subsection Batching Agents
15087 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
15088 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
15089 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
15093 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null
15097 @node Agent Caveats
15098 @subsection Agent Caveats
15100 The Gnus Agent doesn't seem to work like most other offline
15101 newsreaders. Here are some common questions that some imaginary people
15105 @item If I read an article while plugged, do they get entered into the
15110 @item If I read an article while plugged, and the article already exists
15111 in the Agent, will it get downloaded once more?
15117 In short, when Gnus is unplugged, it only looks into the locally stored
15118 articles; when it's plugged, it only talks to your ISP.
15125 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
15126 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
15127 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
15130 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
15131 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
15132 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
15133 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
15134 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
15136 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
15137 before generating the summary buffer.
15139 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
15140 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
15141 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
15143 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
15144 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
15145 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
15146 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
15149 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
15150 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
15151 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
15152 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
15153 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
15154 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
15155 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
15156 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
15157 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
15158 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
15159 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
15160 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
15161 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
15162 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
15163 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
15164 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
15168 @node Summary Score Commands
15169 @section Summary Score Commands
15170 @cindex score commands
15172 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
15173 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
15174 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
15175 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
15176 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
15178 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
15179 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
15180 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
15181 score file the current one.
15183 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
15188 @kindex V s (Summary)
15189 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
15190 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
15193 @kindex V S (Summary)
15194 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
15195 Display the score of the current article
15196 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
15199 @kindex V t (Summary)
15200 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
15201 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
15202 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
15205 @kindex V R (Summary)
15206 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
15207 Run the current summary through the scoring process
15208 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
15209 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
15210 effect you're having.
15213 @kindex V c (Summary)
15214 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
15215 Make a different score file the current
15216 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
15219 @kindex V e (Summary)
15220 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
15221 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
15222 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
15226 @kindex V f (Summary)
15227 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
15228 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
15229 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
15232 @kindex V F (Summary)
15233 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
15234 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
15235 after editing score files.
15238 @kindex V C (Summary)
15239 @findex gnus-score-customize
15240 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
15241 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
15245 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
15250 @kindex V m (Summary)
15251 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
15252 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
15253 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
15256 @kindex V x (Summary)
15257 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
15258 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
15259 expunge all articles below this score
15260 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
15263 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
15264 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
15267 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
15268 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
15272 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
15273 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
15275 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
15276 keys are available:
15280 Score on the author name.
15283 Score on the subject line.
15286 Score on the @code{Xref} line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
15289 Score on the @code{References} line.
15295 Score on the number of lines.
15298 Score on the @code{Message-ID} header.
15301 Score on followups---this matches the author name, and adds scores to
15302 the followups to this author.
15316 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
15317 what headers you are scoring on.
15329 Substring matching.
15332 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
15361 Greater than number.
15366 The fourth and final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e., expiring)
15367 score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry, or whether
15368 it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score file.
15372 Temporary score entry.
15375 Permanent score entry.
15378 Immediately scoring.
15383 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
15384 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
15385 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
15386 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
15388 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
15389 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
15390 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
15391 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
15392 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
15394 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
15395 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
15396 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
15397 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
15398 current score file.
15400 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
15401 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
15402 pretend they are keymaps or not.
15405 @node Group Score Commands
15406 @section Group Score Commands
15407 @cindex group score commands
15409 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
15414 @kindex W f (Group)
15415 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
15416 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
15417 all the time. This command will flush the cache
15418 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
15422 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
15424 @findex gnus-batch-score
15425 @cindex batch scoring
15427 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-batch-score
15431 @node Score Variables
15432 @section Score Variables
15433 @cindex score variables
15437 @item gnus-use-scoring
15438 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
15439 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
15440 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
15442 @item gnus-kill-killed
15443 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
15444 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
15445 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
15446 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
15447 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
15448 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
15449 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
15451 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
15452 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
15453 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
15454 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
15455 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
15457 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
15458 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
15459 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
15460 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
15462 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
15463 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
15464 @cindex score cache
15465 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
15466 score files. However, if this might make your Emacs grow big and
15467 bloated, so this regexp can be used to weed out score files unlikely to be needed again. It would be a bad idea to deny caching of
15468 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
15469 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
15470 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
15473 @item gnus-save-score
15474 @vindex gnus-save-score
15475 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
15476 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
15477 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
15479 If you do not set this to @code{t}, then manual scores (like those set
15480 with @kbd{V s} (@code{gnus-summary-set-score})) will not be preserved
15481 across group visits.
15483 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
15484 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
15485 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
15486 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
15487 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
15488 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
15489 manually entered data.
15491 @item gnus-summary-default-score
15492 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
15493 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
15495 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
15496 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
15497 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
15498 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
15499 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
15500 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
15502 @item gnus-score-over-mark
15503 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
15504 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
15505 default. Default is @samp{+}.
15507 @item gnus-score-below-mark
15508 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
15509 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
15510 default. Default is @samp{-}.
15512 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
15513 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
15514 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
15515 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
15517 Predefined functions available are:
15520 @item gnus-score-find-single
15521 @findex gnus-score-find-single
15522 Only apply the group's own score file.
15524 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
15525 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
15526 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
15527 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
15528 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
15529 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
15530 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
15531 then a regexp match is done.
15533 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
15534 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
15536 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
15537 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
15538 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
15539 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
15541 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
15542 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
15543 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
15544 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
15545 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE} for each
15549 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all these
15550 functions will be called with the group name as argument, and all the
15551 returned lists of score files will be applied. These functions can also
15552 return lists of score alists directly. In that case, the functions that
15553 return these non-file score alists should probably be placed before the
15554 ``real'' score file functions, to ensure that the last score file
15555 returned is the local score file. Phu.
15557 For example, to do hierarchical scoring but use a non-server-specific
15558 overall score file, you could use the value
15560 (list (lambda (group) ("all.SCORE")) 'gnus-score-find-hierarchical)
15563 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
15564 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
15565 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
15566 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
15567 are expired. It's 7 by default.
15569 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
15570 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
15571 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, matching score entries will have
15572 their dates updated. (This is how Gnus controls expiry---all
15573 non-matching entries will become too old while matching entries will
15574 stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this variable to @code{nil},
15575 even matching entries will grow old and will have to face that oh-so
15578 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
15579 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
15580 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
15582 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
15583 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
15584 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be simplified
15585 for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
15586 threading---according to the current value of
15587 gnus-simplify-subject-functions. If the scoring entry uses
15588 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
15589 simplified in this manner.
15594 @node Score File Format
15595 @section Score File Format
15596 @cindex score file format
15598 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
15599 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
15600 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
15602 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
15606 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
15608 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
15610 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
15612 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
15617 (mark-and-expunge -10)
15621 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
15622 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
15623 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
15624 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
15628 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
15629 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
15631 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
15632 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
15633 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
15635 Six keys are supported by this alist:
15640 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
15641 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
15642 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
15643 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
15644 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
15645 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
15646 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
15647 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
15648 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
15649 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
15650 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
15651 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
15652 to articles that matches these score entries.
15654 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
15655 score entry has one to four elements.
15659 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
15660 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
15664 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
15665 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
15666 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
15667 is successful. If this element is not present, the
15668 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
15669 instead. This is 1000 by default.
15672 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
15673 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
15674 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
15675 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
15676 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
15679 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
15680 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
15681 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
15682 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
15685 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
15686 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
15687 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
15688 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
15689 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
15690 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
15691 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
15692 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
15693 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
15694 instead, if you feel like.
15697 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
15698 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
15700 These predicates are true if
15703 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
15706 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
15707 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
15714 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
15715 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
15716 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
15717 it's not. I think.)
15719 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some backends (like
15720 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
15721 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
15722 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
15725 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
15726 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
15727 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
15728 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
15729 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
15730 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
15731 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
15735 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
15736 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
15737 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
15738 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
15739 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
15740 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
15741 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
15742 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
15745 @item Head, Body, All
15746 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
15750 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
15751 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
15752 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
15753 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
15754 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
15755 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
15756 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
15760 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
15761 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread started by an
15762 article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{x}, then you add a @samp{thread}
15763 match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each article that
15764 has @var{x} in its @code{References} header. (These new @samp{thread}
15765 matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching articles.)
15766 This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an entire thread,
15767 even though some articles in the thread may not have complete
15768 @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
15769 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
15770 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
15774 @cindex Score File Atoms
15776 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
15777 lower than this number will be marked as read.
15780 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
15781 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
15783 @item mark-and-expunge
15784 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
15785 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
15788 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
15789 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
15790 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
15791 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
15792 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
15795 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
15796 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
15799 @item exclude-files
15800 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
15801 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
15805 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
15806 ignored when handling global score files.
15809 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
15810 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
15811 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
15812 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
15815 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
15816 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
15817 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
15818 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
15820 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
15824 (mark-and-expunge -100)
15827 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
15828 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
15829 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
15830 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
15831 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
15833 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where there
15834 exist a few interesting threads which can't be found automatically by
15835 ordinary scoring rules.
15838 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
15839 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
15840 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
15841 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
15842 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
15843 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
15844 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
15845 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
15846 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
15847 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
15848 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
15852 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
15853 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
15854 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
15855 file for a number of groups.
15858 @cindex local variables
15859 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
15860 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
15861 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
15862 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
15863 much. Note that the @var{value} won't be evaluated.
15867 @node Score File Editing
15868 @section Score File Editing
15870 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
15871 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
15872 with a mode for that.
15874 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
15875 additional commands:
15880 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
15881 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
15882 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
15883 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
15886 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
15887 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
15888 Insert the current date in numerical format
15889 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
15890 you were wondering.
15893 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
15894 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
15895 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
15896 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
15897 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
15902 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
15904 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
15905 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
15907 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
15908 e} to begin editing score files.
15911 @node Adaptive Scoring
15912 @section Adaptive Scoring
15913 @cindex adaptive scoring
15915 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
15916 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
15917 stupidity, to be precise.
15919 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
15920 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
15921 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
15922 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
15923 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
15924 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
15925 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
15926 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
15927 variable to @code{(word line)}.
15929 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
15930 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
15931 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
15932 might look something like this:
15935 (defvar gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
15936 '((gnus-unread-mark)
15937 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
15938 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
15939 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
15940 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
15941 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
15942 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
15943 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
15944 (gnus-ancient-mark)
15945 (gnus-low-score-mark)
15946 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
15949 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
15950 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
15951 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
15952 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
15953 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
15954 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
15957 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
15958 will be applied to each article.
15960 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
15961 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
15962 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
15963 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
15965 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
15966 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
15967 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
15968 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
15970 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
15971 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
15972 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
15973 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
15975 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
15976 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
15977 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
15978 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
15979 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
15980 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
15982 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
15983 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
15984 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
15985 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
15986 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
15987 aspirins afterwards.)
15989 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
15990 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
15991 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
15993 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
15994 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
15995 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
15997 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
15998 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
15999 let you use different rules in different groups.
16001 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
16002 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
16003 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
16006 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
16007 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
16008 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
16009 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
16010 the length of the match is less than
16011 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
16012 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
16015 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
16016 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
16017 headers. If you adapt on words, the
16018 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
16019 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
16022 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
16023 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
16024 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
16025 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
16026 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
16029 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
16030 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
16031 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
16032 score with 30 points.
16034 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
16035 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
16036 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
16037 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
16038 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
16040 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
16041 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
16042 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
16043 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
16045 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
16046 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
16047 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
16048 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
16050 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words
16051 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words} is set to @code{t}, gnus
16052 won't adaptively word score any of the words in the group name. Useful
16053 for groups like @samp{comp.editors.emacs}, where most of the subject
16054 lines contain the word @samp{emacs}.
16056 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
16057 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
16058 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
16060 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
16061 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
16062 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
16063 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
16066 @node Home Score File
16067 @section Home Score File
16069 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
16070 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
16071 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
16072 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
16074 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
16075 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
16076 could perhaps use the same home score file.
16078 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
16079 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
16084 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
16088 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
16089 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
16093 A list. The elements in this list can be:
16097 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{file-name})}. If the @var{regexp} matches the
16098 group name, the @var{file-name} will will be used as the home score file.
16101 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
16102 the home score file.
16105 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
16108 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
16113 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
16116 (setq gnus-home-score-file
16117 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
16120 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
16121 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
16123 @findex gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file
16125 (setq gnus-home-score-file
16126 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
16129 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
16130 Other functions include
16133 @item gnus-current-home-score-file
16134 @findex gnus-current-home-score-file
16135 Return the ``current'' regular score file. This will make scoring
16136 commands add entry to the ``innermost'' matching score file.
16140 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
16141 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
16142 their own home score files:
16145 (setq gnus-home-score-file
16146 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
16147 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
16148 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
16149 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
16152 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
16153 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
16154 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
16155 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
16156 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
16158 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
16159 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
16160 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
16161 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
16162 precedence over this variable.
16165 @node Followups To Yourself
16166 @section Followups To Yourself
16168 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
16169 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
16170 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
16171 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
16172 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
16173 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
16177 @item gnus-score-followup-article
16178 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
16179 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
16182 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
16183 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
16184 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
16188 @vindex message-sent-hook
16189 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
16190 @code{message-sent-hook}.
16192 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
16193 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
16197 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
16198 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
16201 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
16202 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
16207 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore.no>"
16211 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
16212 is system-dependent.
16216 @section Scoring Tips
16217 @cindex scoring tips
16223 @cindex scoring crossposts
16224 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
16225 the @code{Xref} header.
16227 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
16230 @item Multiple crossposts
16231 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
16232 more than, say, 3 groups:
16234 ("xref" ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+" -1000 nil r))
16237 @item Matching on the body
16238 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
16239 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
16240 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
16241 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
16242 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
16243 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
16244 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
16247 @item Marking as read
16248 You will probably want to mark articles that have scores below a certain
16249 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
16250 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
16254 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
16256 @item Negated character classes
16257 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
16258 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
16259 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
16263 @node Reverse Scoring
16264 @section Reverse Scoring
16265 @cindex reverse scoring
16267 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
16268 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
16269 like this in your score file:
16273 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
16278 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
16279 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
16282 @node Global Score Files
16283 @section Global Score Files
16284 @cindex global score files
16286 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
16287 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
16288 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
16290 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
16291 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
16292 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
16294 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
16295 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
16296 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
16297 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
16298 files are applicable to which group.
16300 Say you want to use the score file
16301 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
16302 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory:
16305 (setq gnus-global-score-files
16306 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
16307 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
16310 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
16311 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
16312 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
16313 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
16314 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
16316 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
16317 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
16319 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
16320 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
16321 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
16322 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
16323 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
16324 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
16326 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
16332 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
16334 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
16336 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
16338 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
16339 lowered out of existence.
16341 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
16342 articles completely.
16345 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
16346 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
16347 old articles for a long time.
16350 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
16351 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
16352 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
16353 holding our breath yet?
16357 @section Kill Files
16360 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
16361 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
16362 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
16364 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
16365 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
16366 files into score files.
16368 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
16369 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
16370 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
16371 that isn't a very good idea.
16373 Normal kill files look like this:
16376 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
16377 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
16381 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
16382 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
16384 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
16385 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
16388 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
16393 @kindex M-k (Summary)
16394 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
16395 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
16398 @kindex M-K (Summary)
16399 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
16400 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
16403 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
16408 @kindex M-k (Group)
16409 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
16410 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
16413 @kindex M-K (Group)
16414 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
16415 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
16418 Kill file variables:
16421 @item gnus-kill-file-name
16422 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
16423 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
16424 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
16425 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
16426 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
16427 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
16429 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
16430 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
16431 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
16432 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
16435 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
16436 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
16437 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
16438 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
16439 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
16440 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
16441 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
16442 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
16443 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
16445 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
16446 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
16447 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
16452 @node Converting Kill Files
16453 @section Converting Kill Files
16455 @cindex converting kill files
16457 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
16458 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
16459 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
16462 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
16463 You can fetch it from
16464 @file{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-various/gnus-kill-to-score.el}.
16466 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
16467 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
16468 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
16476 GroupLens is a collaborative filtering system that helps you work
16477 together with other people to find the quality news articles out of the
16478 huge volume of news articles generated every day.
16480 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
16481 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
16482 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
16483 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
16484 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
16485 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
16486 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
16487 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
16491 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
16492 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
16493 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
16494 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
16498 @node Using GroupLens
16499 @subsection Using GroupLens
16501 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
16503 @samp{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
16504 better bit in town at the moment.
16506 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
16510 @item gnus-use-grouplens
16511 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
16512 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
16513 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
16515 @item grouplens-pseudonym
16516 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
16517 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
16518 with the Better Bit Bureau.
16520 @item grouplens-newsgroups
16521 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
16522 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
16526 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
16527 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
16528 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
16529 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
16530 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
16531 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
16534 @node Rating Articles
16535 @subsection Rating Articles
16537 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
16538 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
16539 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
16540 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
16543 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
16548 @kindex r (GroupLens)
16549 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
16550 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
16553 @kindex k (GroupLens)
16554 @findex grouplens-score-thread
16555 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
16556 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
16557 threads in rec.humor.
16561 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
16562 the score of the article you're reading.
16567 @kindex n (GroupLens)
16568 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
16569 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
16572 @kindex , (GroupLens)
16573 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
16574 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
16578 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
16579 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
16582 @node Displaying Predictions
16583 @subsection Displaying Predictions
16585 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
16586 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
16587 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
16588 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
16589 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
16591 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
16592 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
16593 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
16594 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
16595 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
16596 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
16597 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
16598 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
16599 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
16600 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
16601 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
16602 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
16603 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
16605 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
16606 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
16607 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
16608 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
16610 The following are valid values for that variable.
16613 @item prediction-spot
16614 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
16617 @item confidence-interval
16618 A numeric confidence interval.
16620 @item prediction-bar
16621 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
16623 @item confidence-bar
16624 Numerical confidence.
16626 @item confidence-spot
16627 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
16629 @item prediction-num
16630 Plain-old numeric value.
16632 @item confidence-plus-minus
16633 Prediction +/- confidence.
16638 @node GroupLens Variables
16639 @subsection GroupLens Variables
16643 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
16644 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
16645 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
16646 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%)
16649 @item grouplens-bbb-host
16650 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
16653 @item grouplens-bbb-port
16654 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
16656 @item grouplens-score-offset
16657 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
16658 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
16661 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
16662 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
16663 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
16668 @node Advanced Scoring
16669 @section Advanced Scoring
16671 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
16672 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
16673 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
16674 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
16675 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
16677 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
16681 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
16682 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
16683 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
16687 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
16688 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
16690 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
16691 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
16692 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
16693 non-@code{nil} value.
16695 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
16696 operator, and various match operators.
16703 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
16704 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
16705 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
16710 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
16711 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
16712 then this operator will return @code{false}.
16717 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
16718 logical negation of the value of its argument.
16722 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
16723 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
16724 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
16725 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
16726 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
16727 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
16728 the ancestry you want to go.
16730 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
16731 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
16732 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
16733 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
16734 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
16737 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
16738 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
16740 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
16741 when he's talking about Gnus:
16745 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
16746 ("subject" "Gnus"))
16752 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
16756 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
16763 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
16764 really don't want to read what he's written:
16768 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
16769 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
16773 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
16774 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
16775 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
16782 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
16783 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
16784 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
16785 ("body" "white.*socks"))
16789 The possibilities are endless.
16792 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
16793 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
16795 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
16796 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
16797 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
16798 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
16799 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
16800 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
16801 @samp{subject}) first.
16803 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
16804 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
16815 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
16816 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
16822 ("subject" "Gnus")))
16829 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
16830 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
16835 @section Score Decays
16836 @cindex score decays
16839 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
16840 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
16841 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
16842 use them in any sensible way.
16844 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
16845 @findex gnus-decay-score
16846 @vindex gnus-decay-score-function
16847 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
16848 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
16849 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
16850 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
16851 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-decay-score-function}
16852 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
16853 definition of that function:
16856 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
16858 This is done according to `gnus-score-decay-constant'
16859 and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
16862 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
16864 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
16866 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
16869 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
16870 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
16871 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
16872 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
16876 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
16879 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
16882 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
16886 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
16887 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
16888 the new score, which should be an integer.
16890 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
16891 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
16898 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
16899 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
16900 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
16901 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
16902 * Windows Configuration:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
16903 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
16904 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
16905 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
16906 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
16907 * Buttons:: Get tendonitis in ten easy steps!
16908 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
16909 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
16910 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
16911 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
16912 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
16913 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
16914 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
16915 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
16919 @node Process/Prefix
16920 @section Process/Prefix
16921 @cindex process/prefix convention
16923 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
16924 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
16926 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
16927 command to be performed on.
16931 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
16932 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
16933 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
16934 with the current one.
16936 @vindex transient-mark-mode
16937 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
16938 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
16940 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
16941 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
16944 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
16945 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
16947 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
16950 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
16951 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
16952 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
16953 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
16955 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
16956 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
16957 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
16958 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
16959 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
16960 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
16961 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
16962 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
16964 Many commands do not use the process/prefix convention. All commands
16965 that do explicitly say so in this manual. To apply the process/prefix
16966 convention to commands that do not use it, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
16967 command. For instance, to mark all the articles in the group as
16968 expirable, you could say `M P b M-& E'.
16972 @section Interactive
16973 @cindex interaction
16977 @item gnus-novice-user
16978 @vindex gnus-novice-user
16979 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
16980 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
16981 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
16982 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
16985 @item gnus-expert-user
16986 @vindex gnus-expert-user
16987 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
16988 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
16989 matter how strange.
16991 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
16992 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
16993 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
16994 is @code{t} by default.
16996 @item gnus-interactive-exit
16997 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
16998 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
17003 @node Symbolic Prefixes
17004 @section Symbolic Prefixes
17005 @cindex symbolic prefixes
17007 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
17008 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
17009 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
17010 rule of 900 to the current article.
17012 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
17013 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
17014 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
17015 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
17016 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
17017 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
17018 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
17020 @kindex M-i (Summary)
17021 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
17022 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
17023 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
17024 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
17025 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a M-C-u} means ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u}
17026 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b M-C-u} means
17027 ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
17028 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
17030 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
17031 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
17032 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
17034 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
17038 @node Formatting Variables
17039 @section Formatting Variables
17040 @cindex formatting variables
17042 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
17043 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
17044 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
17045 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
17046 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
17049 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
17050 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
17051 lots of percentages everywhere.
17054 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
17055 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
17056 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
17057 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
17058 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
17061 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
17062 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
17063 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
17064 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
17065 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
17066 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
17067 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
17068 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
17070 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
17071 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
17073 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
17074 @findex gnus-update-format
17075 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
17076 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
17077 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
17078 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
17082 @node Formatting Basics
17083 @subsection Formatting Basics
17085 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
17086 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
17087 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
17089 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
17090 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
17091 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
17092 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
17093 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
17096 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
17097 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
17098 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
17099 less than 4 characters wide.
17102 @node Mode Line Formatting
17103 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
17105 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
17106 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
17107 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
17108 with the following two differences:
17113 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
17116 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
17117 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
17118 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
17119 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
17120 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
17121 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
17122 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
17127 @node Advanced Formatting
17128 @subsection Advanced Formatting
17130 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
17131 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
17132 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
17133 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
17135 These are the valid modifiers:
17140 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
17144 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
17149 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
17152 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
17157 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
17160 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
17163 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
17166 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
17170 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
17171 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
17172 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
17173 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
17174 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
17175 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
17176 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
17178 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
17179 last operation, padding.
17181 @vindex gnus-compile-user-specs
17182 If @code{gnus-compile-user-specs} is set to @code{nil} (@code{t} by
17183 default) with your strong personality, and use a lots of these advanced
17184 thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets quite slow. This can be helped
17185 enormously by running @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with
17186 the look of your lines.
17187 @xref{Compilation}.
17190 @node User-Defined Specs
17191 @subsection User-Defined Specs
17193 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
17194 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
17195 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
17196 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
17197 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
17198 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
17199 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
17200 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
17201 should protect against that.
17203 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
17204 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
17205 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
17206 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
17210 @node Formatting Fonts
17211 @subsection Formatting Fonts
17213 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
17214 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
17215 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
17216 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
17219 Text inside the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} specifiers will have their
17220 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
17221 default. If you say @samp{%1@{}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
17222 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
17223 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
17224 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
17226 Text inside the @samp{%<} and @samp{%>} specifiers will get the special
17227 @code{balloon-help} property set to @code{gnus-balloon-face-0}. If you
17228 say @samp{%1<}, you'll get @code{gnus-balloon-face-1} and so on. The
17229 @code{gnus-balloon-face-*} variables should be either strings or symbols
17230 naming functions that return a string. Under @code{balloon-help-mode},
17231 when the mouse passes over text with this property set, a balloon window
17232 will appear and display the string. Please refer to the doc string of
17233 @code{balloon-help-mode} for more information on this.
17235 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
17238 ;; Create three face types.
17239 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
17240 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
17242 ;; We want the article count to be in
17243 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
17244 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
17245 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
17247 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
17248 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
17250 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
17251 (setq gnus-group-line-format
17252 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
17255 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
17256 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
17258 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
17259 mode-line variables.
17262 @node Windows Configuration
17263 @section Windows Configuration
17264 @cindex windows configuration
17266 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
17268 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
17269 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
17270 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
17271 @code{t} by default.
17273 Setting this variable to @code{nil} kinda works, but there are
17274 glitches. Use at your own peril.
17276 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
17277 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
17278 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
17281 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
17282 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
17283 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
17287 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
17288 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
17289 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
17290 possible names is listed below.
17292 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
17293 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
17296 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
17300 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
17301 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
17302 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
17303 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
17304 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
17305 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
17306 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
17307 size spec per split.
17309 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
17310 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
17311 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
17312 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
17313 present) gets focus.
17315 Here's a more complicated example:
17318 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
17319 (summary 0.25 point)
17320 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
17324 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
17325 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
17326 occupy, not a percentage.
17328 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
17329 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
17330 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
17331 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
17332 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
17335 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
17338 (article (horizontal 1.0
17343 (summary 0.25 point)
17348 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
17349 @code{horizontal} thingie?
17351 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
17352 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
17353 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
17354 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
17355 the screen is to be given to this strip.
17357 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
17358 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
17359 lines from the splits.
17361 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
17365 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
17366 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
17367 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
17368 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
17369 buffer = "(" buffer-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
17370 size = number | frame-params
17371 buffer-name = group | article | summary ...
17374 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
17375 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
17376 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
17377 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
17379 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
17380 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
17381 @cindex window height
17382 @cindex window width
17383 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
17384 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
17385 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
17386 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
17387 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
17388 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
17390 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
17391 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
17392 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
17393 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
17395 @findex gnus-configure-frame
17396 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
17397 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
17398 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
17399 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
17400 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
17401 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
17402 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
17403 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
17404 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
17405 configuration list.
17408 (gnus-configure-frame
17412 (article 0.3 point))
17420 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
17421 @code{frame} split:
17424 (gnus-configure-frame
17427 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
17429 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
17430 (user-position . t)
17431 (left . -1) (top . 1))
17436 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
17437 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
17438 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
17439 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
17440 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
17441 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
17442 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
17443 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
17445 The list of all possible keys for @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} can
17446 be found in its default value.
17448 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
17449 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
17450 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
17454 (message (horizontal 1.0
17455 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
17457 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
17462 One common desire for a multiple frame split is to have a separate frame
17463 for composing mail and news while leaving the original frame intact. To
17464 accomplish that, something like the following can be done:
17467 (message (frame 1.0
17468 (if (not (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer))
17469 (car (cdr (assoc 'group gnus-buffer-configuration)))
17470 (car (cdr (assoc 'summary gnus-buffer-configuration))))
17471 (vertical ((user-position . t) (top . 1) (left . 1)
17472 (name . "Message"))
17473 (message 1.0 point))))
17476 @findex gnus-add-configuration
17477 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
17478 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
17479 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
17480 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
17483 (gnus-add-configuration
17484 '(article (vertical 1.0
17486 (summary .25 point)
17490 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
17491 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
17492 Gnus has been loaded.
17494 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
17495 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
17496 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
17497 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
17498 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
17500 If you're using tree displays (@pxref{Tree Display}), and the tree
17501 window is displayed vertically next to another window, you may also want
17502 to fiddle with @code{gnus-tree-minimize-window} to avoid having the
17505 @subsection Example Window Configurations
17509 Narrow left hand side occupied by group buffer. Right hand side split
17510 between summary buffer (top one-sixth) and article buffer (bottom).
17525 (gnus-add-configuration
17528 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
17530 (summary 0.16 point)
17533 (gnus-add-configuration
17536 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
17537 (vertical 1.0 (summary 1.0 point)))))
17543 @node Faces and Fonts
17544 @section Faces and Fonts
17549 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
17550 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
17551 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
17556 @section Compilation
17557 @cindex compilation
17558 @cindex byte-compilation
17560 @findex gnus-compile
17562 Remember all those line format specification variables?
17563 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
17564 on. By default, T-gnus will use the byte-compiled codes of these
17565 variables and we can keep a slow-down to a minimum. However, if you set
17566 @code{gnus-compile-user-specs} to @code{nil} (@code{t} by default),
17567 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
17568 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
17569 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
17572 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
17573 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
17574 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
17575 you'll get top speed again. Note that T-gnus will not save these
17576 compiled specs in the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
17579 @item gnus-compile-user-specs
17580 @vindex gnus-compile-user-specs
17581 If it is non-nil, the user-defined format specs will be byte-compiled
17582 automatically. The default value of this variable is @code{t}. It has
17583 an effect on the values of @code{gnus-*-line-format-spec}.
17588 @section Mode Lines
17591 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
17592 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
17593 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
17594 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
17595 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
17596 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
17597 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
17600 @cindex display-time
17602 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
17603 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
17604 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
17605 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
17606 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
17607 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
17608 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
17609 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
17612 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
17614 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
17615 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
17617 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
17618 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
17619 (length display-time-string)))))
17622 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
17623 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
17624 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
17625 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
17626 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
17629 @node Highlighting and Menus
17630 @section Highlighting and Menus
17632 @cindex highlighting
17635 @vindex gnus-visual
17636 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
17637 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
17638 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
17641 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
17642 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
17645 @item group-highlight
17646 Do highlights in the group buffer.
17647 @item summary-highlight
17648 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
17649 @item article-highlight
17650 Do highlights in the article buffer.
17652 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
17654 Create menus in the group buffer.
17656 Create menus in the summary buffers.
17658 Create menus in the article buffer.
17660 Create menus in the browse buffer.
17662 Create menus in the server buffer.
17664 Create menus in the score buffers.
17666 Create menus in all buffers.
17669 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
17670 buffers, you could say something like:
17673 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
17676 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
17679 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
17682 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
17683 in all Gnus buffers.
17685 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
17688 @item gnus-mouse-face
17689 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
17690 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
17691 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
17695 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
17699 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
17700 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
17701 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
17703 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
17704 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
17705 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
17707 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
17708 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
17709 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
17711 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
17712 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
17713 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
17715 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
17716 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
17717 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
17719 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
17720 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
17721 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
17732 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
17733 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
17734 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
17735 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
17736 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
17740 @vindex gnus-carpal
17741 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
17742 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
17743 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
17748 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
17749 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
17750 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
17752 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
17753 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
17754 Face used on buttons.
17756 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
17757 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
17758 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
17760 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
17761 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
17762 Buttons in the group buffer.
17764 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
17765 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
17766 Buttons in the summary buffer.
17768 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
17769 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
17770 Buttons in the server buffer.
17772 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
17773 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
17774 Buttons in the browse buffer.
17777 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
17778 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
17779 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
17787 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
17788 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
17789 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
17790 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
17791 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
17793 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
17794 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
17795 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
17797 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
17798 been idle for thirty minutes:
17801 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
17804 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
17808 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
17811 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
17812 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
17813 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
17815 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
17816 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
17817 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
17818 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
17820 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
17821 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
17822 @var{idle} minutes.
17824 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
17825 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
17828 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
17829 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
17830 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
17832 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
17833 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
17834 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
17835 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
17837 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
17838 your @file{.gnus} file:
17840 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
17842 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
17845 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
17846 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
17847 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
17848 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
17849 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
17850 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
17851 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
17852 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
17853 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
17854 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
17855 @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
17857 @findex gnus-demon-init
17858 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
17859 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
17860 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
17861 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
17862 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
17864 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
17865 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
17866 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
17875 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
17876 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
17878 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
17879 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
17880 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
17881 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
17884 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
17885 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
17886 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
17887 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
17889 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
17890 this will make spam disappear.
17892 There are some variables to customize, of course:
17895 @item gnus-use-nocem
17896 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
17897 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
17900 @item gnus-nocem-groups
17901 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
17902 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
17903 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
17904 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
17906 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
17907 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
17908 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
17909 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
17910 "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" "cosmo.roadkill" "SpamHippo"
17911 "hweede@@snafu.de")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
17913 Known despammers that you can put in this list are listed at
17914 @uref{http://www.xs4all.nl/~rosalind/nocemreg/nocemreg.html}.
17916 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
17917 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
17918 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
17919 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
17920 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
17921 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
17922 @code{(@var{issuer} @var{conditions} @dots{})} elements in the list.
17923 Each condition is either a string (which is a regexp that matches types
17924 you want to use) or a list on the form @code{(not @var{string})}, where
17925 @var{string} is a regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
17927 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
17928 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
17931 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
17934 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
17935 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
17938 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
17941 The specs are applied left-to-right.
17944 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
17945 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
17947 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
17948 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
17949 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
17950 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
17952 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
17953 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
17956 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
17958 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
17966 This might be dangerous, though.
17968 @item gnus-nocem-directory
17969 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
17970 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
17971 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
17973 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
17974 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
17975 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
17976 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
17977 might then see old spam.
17979 @item gnus-nocem-check-from
17980 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-from
17981 Non-@code{nil} means check for valid issuers in message bodies.
17982 Otherwise don't bother fetching articles unless their author matches a
17983 valid issuer; that is much faster if you are selective about the
17986 @item gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
17987 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
17988 If non-@code{nil}, the maximum number of articles to check in any NoCeM
17989 group. NoCeM groups can be huge and very slow to process.
17993 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
17994 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
17995 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
17996 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
18003 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
18004 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
18005 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
18007 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
18008 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
18009 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
18010 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
18011 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
18012 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
18013 @code{undo} function.
18015 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
18016 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
18017 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
18018 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
18019 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
18020 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
18021 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
18022 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
18023 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
18024 never be totally undoable.
18026 @findex gnus-undo-mode
18027 @vindex gnus-use-undo
18029 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
18030 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
18031 default. The @kbd{M-C-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo} command
18032 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
18037 @section Moderation
18040 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
18041 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
18042 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
18045 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
18049 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
18052 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
18054 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
18059 You split your incoming mail by matching on
18060 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
18061 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
18064 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
18065 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
18068 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
18069 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
18073 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
18076 (setq gnus-moderated-list
18077 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
18081 @node XEmacs Enhancements
18082 @section XEmacs Enhancements
18085 XEmacs is able to display pictures and stuff, so Gnus has taken
18089 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
18090 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
18091 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
18092 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
18105 So... You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
18106 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
18107 over your shoulder as you read news.
18110 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
18111 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
18112 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
18113 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
18114 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
18119 @subsubsection Picon Basics
18121 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
18130 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
18131 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
18132 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
18133 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
18134 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
18135 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
18136 @code{GIF} formats.
18139 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
18140 If you have a permanent connection to the Internet you can use Steve
18141 Kinzler's Picons Search engine by setting
18142 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} to the string @*
18143 @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/search.html}.
18145 @vindex gnus-picons-database
18146 Otherwise you need a local copy of his database. For instructions on
18147 obtaining and installing the picons databases, point your Web browser at @*
18148 @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}. Gnus expects
18149 picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
18150 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
18153 @node Picon Requirements
18154 @subsubsection Picon Requirements
18156 To have Gnus display Picons for you, you must be running XEmacs
18157 19.13 or greater since all other versions of Emacs aren't yet able to
18160 Additionally, you must have @code{x} support compiled into XEmacs. To
18161 display color picons which are much nicer than the black & white one,
18162 you also need one of @code{xpm} or @code{gif} compiled into XEmacs.
18164 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
18165 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you should have
18166 the @code{xface} support compiled into XEmacs. Otherwise you must have
18167 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
18168 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
18172 @subsubsection Easy Picons
18174 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
18175 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
18178 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
18179 (setq gnus-treat-display-picons t)
18182 and make sure @code{gnus-picons-database} points to the directory
18183 containing the Picons databases.
18185 Alternatively if you want to use the web piconsearch engine add this:
18188 (setq gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
18189 "http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch")
18194 @subsubsection Hard Picons
18202 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
18203 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
18204 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
18205 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
18206 feature, you need to select where to get the picons from, and where to
18211 @item gnus-picons-database
18212 @vindex gnus-picons-database
18213 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
18214 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
18215 subdirectories. This is only useful if
18216 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} is @code{nil}. Defaults to
18217 @file{/usr/local/faces/}.
18219 @item gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
18220 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
18221 The URL for the web picons search engine. The only currently known
18222 engine is @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch}. To
18223 workaround network delays, icons will be fetched in the background. If
18224 this is @code{nil} 'the default), then picons are fetched from local
18225 database indicated by @code{gnus-picons-database}.
18227 @item gnus-picons-display-where
18228 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
18229 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
18230 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
18231 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
18232 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
18233 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
18234 routines---@pxref{Windows Configuration}.
18236 @item gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
18237 @vindex gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
18238 Groups that are matched by this regexp won't have their group icons
18243 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
18244 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
18246 Now that you've made those decision, you need to add the following
18247 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get displayed
18250 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
18252 @item gnus-article-display-picons
18253 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
18254 Looks up and displays the picons for the author and the author's domain
18255 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer.
18257 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
18258 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
18259 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present.
18265 @node Picon Useless Configuration
18266 @subsubsection Picon Useless Configuration
18274 The following variables offer further control over how things are
18275 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
18276 don't need to worry about.
18280 @item gnus-picons-news-directories
18281 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directories
18282 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
18283 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
18285 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
18286 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
18287 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
18288 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc")} is the default.
18290 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
18291 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
18292 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
18293 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
18294 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
18296 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
18297 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
18298 If you don't have @code{xface} support builtin XEmacs, this is the
18299 command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
18300 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
18301 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
18302 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
18304 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
18305 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
18306 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
18307 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
18309 @item gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
18310 @vindex gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
18311 If you have set @code{gnus-picons-display-where} to @code{picons}, your
18312 XEmacs frame will become really cluttered. To alleviate this a bit you
18313 can set @code{gnus-picons-has-modeline-p} to @code{nil}; this will
18314 remove the mode line from the Picons buffer. This is only useful if
18315 @code{gnus-picons-display-where} is @code{picons}.
18317 @item gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
18318 @vindex gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
18319 If non-nil, display the article buffer before computing the picons.
18320 Defaults to @code{nil}.
18322 @item gnus-picons-display-as-address
18323 @vindex gnus-picons-display-as-address
18324 If @code{t} display textual email addresses along with pictures.
18325 Defaults to @code{t}.
18327 @item gnus-picons-file-suffixes
18328 @vindex gnus-picons-file-suffixes
18329 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
18330 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your XEmacs.
18332 @item gnus-picons-setup-hook
18333 @vindex gnus-picons-setup-hook
18334 Hook run in the picon buffer, if that is displayed.
18336 @item gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
18337 @vindex gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
18338 Whether to move point to first empty line when displaying picons. This
18339 has only an effect if `gnus-picons-display-where' has value `article'.
18341 If @code{nil}, display the picons in the @code{From} and
18342 @code{Newsgroups} lines. This is the defailt.
18344 @item gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
18345 @vindex gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
18346 Whether to clear the picons cache when exiting gnus. Gnus caches every
18347 picons it finds while it is running. This saves some time in the search
18348 process but eats some memory. If this variable is set to @code{nil},
18349 Gnus will never clear the cache itself; you will have to manually call
18350 @code{gnus-picons-clear-cache} to clear it. Otherwise the cache will be
18351 cleared every time you exit Gnus. Defaults to @code{t}.
18362 @subsection Smileys
18367 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/BigFace.ps,height=20cm}}
18372 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
18373 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
18375 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
18376 @file{.gnus.el} file:
18379 (setq gnus-treat-display-smileys t)
18382 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{:-=}, @samp{:-(} and
18383 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
18384 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
18385 text and maps that to file names.
18387 @vindex smiley-nosey-regexp-alist
18388 @vindex smiley-deformed-regexp-alist
18389 Smiley supplies two example conversion alists by default:
18390 @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist} (which matches @samp{:)}, @samp{:(}
18391 and so on), and @code{smiley-nosey-regexp-alist} (which matches
18392 @samp{:-)}, @samp{:-(} and so on).
18394 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist} variable,
18395 which defaults to the value of @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist}.
18397 The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched; the second
18398 element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by the picture;
18399 and the third element is the name of the file to be displayed.
18401 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
18402 files, as well as the color to be used and stuff:
18406 @item smiley-data-directory
18407 @vindex smiley-data-directory
18408 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
18410 @item smiley-flesh-color
18411 @vindex smiley-flesh-color
18412 Skin color. The default is @samp{yellow}, which is really racist.
18414 @item smiley-features-color
18415 @vindex smiley-features-color
18416 Color of the features of the face. The default is @samp{black}.
18418 @item smiley-tongue-color
18419 @vindex smiley-tongue-color
18420 Color of the tongue. The default is @samp{red}.
18422 @item smiley-circle-color
18423 @vindex smiley-circle-color
18424 Color of the circle around the face. The default is @samp{black}.
18426 @item smiley-mouse-face
18427 @vindex smiley-mouse-face
18428 Face used for mouse highlighting over the smiley face.
18434 @subsection Toolbar
18444 @item gnus-use-toolbar
18445 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
18446 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
18447 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
18448 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
18450 @item gnus-group-toolbar
18451 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
18452 The toolbar in the group buffer.
18454 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
18455 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
18456 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
18458 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
18459 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
18460 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
18466 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
18469 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
18470 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
18471 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
18472 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
18473 unusual directory structure.
18475 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
18476 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
18477 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
18478 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
18480 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
18481 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
18482 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
18483 Valid values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
18484 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
18485 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
18487 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
18488 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
18489 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
18503 @node Fuzzy Matching
18504 @section Fuzzy Matching
18505 @cindex fuzzy matching
18507 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
18508 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
18510 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
18511 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
18512 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
18514 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
18515 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
18516 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
18517 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
18518 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
18521 @node Thwarting Email Spam
18522 @section Thwarting Email Spam
18526 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
18528 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
18529 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
18530 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
18531 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
18532 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
18533 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
18534 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
18535 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
18538 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
18539 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
18540 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
18541 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
18542 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
18543 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
18547 The way to deal with this is having Gnus split out all spam into a
18548 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
18550 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
18551 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
18552 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
18553 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
18554 sysadm whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
18555 part of the mail address.)
18558 (setq message-default-news-headers
18559 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
18562 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
18563 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
18568 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
18569 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
18570 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
18576 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
18577 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
18578 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
18579 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
18581 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @code{smtp} server
18582 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
18583 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
18584 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
18585 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
18586 your fancy split rule in this way:
18591 (to "larsi" "misc")
18595 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
18596 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
18597 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
18598 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
18599 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
18601 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
18602 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
18603 at @* @file{<URL:http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html>}.
18604 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
18605 cosmic balance somewhat.
18607 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
18608 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
18609 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
18610 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
18613 @node Various Various
18614 @section Various Various
18620 @item gnus-home-directory
18621 All Gnus path variables will be initialized from this variable, which
18622 defaults to @file{~/}.
18624 @item gnus-directory
18625 @vindex gnus-directory
18626 Most Gnus storage path variables will be initialized from this variable,
18627 which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or
18628 @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
18630 Note that gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{.gnus.el} file is read.
18631 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
18632 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
18633 @file{.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
18635 @item gnus-default-directory
18636 @vindex gnus-default-directory
18637 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
18638 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
18639 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
18640 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
18641 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
18642 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
18645 @vindex gnus-verbose
18646 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
18647 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
18648 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
18649 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
18650 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
18652 @item gnus-verbose-backends
18653 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
18654 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
18655 to the Gnus backends instead of Gnus proper.
18657 @item nnheader-max-head-length
18658 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
18659 When the backends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
18660 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
18661 the absolute max length the backends will try to read before giving up
18662 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
18663 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
18664 @code{t}, the backends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
18665 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
18666 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
18668 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
18669 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
18670 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
18671 read when doing the operation described above.
18673 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
18674 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
18676 @cindex invalid characters in file names
18677 @cindex characters in file names
18678 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
18679 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
18680 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
18683 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
18687 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
18688 Windows (phooey) systems.
18690 @item gnus-hidden-properties
18691 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
18692 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
18693 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
18694 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
18696 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
18697 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
18698 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
18699 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
18700 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
18702 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
18703 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
18704 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
18706 @item gnus-invalid-group-regexp
18707 @vindex gnus-invalid-group-regexp
18709 Regexp to match ``invalid'' group names when querying user for a group
18710 name. The default value catches some @strong{really} invalid group
18711 names who could possibly mess up Gnus internally (like allowing
18712 @samp{:} in a group name, which is normally used to delimit method and
18715 IMAP users might want to allow @samp{/} in group names though.
18724 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
18725 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
18727 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
18729 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
18735 Not because of victories @*
18738 but for the common sunshine,@*
18740 the largess of the spring.
18744 but for the day's work done@*
18745 as well as I was able;@*
18746 not for a seat upon the dais@*
18747 but at the common table.@*
18752 @chapter Appendices
18755 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
18756 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
18757 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
18758 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
18759 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
18760 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
18761 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
18762 * Frequently Asked Questions:: A question-and-answer session.
18770 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
18771 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
18773 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage,
18774 you can point your (feh!) web browser to
18775 @file{http://quimby.gnus.org/~larsi/}. This is also the primary
18776 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is
18777 known as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
18779 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
18780 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
18781 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
18782 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
18783 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
18784 appropriate name, don't you think?)
18786 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
18787 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
18788 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
18789 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
18792 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
18793 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
18794 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
18795 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
18796 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
18797 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
18798 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
18799 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
18800 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
18801 * Newest Features:: Features so new that they haven't been written yet.
18805 @node Gnus Versions
18806 @subsection Gnus Versions
18807 @cindex Pterodactyl Gnus
18809 @cindex September Gnus
18810 @cindex Quassia Gnus
18812 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
18813 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
18814 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
18816 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
18817 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
18819 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
18820 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4'' (67 releases).
18822 On September 13th 1997, Quassia Gnus was started and lasted 37 releases.
18823 If was released as ``Gnus 5.6'' on March 8th 1998 (46 releases).
18825 Gnus 5.6 begat Pterodactyl Gnus on August 29th 1998 and was released as
18826 ``Gnus 5.8'' (after 99 releases and a CVS repository) on December 3rd
18829 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
18830 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'' --
18831 don't panic. Don't let it know that you're frightened. Back away.
18832 Slowly. Whatever you do, don't run. Walk away, calmly, until you're
18833 out of its reach. Find a proper released version of Gnus and snuggle up
18837 @node Other Gnus Versions
18838 @subsection Other Gnus Versions
18841 In addition to the versions of Gnus which have had their releases
18842 coordinated by Lars, one major development has been Semi-gnus from
18843 Japan. It's based on a library called @sc{semi}, which provides
18844 @sc{mime} capabilities.
18846 These Gnusae are based mainly on Gnus 5.6 and Pterodactyl Gnus.
18847 Collectively, they are called ``Semi-gnus'', and different strains are
18848 called T-gnus, ET-gnus, Nana-gnus and Chaos. These provide powerful
18849 @sc{mime} and multilingualization things, especially important for
18856 What's the point of Gnus?
18858 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
18859 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
18860 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
18861 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
18862 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
18863 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
18864 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
18865 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
18866 keep track of millions of people who post?
18868 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
18869 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
18870 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
18871 to separate the newsreader from the backends, Gnus now offers a simple
18872 interface for anybody who wants to write new backends for fetching mail
18873 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
18874 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
18875 every one of you to explore and invent.
18877 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
18878 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
18881 @node Compatibility
18882 @subsection Compatibility
18884 @cindex compatibility
18885 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
18886 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
18887 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
18892 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
18896 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
18899 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
18902 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
18903 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
18904 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
18905 important variables have their values copied into their global
18906 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
18907 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
18909 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
18910 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
18911 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
18912 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
18913 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
18917 @cindex highlighting
18918 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
18919 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
18920 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
18921 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
18922 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
18923 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
18926 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
18927 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
18928 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
18929 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
18931 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
18932 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
18933 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
18934 to stop doing it the old way.
18936 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
18938 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
18940 @cindex reporting bugs
18942 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
18943 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
18944 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
18946 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
18947 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
18948 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
18949 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
18954 @subsection Conformity
18956 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
18957 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
18964 There are no known breaches of this standard.
18968 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
18970 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
18971 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
18972 We do have some breaches to this one.
18978 These are considered to be ``vanity headers'', while I consider them
18979 to be consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted
18980 articles coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use
18981 either of those for posting articles. I would not have known that if
18982 it wasn't for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
18987 USEFOR is an IETF working group writing a successor to RFC 1036, based
18988 on Son-of-RFC 1036. They have produced a number of drafts proposing
18989 various changes to the format of news articles. The Gnus towers will
18990 look into implementing the changes when the draft is accepted as an RFC.
18994 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
18995 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
19000 @subsection Emacsen
19006 Gnus should work on :
19014 XEmacs 21.1.1 and up.
19018 This Gnus version will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than
19019 that. Not reliably, at least. Older versions of Gnus may work on older
19020 Emacs versions. However, T-gnus does support ``Mule 2.3 based on Emacs
19021 19.34'' and possibly the versions of XEmacs prior to 21.1.1, e.g. 20.4.
19022 See the file ``README'' in the T-gnus distribution for more details.
19024 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
19025 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
19026 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
19030 @node Gnus Development
19031 @subsection Gnus Development
19033 Gnus is developed in a two-phased cycle. The first phase involves much
19034 discussion on the @samp{ding@@gnus.org} mailing list, where people
19035 propose changes and new features, post patches and new backends. This
19036 phase is called the @dfn{alpha} phase, since the Gnusae released in this
19037 phase are @dfn{alpha releases}, or (perhaps more commonly in other
19038 circles) @dfn{snapshots}. During this phase, Gnus is assumed to be
19039 unstable and should not be used by casual users. Gnus alpha releases
19040 have names like ``Red Gnus'' and ``Quassia Gnus''.
19042 After futzing around for 50-100 alpha releases, Gnus is declared
19043 @dfn{frozen}, and only bug fixes are applied. Gnus loses the prefix,
19044 and is called things like ``Gnus 5.6.32'' instead. Normal people are
19045 supposed to be able to use these, and these are mostly discussed on the
19046 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} newsgroup.
19049 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
19050 Some variable defaults differ between alpha Gnusae and released Gnusae.
19051 In particular, @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} defaults to @code{nil} in
19052 alpha Gnusae and @code{t} in released Gnusae. This is to prevent
19053 lossage of mail if an alpha release hiccups while handling the mail.
19055 The division of discussion between the ding mailing list and the Gnus
19056 newsgroup is not purely based on publicity concerns. It's true that
19057 having people write about the horrible things that an alpha Gnus release
19058 can do (sometimes) in a public forum may scare people off, but more
19059 importantly, talking about new experimental features that have been
19060 introduced may confuse casual users. New features are frequently
19061 introduced, fiddled with, and judged to be found wanting, and then
19062 either discarded or totally rewritten. People reading the mailing list
19063 usually keep up with these rapid changes, whille people on the newsgroup
19064 can't be assumed to do so.
19069 @subsection Contributors
19070 @cindex contributors
19072 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
19073 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
19074 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
19075 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
19076 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
19077 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
19078 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
19079 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
19080 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
19081 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
19083 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
19089 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
19092 Shenghuo Zhu---uudecode.el, mm-uu.el, rfc1843.el, webmail.el,
19093 nnwarchive and many, many other things connected with @sc{mime} and
19094 other types of en/decoding, as well as general bug fixing, new
19095 functionality and stuff.
19098 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
19099 well as numerous other things).
19102 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
19105 Justin Sheehy--the FAQ maintainer.
19108 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
19111 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
19112 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
19115 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
19118 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
19119 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
19122 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
19125 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
19128 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
19131 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
19134 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
19135 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
19138 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
19141 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
19144 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
19147 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
19151 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
19154 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
19157 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
19160 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
19161 well as autoconf support.
19165 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
19166 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
19168 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
19177 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
19181 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
19191 Alexei V. Barantsev,
19206 Massimo Campostrini,
19211 Jae-you Chung, @c ?
19212 James H. Cloos, Jr.,
19216 Andrew J. Cosgriff,
19219 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
19225 Michael Welsh Duggan,
19230 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
19234 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
19242 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
19244 Michelangelo Grigni,
19248 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
19250 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c ?
19252 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
19259 François Felix Ingrand,
19260 Tatsuya Ichikawa, @c ?
19261 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
19263 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
19274 Peter Skov Knudsen,
19275 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
19277 Koseki Yoshinori, @c Koseki
19278 Thor Kristoffersen,
19281 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
19299 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
19300 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
19307 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
19312 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
19316 John McClary Prevost,
19322 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
19327 Christian von Roques,
19330 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
19337 Philippe Schnoebelen,
19339 Randal L. Schwartz,
19353 Kiyokazu Suto, @c Suto
19358 Tozawa Akihiko, @c Tozawa
19374 Katsumi Yamaoka @c Yamaoka
19379 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
19380 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
19381 (550kB and counting).
19383 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
19386 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
19387 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
19391 @subsection New Features
19392 @cindex new features
19395 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
19396 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.3/5.3.
19397 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
19398 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
19401 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
19402 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
19403 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
19407 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
19409 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
19414 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
19415 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
19418 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
19419 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
19422 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
19425 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
19426 All the mail backends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
19427 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
19430 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
19431 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
19432 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
19433 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
19436 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
19437 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
19440 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
19441 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
19442 (@pxref{The Active File}).
19445 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
19446 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
19449 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
19450 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
19451 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
19454 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
19455 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
19456 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
19459 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
19460 the @file{.emacs} file.
19463 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
19464 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
19467 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
19468 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
19471 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
19472 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
19475 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
19476 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
19479 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
19480 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
19483 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
19486 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
19487 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
19490 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
19491 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
19494 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
19495 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
19498 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
19501 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
19502 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
19505 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
19509 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
19513 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
19514 configuration (@pxref{Windows Configuration}).
19517 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
19523 @node September Gnus
19524 @subsubsection September Gnus
19528 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/september.ps,height=20cm}}
19532 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
19537 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
19538 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
19542 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
19543 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
19547 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
19551 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
19552 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
19555 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
19559 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
19562 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
19565 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
19568 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
19572 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
19573 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
19576 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
19580 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
19584 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
19588 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
19592 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
19595 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
19596 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
19599 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
19603 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
19604 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
19607 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
19610 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
19611 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
19612 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
19615 Gnus has a new backend (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
19619 The Gnus cache is much faster.
19622 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
19626 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
19627 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
19630 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
19631 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
19634 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
19635 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
19638 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
19639 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
19640 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
19643 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
19644 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
19647 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
19650 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
19653 All mail backends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
19656 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
19659 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
19660 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
19663 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Windows
19667 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
19670 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}}
19675 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
19678 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
19682 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
19685 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
19689 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
19692 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
19695 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
19696 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
19699 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
19700 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
19704 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
19705 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
19708 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
19712 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
19713 buffer to allow easier treatment.
19716 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
19719 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
19723 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
19727 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
19728 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
19731 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
19735 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
19736 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
19739 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
19740 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
19743 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
19747 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
19750 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
19753 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
19759 @subsubsection Red Gnus
19761 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
19765 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/red.ps,height=20cm}}
19772 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
19775 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
19776 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
19779 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
19780 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
19784 Article washing status can be displayed in the
19785 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
19788 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
19791 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
19792 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
19795 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
19799 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
19800 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
19804 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
19805 Server Internals}).
19808 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
19812 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
19815 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
19816 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
19819 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
19820 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
19821 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
19824 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
19825 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
19828 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
19829 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
19832 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{M-C-_}
19836 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
19837 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
19840 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
19841 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
19844 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
19848 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
19851 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
19855 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
19856 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
19859 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
19860 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
19863 A new command for reading collections of documents
19864 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{M-C-d}
19865 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
19868 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
19872 A new mail-to-news backend makes it possible to post even when the @sc{nntp}
19873 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
19876 A new backend for reading searches from Web search engines
19877 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
19878 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
19881 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
19882 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
19886 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
19890 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
19894 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}}
19899 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
19903 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
19907 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
19908 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
19911 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
19917 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
19919 New features in Gnus 5.6:
19924 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
19925 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
19926 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
19929 The @code{nndraft} backend has returned, but works differently than
19930 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
19931 group, which is created automatically.
19934 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
19938 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
19941 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
19942 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
19945 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
19949 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
19952 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
19953 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
19956 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
19959 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section "Symbolic
19960 Prefixes" in the Gnus manual for details.
19963 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
19964 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the "all.SCORE" file.
19967 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
19968 control over simplification.
19971 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
19974 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
19978 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
19981 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
19984 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
19985 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
19986 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
19989 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
19990 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
19993 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
19997 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
19998 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
20001 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
20002 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @sc{nntp} servers.
20005 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
20009 A history of where mails have been split is available.
20012 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
20015 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
20016 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
20019 A new function for citing in Message has been
20020 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
20023 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
20026 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
20030 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
20031 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
20034 The "lapsed date" article header can be kept continually
20035 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
20038 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} backend.
20041 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
20046 @node Newest Features
20047 @subsection Newest Features
20050 Also known as the @dfn{todo list}. Sure to be implemented before the
20053 Be afraid. Be very afraid.
20055 (That a feature appears in this list doesn't necessarily mean that I've
20056 decided to actually implement it. It just means that I think it sounds
20059 (Yes, this is the actual, up-to-the-second todo list.)
20064 I would like the zombie-page to contain an URL to the source of the
20065 latest version of gnus or some explanation on where to find it.
20068 A way to continue editing the latest Message composition.
20071 http://www.sonicnet.com/feature/ari3/
20074 facep is not declared.
20077 Include a section in the manual on why the number of articles
20078 isn't the same in the group buffer and on the SPC prompt.
20081 Interacting with rmail fcc isn't easy.
20086 <URL:http://www.falch.no/people/pepper/DSSSL-Lite/archives/>
20087 <URL:http://www.eit.com/software/hypermail/hypermail.html>
20088 <URL:http://homer.ncm.com/>
20089 <URL:http://www.yahoo.com/Computers_and_Internet/Internet/World_Wide_Web/HTML_Converters/>
20090 http://www.uwsg.indiana.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/9610/index.html
20091 <URL:http://union.ncsa.uiuc.edu/HyperNews/get/www/html/converters.html>
20092 http://www.miranova.com/gnus-list/
20097 @samp{^-- } is made into - in LaTeX.
20100 gnus-kill is much slower than it was in GNUS 4.1.3.
20103 when expunging articles on low score, the sparse nodes keep hanging on?
20105 starting the first time seems to hang Gnus on some systems. Does
20106 NEWGROUPS answer too fast?
20108 nndir doesn't read gzipped files.
20110 FAQ doesn't have an up node?
20112 when moving mail from a procmail spool to the crash-box,
20113 the crash-box is only appropriate to one specific group.
20115 `t' `t' makes X-Faces disappear.
20117 nnmh-be-safe means that crossposted articles will
20118 be marked as unread.
20120 Orphan score entries don't show on "V t" score trace
20122 when clearing out data, the cache data should also be reset.
20124 rewrite gnus-summary-limit-children to be non-recursive
20125 to avoid exceeding lisp nesting on huge groups.
20127 expunged articles are counted when computing scores.
20129 implement gnus-batch-brew-soup
20131 ticked articles aren't easy to read in pick mode -- `n' and
20132 stuff just skips past them. Read articles are the same.
20134 topics that contain just groups with ticked
20135 articles aren't displayed.
20137 nndoc should always allocate unique Message-IDs.
20139 If there are mail groups the first time you use Gnus, Gnus'll
20140 make the mail groups killed.
20142 no "no news is good news" when using topics.
20144 when doing crosspost marking, the cache has to be consulted
20145 and articles have to be removed.
20147 nnweb should fetch complete articles when they are split into several
20150 scoring on head immediate doesn't work.
20152 finding short score file names takes forever.
20154 canceling articles in foreign groups.
20156 nntp-open-rlogin no longer works.
20158 C-u C-x C-s (Summary) switches to the group buffer.
20160 move nnmail-split-history out to the backends.
20162 nnweb doesn't work properly.
20164 using a virtual server name as `gnus-select-method' doesn't work?
20166 when killing/yanking a group from one topic to another in a slave, the
20167 master will yank it first to one topic and then add it to another.
20171 warn user about `=' redirection of a group in the active file?
20173 take over the XEmacs menubar and offer a toggle between the XEmacs
20174 bar and the Gnus bar.
20177 push active file and NOV file parsing down into C code.
20178 `(canonize-message-id id)'
20179 `(mail-parent-message-id references n)'
20180 `(parse-news-nov-line &optional dependency-hashtb)'
20181 `(parse-news-nov-region beg end &optional dependency-hashtb fullp)'
20182 `(parse-news-active-region beg end hashtb)'
20187 nnml .overview directory with splits.
20191 postponed commands.
20193 the selected article show have its Subject displayed in its summary line.
20195 when entering groups, get the real number of unread articles from
20198 sort after gathering threads -- make false roots have the
20199 headers of the oldest orphan with a 0 article number?
20201 nndoc groups should inherit the score files of their parents? Also
20202 inherit copy prompts and save files.
20204 command to start up Gnus (if not running) and enter a mail mode buffer.
20206 allow editing the group description from the group buffer
20207 for backends that support that.
20209 gnus-hide,show-all-topics
20211 groups and sub-topics should be allowed to mingle inside each topic,
20212 and not just list all subtopics at the end.
20214 a command to remove all read articles that are not needed to connect
20215 threads -- `gnus-summary-limit-to-sparse-unread'?
20217 a variable to turn off limiting/cutting of threads in the tree buffer.
20219 a variable to limit how many files are uudecoded.
20221 add zombie groups to a special "New Groups" topic.
20223 server mode command: close/open all connections
20225 put a file date in gnus-score-alist and check whether the file
20226 has been changed before using it.
20228 on exit from a digest group, go to the next article in the parent group.
20230 hide (sub)threads with low score.
20232 when expiring, remove all marks from expired articles.
20234 gnus-summary-limit-to-body
20236 a regexp alist that says what level groups are to be subscribed
20237 on. Eg. -- `(("nnml:" . 1))'.
20239 easier interface to nnkiboze to create ephemeral groups that
20240 contain groups that match a regexp.
20242 allow newlines in <URL:> urls, but remove them before using
20245 If there is no From line, the mail backends should fudge one from the
20248 fuzzy simplifying should strip all non-alpha-numerical info
20249 from subject lines.
20251 gnus-soup-brew-soup-with-high-scores.
20253 nntp-ping-before-connect
20255 command to check whether NOV is evil. "list overview.fmt".
20257 when entering a group, Gnus should look through the score
20258 files very early for `local' atoms and set those local variables.
20260 message annotations.
20262 topics are always yanked before groups, and that's not good.
20264 (set-extent-property extent 'help-echo "String to display in minibuf")
20265 to display help in the minibuffer on buttons under XEmacs.
20267 allow group line format spec to say how many articles there
20272 `run-with-idle-timer' in gnus-demon.
20274 stop using invisible text properties and start using overlays instead
20276 C-c C-f C-e to add an Expires header.
20278 go from one group to the next; everything is expunged; go to the
20279 next group instead of going to the group buffer.
20281 gnus-renumber-cache -- to renumber the cache using "low" numbers.
20283 record topic changes in the dribble buffer.
20285 `nnfolder-generate-active-file' should look at the folders it
20286 finds and generate proper active ranges.
20288 nneething-look-in-files-for-article-heads variable to control
20289 whether nneething should sniff all files in the directories.
20291 gnus-fetch-article -- start Gnus, enter group, display article
20293 gnus-dont-move-articles-to-same-group variable when respooling.
20295 when messages are crossposted between several auto-expirable groups,
20296 articles aren't properly marked as expirable.
20298 nneething should allow deletion/moving.
20300 TAB on the last button should go to the first button.
20302 if the car of an element in `mail-split-methods' is a function,
20303 and the function returns non-nil, use that as the name of the group(s) to
20306 command for listing all score files that have been applied.
20308 a command in the article buffer to return to `summary' config.
20310 `gnus-always-post-using-current-server' -- variable to override
20311 `C-c C-c' when posting.
20313 nnmail-group-spool-alist -- says where each group should use
20316 when an article is crossposted to an auto-expirable group, the article
20317 should be marker as expirable.
20319 article mode command/menu for "send region as URL to browser".
20321 on errors, jump to info nodes that explain the error. For instance,
20322 on invalid From headers, or on error messages from the nntp server.
20324 when gathering threads, make the article that has no "Re: " the parent.
20325 Also consult Date headers.
20327 a token in splits to call shrink-window-if-larger-than-buffer
20329 `1 0 A M' to do matches on the active hashtb.
20331 duplicates -- command to remove Gnus-Warning header, use the read
20332 Message-ID, delete the "original".
20334 when replying to several messages at once, put the "other" message-ids
20335 into a See-Also header.
20337 support setext: URL:http://www.bsdi.com/setext/
20339 support ProleText: <URL:http://proletext.clari.net/prole/proletext.html>
20341 when browsing a foreign server, the groups that are already subscribed
20342 should be listed as such and not as "K".
20344 generate font names dynamically.
20346 score file mode auto-alist.
20348 allow nndoc to change/add/delete things from documents. Implement
20349 methods for each format for adding an article to the document.
20351 `gnus-fetch-old-headers' `all' value to incorporate
20352 absolutely all headers there is.
20354 function like `|', but concatenate all marked articles
20355 and pipe them to the process.
20357 cache the list of killed (or active) groups in a separate file. Update
20358 the file whenever we read the active file or the list
20359 of killed groups in the .eld file reaches a certain length.
20361 function for starting to edit a file to put into
20362 the current mail group.
20364 score-find-trace should display the total score of the article.
20366 "ghettozie" -- score on Xref header and nix it out after using it
20367 to avoid marking as read in other groups it has been crossposted to.
20369 look at procmail splitting. The backends should create
20370 the groups automatically if a spool file exists for that group.
20372 function for backends to register themselves with Gnus.
20374 when replying to several process-marked articles,
20375 have all the From end up in Cc headers? Variable to toggle.
20377 command to delete a crossposted mail article from all
20378 groups it has been mailed to.
20380 `B c' and `B m' should be crosspost aware.
20382 hide-pgp should also hide PGP public key blocks.
20384 Command in the group buffer to respool process-marked groups.
20386 `gnus-summary-find-matching' should accept
20387 pseudo-"headers" like "body", "head" and "all"
20389 When buttifying <URL: > things, all white space (including
20390 newlines) should be ignored.
20392 Process-marking all groups in a topic should process-mark
20393 groups in subtopics as well.
20395 Add non-native groups to the list of killed groups when killing them.
20397 nntp-suggest-kewl-config to probe the nntp server and suggest
20400 add edit and forward secondary marks.
20402 nnml shouldn't visit its .overview files.
20404 allow customizing sorting within gathered threads.
20406 `B q' shouldn't select the current article.
20408 nnmbox should support a newsgroups file for descriptions.
20410 allow fetching mail from several pop servers.
20412 Be able to specify whether the saving commands save the original
20413 or the formatted article.
20415 a command to reparent with the child process-marked (cf. `T ^'.).
20417 I think the possibility to send a password with nntp-open-rlogin
20418 should be a feature in Red Gnus.
20420 The `Z n' command should be possible to execute from a mouse click.
20422 more limiting functions -- date, etc.
20424 be able to limit on a random header; on body; using reverse matches.
20426 a group parameter (`absofucking-total-expiry') that will make Gnus expire
20427 even unread articles.
20429 a command to print the article buffer as postscript.
20431 variable to disable password fetching when opening by nntp-open-telnet.
20433 manual: more example servers -- nntp with rlogin, telnet
20435 checking for bogus groups should clean topic alists as well.
20437 canceling articles in foreign groups.
20439 article number in folded topics isn't properly updated by
20442 Movement in the group buffer to the next unread group should go to the
20443 next closed topic with unread messages if no group can be found.
20445 Extensive info pages generated on the fly with help everywhere --
20446 in the "*Gnus edit*" buffers, for instance.
20448 Topic movement commands -- like thread movement. Up, down, forward, next.
20450 a way to tick/mark as read Gcc'd articles.
20452 a way to say that all groups within a specific topic comes
20453 from a particular server? Hm.
20455 `gnus-article-fill-if-long-lines' -- a function to fill
20456 the article buffer if there are any looong lines there.
20458 `T h' should jump to the parent topic and fold it.
20460 a command to create an ephemeral nndoc group out of a file,
20461 and then splitting it/moving it to some other group/backend.
20463 a group parameter for nnkiboze groups that says that
20464 all kibozed articles should be entered into the cache.
20466 It should also probably be possible to delimit what
20467 `gnus-jog-cache' does -- for instance, work on just some groups, or on
20468 some levels, and entering just articles that have a score higher than
20471 nnfolder should append to the folder instead of re-writing
20472 the entire folder to disk when accepting new messages.
20474 allow all backends to do the proper thing with .gz files.
20476 a backend for reading collections of babyl files nnbabylfolder?
20478 a command for making the native groups into foreign groups.
20480 server mode command for clearing read marks from all groups
20483 when following up multiple articles, include all To, Cc, etc headers
20486 a command for deciding what the total score of the current
20487 thread is. Also a way to highlight based on this.
20489 command to show and edit group scores
20491 a gnus-tree-minimize-horizontal to minimize tree buffers
20494 command to generate nnml overview file for one group.
20496 `C-u C-u a' -- prompt for many crossposted groups.
20498 keep track of which mail groups have received new articles (in this session).
20499 Be able to generate a report and perhaps do some marking in the group
20502 gnus-build-sparse-threads to a number -- build only sparse threads
20503 that are of that length.
20505 have nnmh respect mh's unseen sequence in .mh_profile.
20507 cache the newsgroups descriptions locally.
20509 asynchronous posting under nntp.
20511 be able to control word adaptive scoring from the score files.
20513 a variable to make `C-c C-c' post using the "current" select method.
20515 `limit-exclude-low-scored-articles'.
20517 if `gnus-summary-show-thread' is a number, hide threads that have
20518 a score lower than this number.
20520 split newsgroup subscription variable up into "order" and "method".
20522 buttonize ange-ftp file names.
20524 a command to make a duplicate copy of the current article
20525 so that each copy can be edited separately.
20527 nnweb should allow fetching from the local nntp server.
20529 record the sorting done in the summary buffer so that
20530 it can be repeated when limiting/regenerating the buffer.
20532 nnml-generate-nov-databses should generate for
20535 when the user does commands in the group buffer, check
20536 the modification time of the .newsrc.eld file and use
20537 ask-user-about-supersession-threat. Also warn when trying
20538 to save .newsrc.eld and it has changed.
20540 M-g on a topic will display all groups with 0 articles in
20543 command to remove all topic stuff.
20545 allow exploding incoming digests when reading incoming mail
20546 and splitting the resulting digests.
20548 nnsoup shouldn't set the `message-' variables.
20550 command to nix out all nnoo state information.
20552 nnmail-process-alist that calls functions if group names
20553 matches an alist -- before saving.
20555 use buffer-invisibility-spec everywhere for hiding text.
20557 variable to activate each group before entering them
20558 to get the (new) number of articles. `gnus-activate-before-entering'.
20560 command to fetch a Message-ID from any buffer, even
20561 starting Gnus first if necessary.
20563 when posting and checking whether a group exists or not, just
20564 ask the nntp server instead of relying on the active hashtb.
20566 buttonize the output of `C-c C-a' in an apropos-like way.
20568 `G p' should understand process/prefix, and allow editing
20569 of several groups at once.
20571 command to create an ephemeral nnvirtual group that
20572 matches some regexp(s).
20574 nndoc should understand "Content-Type: message/rfc822" forwarded messages.
20576 it should be possible to score "thread" on the From header.
20578 hitting RET on a "gnus-uu-archive" pseudo article should unpack it.
20580 `B i' should display the article at once in the summary buffer.
20582 remove the "*" mark at once when unticking an article.
20584 `M-s' should highlight the matching text.
20586 when checking for duplicated mails, use Resent-Message-ID if present.
20588 killing and yanking groups in topics should be better. If killing one copy
20589 of a group that exists in multiple topics, only that copy should
20590 be removed. Yanking should insert the copy, and yanking topics
20591 should be possible to be interspersed with the other yankings.
20593 command for enter a group just to read the cached articles. A way to say
20594 "ignore the nntp connection; just read from the cache."
20596 `X u' should decode base64 articles.
20598 a way to hide all "inner" cited text, leaving just the most
20599 recently cited text.
20601 nnvirtual should be asynchronous.
20603 after editing an article, gnus-original-article-buffer should
20606 there should probably be a way to make Gnus not connect to the
20607 server and just read the articles in the server
20609 allow a `set-default' (or something) to change the default
20610 value of nnoo variables.
20612 a command to import group infos from a .newsrc.eld file.
20614 groups from secondary servers have the entire select method
20615 listed in each group info.
20617 a command for just switching from the summary buffer to the group
20620 a way to specify that some incoming mail washing functions
20621 should only be applied to some groups.
20623 Message `C-f C-t' should ask the user whether to heed
20624 mail-copies-to: never.
20626 new group parameter -- `post-to-server' that says to post
20627 using the current server. Also a variable to do the same.
20629 the slave dribble files should auto-save to the slave file names.
20631 a group parameter that says what articles to display on group entry, based
20634 a way to visually distinguish slave Gnusae from masters. (Whip instead
20637 Use DJ Bernstein "From " quoting/dequoting, where applicable.
20639 Why is hide-citation-maybe and hide-citation different? Also
20642 group user-defined meta-parameters.
20646 From: John Griffith <griffith@@sfs.nphil.uni-tuebingen.de>
20648 I like the option for trying to retrieve the FAQ for a group and I was
20649 thinking it would be great if for those newsgroups that had archives
20650 you could also try to read the archive for that group. Part of the
20651 problem is that archives are spread all over the net, unlike FAQs.
20652 What would be best I suppose is to find the one closest to your site.
20654 In any case, there is a list of general news group archives at @*
20655 ftp://ftp.neosoft.com/pub/users/claird/news.lists/newsgroup_archives.html
20662 From: Jason L Tibbitts III <tibbs@@hpc.uh.edu>
20663 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
20665 (gnus-group-add-parameter group
20666 (cons 'gnus-group-date-last-entered (list (current-time-string))))))
20668 (defun gnus-user-format-function-d (headers)
20669 "Return the date the group was last read."
20670 (cond ((car (gnus-group-get-parameter gnus-tmp-group 'gnus-group-date-last-entered)))
20675 tanken var at når du bruker `gnus-startup-file' som prefix (FOO) til å lete
20676 opp en fil FOO-SERVER, FOO-SERVER.el, FOO-SERVER.eld, kan du la den være en
20677 liste hvor du bruker hvert element i listen som FOO, istedet. da kunne man
20678 hatt forskjellige serveres startup-filer forskjellige steder.
20682 LMI> Well, nnbabyl could alter the group info to heed labels like
20683 LMI> answered and read, I guess.
20685 It could also keep them updated (the same for the Status: header of
20688 They could be used like this:
20692 `M l <name> RET' add label <name> to current message.
20693 `M u <name> RET' remove label <name> from current message.
20694 `/ l <expr> RET' limit summary buffer according to <expr>.
20696 <expr> would be a boolean expression on the labels, e.g.
20698 `/ l bug & !fixed RET'
20701 would show all the messages which are labeled `bug' but not labeled
20704 One could also imagine the labels being used for highlighting, or
20705 affect the summary line format.
20709 Sender: abraham@@dina.kvl.dk
20711 I'd like a gnus-find-file which work like find file, except that it
20712 would recognize things that looks like messages or folders:
20714 - If it is a directory containing numbered files, create an nndir
20717 - For other directories, create a nneething summary buffer.
20719 - For files matching "\\`From ", create a nndoc/mbox summary.
20721 - For files matching "\\`BABYL OPTIONS:", create a nndoc/baby summary.
20723 - For files matching "\\`[^ \t\n]+:", create an *Article* buffer.
20725 - For other files, just find them normally.
20727 I'd like `nneething' to use this function, so it would work on a
20728 directory potentially containing mboxes or babyl files.
20731 Please send a mail to bwarsaw@@cnri.reston.va.us (Barry A. Warsaw) and
20732 tell him what you are doing.
20735 Currently, I get prompted:
20739 decend into sci.something ?
20743 The problem above is that since there is really only one subsection of
20744 science, shouldn't it prompt you for only descending sci.something? If
20745 there was a sci.somethingelse group or section, then it should prompt
20746 for sci? first the sci.something? then sci.somethingelse?...
20749 Ja, det burde være en måte å si slikt. Kanskje en ny variabel?
20750 `gnus-use-few-score-files'? SÃ¥ kunne score-regler legges til den
20751 "mest" lokale score-fila. F. eks. ville no-gruppene betjenes av
20752 "no.all.SCORE", osv.
20755 What i want is for Gnus to treat any sequence or combination of the following
20756 as a single spoiler warning and hide it all, replacing it with a "Next Page"
20762 more than n blank lines
20764 more than m identical lines
20765 (which should be replaced with button to show them)
20767 any whitespace surrounding any of the above
20771 Well, we could allow a new value to `gnus-thread-ignore-subject' --
20772 `spaces', or something. (We could even default to that.) And then
20773 subjects that differ in white space only could be considered the
20774 "same" subject for threading purposes.
20777 Modes to preprocess the contents (e.g. jka-compr) use the second form
20778 "(REGEXP FUNCTION NON-NIL)" while ordinary modes (e.g. tex) use the first
20779 form "(REGEXP . FUNCTION)", so you could use it to distinguish between
20780 those two types of modes. (auto-modes-alist, insert-file-contents-literally.)
20783 Under XEmacs -- do funny article marks:
20786 soup - bowl of soup
20787 score below - dim light bulb
20788 score over - bright light bulb
20791 Yes. I think the algorithm is as follows:
20796 show-list-of-articles-in-group
20797 if (key-pressed == SPACE)
20798 if (no-more-articles-in-group-to-select)
20799 if (articles-selected)
20800 start-reading-selected-articles;
20801 junk-unread-articles;
20806 else if (key-pressed = '.')
20807 if (consolidated-menus) # same as hide-thread in Gnus
20808 select-thread-under-cursor;
20810 select-article-under-cursor;
20814 if (key-pressed == SPACE)
20815 if (more-pages-in-article)
20817 else if (more-selected-articles-to-read)
20824 My precise need here would have been to limit files to Incoming*.
20825 One could think of some `nneething-only-files' variable, but I guess
20826 it would have been unacceptable if one was using many unrelated such
20829 A more useful approach would be to, in response to the `G D' prompt, be
20830 allowed to say something like: `~/.mail/Incoming*', somewhat limiting
20831 the top-level directory only (in case directories would be matched by
20832 the wildcard expression).
20835 It would be nice if it also handled
20837 <URL:news://sunsite.auc.dk/>
20839 which should correspond to `B nntp RET sunsite.auc.dk' in *Group*.
20844 Take a look at w3-menu.el in the Emacs-W3 distribution - this works out
20845 really well. Each menu is 'named' by a symbol that would be on a
20846 gnus-*-menus (where * would be whatever, but at least group, summary, and
20847 article versions) variable.
20849 So for gnus-summary-menus, I would set to '(sort mark dispose ...)
20851 A value of '1' would just put _all_ the menus in a single 'GNUS' menu in
20852 the main menubar. This approach works really well for Emacs-W3 and VM.
20856 nndoc should take care to create unique Message-IDs for all its
20859 gnus-score-followup-article only works when you have a summary buffer
20860 active. Make it work when posting from the group buffer as well.
20861 (message-sent-hook).
20863 rewrite gnus-demon to use run-with-idle-timers.
20866 * Enhancements to Gnus:
20870 * gnus-servers (gnus-start-server-buffer?)--enters Gnus and goes
20871 straight to the server buffer, without opening any connections to
20874 * gnus-server-read-server-newsrc--produces a buffer very similar to
20875 the group buffer, but with only groups from that server listed;
20876 quitting this buffer returns to the server buffer.
20879 add a command to check the integrity of an nnfolder folder --
20880 go through the article numbers and see that there are no duplicates,
20884 `unsmileyfy-buffer' to undo smileification.
20887 a command to give all relevant info on an article, including all
20891 when doing `-request-accept-article', the backends should do
20892 the nnmail duplicate checking.
20895 allow `message-signature-file' to be a function to return the
20896 value of the signature file.
20899 In addition, I would love it if I could configure message-tab so that it
20900 could call `bbdb-complete-name' in other headers. So, some sort of
20903 (setq message-tab-alist
20904 '((message-header-regexp message-expand-group)
20905 ("^\\(To\\|[cC]c\\|[bB]cc\\)" bbdb-complete-name)))
20907 then you could run the relevant function to complete the information in
20911 cache the newsgroups file locally to avoid reloading it all the time.
20914 a command to import a buffer into a group.
20917 nnweb should allow fetching by Message-ID from servers.
20920 point in the article buffer doesn't always go to the
20921 beginning of the buffer when selecting new articles.
20924 a command to process mark all unread articles.
20927 `gnus-gather-threads-by-references-and-subject' -- first
20928 do gathering by references, and then go through the dummy roots and
20929 do more gathering by subject.
20932 gnus-uu-mark-in-numerical-order -- process mark articles in
20933 article numerical order.
20936 (gnus-thread-total-score
20937 (gnus-id-to-thread (mail-header-id (gnus-summary-article-header))))
20941 sorting by score is wrong when using sparse threads.
20944 a command to fetch an arbitrary article -- without having to be
20945 in the summary buffer.
20948 a new nncvs backend. Each group would show an article, using
20949 version branches as threading, checkin date as the date, etc.
20952 http://www.dejanews.com/forms/dnsetfilter_exp.html ?
20953 This filter allows one to construct advance queries on the Dejanews
20954 database such as specifying start and end dates, subject, author,
20955 and/or newsgroup name.
20958 new Date header scoring type -- older, newer
20961 use the summary toolbar in the article buffer.
20964 a command to fetch all articles that are less than X days old.
20967 in pick mode, `q' should save the list of selected articles in the
20968 group info. The next time the group is selected, these articles
20969 will automatically get the process mark.
20972 Isn't it possible to (also?) allow M-^ to automatically try the
20973 default server if it fails on the current server? (controlled by a
20974 user variable, (nil, t, 'ask)).
20977 make it possible to cancel articles using the select method for the
20981 `gnus-summary-select-article-on-entry' or something. It'll default
20982 to t and will select whatever article decided by `gnus-auto-select-first'.
20985 a new variable to control which selection commands should be unselecting.
20986 `first', `best', `next', `prev', `next-unread', `prev-unread' are
20990 be able to select groups that have no articles in them
20991 to be able to post in them (using the current select method).
20994 be able to post via DejaNews.
20997 `x' should retain any sortings that have been performed.
21000 allow the user to specify the precedence of the secondary marks. Also
21001 allow them to be displayed separately.
21004 gnus-summary-save-in-pipe should concatenate the results from
21005 the processes when doing a process marked pipe.
21008 a new match type, like Followup, but which adds Thread matches on all
21009 articles that match a certain From header.
21012 a function that can be read from kill-emacs-query-functions to offer
21013 saving living summary buffers.
21016 a function for selecting a particular group which will contain
21017 the articles listed in a list of article numbers/id's.
21020 a battery of character translation functions to translate common
21021 Mac, MS (etc) characters into ISO 8859-1.
21024 (defun article-fix-m$word ()
21025 "Fix M$Word smartquotes in an article."
21028 (let ((buffer-read-only nil))
21029 (goto-char (point-min))
21030 (while (search-forward "\221" nil t)
21031 (replace-match "`" t t))
21032 (goto-char (point-min))
21033 (while (search-forward "\222" nil t)
21034 (replace-match "'" t t))
21035 (goto-char (point-min))
21036 (while (search-forward "\223" nil t)
21037 (replace-match "\"" t t))
21038 (goto-char (point-min))
21039 (while (search-forward "\224" nil t)
21040 (replace-match "\"" t t)))))
21045 (add-hook 'gnus-exit-query-functions
21047 (if (and (file-exists-p nnmail-spool-file)
21048 (> (nnheader-file-size nnmail-spool-file) 0))
21049 (yes-or-no-p "New mail has arrived. Quit Gnus anyways? ")
21050 (y-or-n-p "Are you sure you want to quit Gnus? "))))
21054 allow message-default-headers to be a function.
21057 new Date score match types -- < > = (etc) that take floating point
21058 numbers and match on the age of the article.
21062 > > > If so, I've got one gripe: It seems that when I fire up gnus 5.2.25
21063 > > > under xemacs-19.14, it's creating a new frame, but is erasing the
21064 > > > buffer in the frame that it was called from =:-O
21066 > > Hm. How do you start up Gnus? From the toolbar or with
21067 > > `M-x gnus-other-frame'?
21069 > I normally start it up from the toolbar; at
21070 > least that's the way I've caught it doing the
21075 all commands that react to the process mark should push
21076 the current process mark set onto the stack.
21079 gnus-article-hide-pgp
21080 Selv ville jeg nok ha valgt å slette den dersom teksten matcher
21082 "\\(This\s+\\)?[^ ]+ has been automatically signed by"
21084 og det er maks hundre tegn mellom match-end og ----linja. Men -det-
21085 er min type heuristikk og langt fra alles.
21088 `gnus-subscribe-sorted' -- insert new groups where they would have been
21089 sorted to if `gnus-group-sort-function' were run.
21092 gnus-(group,summary)-highlight should respect any `face' text props set
21096 use run-with-idle-timer for gnus-demon instead of the
21097 home-brewed stuff for better reliability.
21100 add a way to select which NoCeM type to apply -- spam, troll, etc.
21103 nndraft-request-group should tally auto-save files.
21106 implement nntp-retry-on-break and nntp-command-timeout.
21109 gnus-article-highlight-limit that says when not to highlight (long)
21113 (nnoo-set SERVER VARIABLE VALUE)
21119 interrupitng agent fetching of articles should save articles.
21122 command to open a digest group, and copy all the articles there to the
21126 a variable to disable article body highlights if there's more than
21127 X characters in the body.
21130 handle 480/381 authinfo requests separately.
21133 include the texi/dir file in the distribution.
21136 format spec to "tab" to a position.
21139 Move all prompting to the new `M-n' default style.
21142 command to display all dormant articles.
21145 gnus-auto-select-next makeover -- list of things it should do.
21148 a score match type that adds scores matching on From if From has replied
21149 to something someone else has said.
21152 Read Netscape discussion groups:
21153 snews://secnews.netscape.com/netscape.communicator.unix
21156 One command to edit the original version if an article, and one to edit
21157 the displayed version.
21160 @kbd{T v} -- make all process-marked articles the children of the
21164 Switch from initial text to the new default text mechanism.
21167 How about making it possible to expire local articles? Will it be
21168 possible to make various constraints on when an article can be
21169 expired, e.g. (read), (age > 14 days), or the more interesting (read
21173 New limit command---limit to articles that have a certain string
21174 in the head or body.
21177 Allow breaking lengthy @sc{nntp} commands.
21180 gnus-article-highlight-limit, to disable highlighting in big articles.
21183 Editing an article should put the article to be edited
21184 in a special, unique buffer.
21187 A command to send a mail to the admin-address group param.
21190 A Date scoring type that will match if the article
21191 is less than a certain number of days old.
21194 New spec: %~(tab 56) to put point on column 56
21197 Allow Gnus Agent scoring to use normal score files.
21200 Rething the Agent active file thing. `M-g' doesn't update the active
21201 file, for instance.
21204 With dummy roots, `^' and then selecing the first article
21205 in any other dummy thread will make gnus highlight the
21206 dummy root instead of the first article.
21209 Propagate all group properties (marks, article numbers, etc) up to the
21210 topics for displaying.
21213 `n' in the group buffer with topics should go to the next group
21214 with unread articles, even if that group is hidden in a topic.
21217 gnus-posting-styles doesn't work in drafts.
21220 gnus-summary-limit-include-cached is slow when there are
21221 many articles in the cache, since it regenerates big parts of the
21222 summary buffer for each article.
21225 Implement gnus-batch-brew-soup.
21228 Group parameters and summary commands for un/subscribing to mailing
21232 Introduce nnmail-home-directory.
21235 gnus-fetch-group and friends should exit Gnus when the user
21239 The jingle is only played on the second invocation of Gnus.
21242 Bouncing articles should do MIME.
21245 Crossposted articles should "inherit" the % or @ mark from the other
21246 groups it has been crossposted to, or something. (Agent.)
21249 If point is on a group that appears multiple times in topics, and
21250 you press `l', point will move to the first instance of the group.
21253 A spec for the group line format to display the number of
21254 agent-downloaded articles in the group.
21257 Some nntp servers never respond when posting, so there should be a
21258 timeout for all commands.
21261 When stading on a topic line and `t'-ing, point goes to the last line.
21262 It should go somewhere else.
21265 I'm having trouble accessing a newsgroup with a "+" in its name with
21266 Gnus. There is a new newsgroup on msnews.microsoft.com named
21267 "microsoft.public.multimedia.directx.html+time" that I'm trying to
21269 "nntp+msnews.microsoft.com:microsoft.public.multimedia.directx.html+time"
21270 but it gives an error that it cant access the group.
21272 Is the "+" character illegal in newsgroup names? Is there any way in
21273 Gnus to work around this? (gnus 5.6.45 - XEmacs 20.4)
21280 Subject: Answer to your mails 01.01.1999-01.05.1999
21281 --text follows this line--
21282 Sorry I killfiled you...
21284 Under the subject "foo", you wrote on 01.01.1999:
21286 Under the subject "foo1", you wrote on 01.01.1999:
21291 Allow "orphan" scores in the Agent scoring.
21295 - Edit article's summary line.
21297 - Sort lines in buffer by subject
21299 --> the old subject line appears in Summary buffer, not the one that was
21305 Remove list identifiers from the subject in the summary when doing `^'
21309 Have the Agent write out articles, one by one, as it retrieves them,
21310 to avoid having to re-fetch them all if Emacs should crash while
21314 Be able to forward groups of messages as MIME digests.
21317 nnweb should include the "get whole article" article when getting articles.
21320 When I type W W c (gnus-article-hide-citation) in the summary
21321 buffer, the citations are revealed, but the [+] buttons don't turn
21322 into [-] buttons. (If I click on one of the [+] buttons, it does
21323 turn into a [-] button.)
21326 Perhaps there should be a command to "attach" a buffer of comments to
21327 a message? That is, `B WHATEVER', you're popped into a buffer, write
21328 something, end with `C-c C-c', and then the thing you've written gets
21329 to be the child of the message you're commenting.
21332 Handle external-body parts.
21335 When renaming a group name, nnmail-split-history does not get the group
21339 Allow mail splitting on bodies when using advanced mail splitting.
21342 (body "whatever.text")
21346 Be able to run `J u' from summary buffers.
21349 Solve the halting problem.
21358 @section The Manual
21362 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
21363 either @code{texi2dvi}
21365 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
21366 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
21368 to get what you hold in your hands now.
21370 The following conventions have been used:
21375 This is a @samp{string}
21378 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
21381 This is a @file{file}
21384 This is a @code{symbol}
21388 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
21392 (setq flargnoze "yes")
21395 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
21398 (setq flumphel 'yes)
21401 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
21402 ever get them confused.
21406 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
21407 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
21408 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
21409 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
21410 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
21411 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
21412 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
21418 @node On Writing Manuals
21419 @section On Writing Manuals
21421 I guess most manuals are written after-the-fact; documenting a program
21422 that's already there. This is not how this manual is written. When
21423 implementing something, I write the manual entry for that something
21424 straight away. I then see that it's difficult to explain the
21425 functionality, so I write how it's supposed to be, and then I change the
21426 implementation. Writing the documentation and writing the code goes
21429 This, of course, means that this manual has no, or little, flow. It
21430 documents absolutely everything in Gnus, but often not where you're
21431 looking for it. It is a reference manual, and not a guide to how to get
21434 That would be a totally different book, that should be written using the
21435 reference manual as source material. It would look quite differently.
21440 @section Terminology
21442 @cindex terminology
21447 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
21448 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
21449 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
21450 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
21451 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
21455 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
21456 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
21457 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
21458 not posting, and replying is not following up.
21462 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
21466 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
21471 Gnus gets fed articles from a number of backends, both news and mail
21472 backends. Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this
21473 is all done by the backends.
21477 Gnus will always use one method (and backend) as the @dfn{native}, or
21478 default, way of getting news.
21482 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
21483 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary backends for getting
21488 Secondary backends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
21489 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
21493 A message that has been posted as news.
21496 @cindex mail message
21497 A message that has been mailed.
21501 A mail message or news article
21505 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
21510 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
21515 A line from the head of an article.
21519 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
21520 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
21524 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the backend for the headers of all
21525 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
21526 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
21527 normal @sc{head} format.
21531 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
21532 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
21533 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
21534 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
21535 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
21536 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
21538 @item killed groups
21539 @cindex killed groups
21540 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
21541 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
21543 @item zombie groups
21544 @cindex zombie groups
21545 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
21548 @cindex active file
21549 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
21550 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
21551 is rather large, as you might surmise.
21554 @cindex bogus groups
21555 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
21556 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
21557 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
21560 @cindex activating groups
21561 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
21562 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
21563 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
21567 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
21569 @item select method
21570 @cindex select method
21571 A structure that specifies the backend, the server and the virtual
21574 @item virtual server
21575 @cindex virtual server
21576 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
21577 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
21578 whole is a virtual server.
21582 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
21583 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
21586 @item ephemeral groups
21587 @cindex ephemeral groups
21588 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
21589 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
21590 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
21593 @cindex solid groups
21594 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
21595 group buffer are solid groups.
21597 @item sparse articles
21598 @cindex sparse articles
21599 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
21600 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
21604 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
21605 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
21609 @cindex thread root
21610 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
21611 articles in the thread.
21615 An article that has responses.
21619 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
21623 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
21624 specified by RFC 1153.
21630 @node Customization
21631 @section Customization
21632 @cindex general customization
21634 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
21635 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
21636 for some quite common situations.
21639 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
21640 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
21641 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
21642 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
21646 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
21647 @subsection Slow/Expensive @sc{nntp} Connection
21649 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
21650 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
21651 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
21655 @item gnus-read-active-file
21656 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
21657 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
21658 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
21659 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
21660 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
21662 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
21663 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
21664 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
21665 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
21669 @node Slow Terminal Connection
21670 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
21672 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
21673 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
21674 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
21678 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
21679 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
21680 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
21681 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
21682 horizontal and vertical recentering.
21684 @item gnus-visible-headers
21685 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
21686 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
21687 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
21688 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
21690 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
21692 (setq gnus-treat-hide-headers 'head
21693 gnus-treat-hide-signature t
21694 gnus-treat-hide-citation t)
21697 @item gnus-use-full-window
21698 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
21699 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
21700 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
21701 want to read them anyway.
21703 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
21704 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
21707 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
21708 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
21709 lines, which might save some time.
21713 @node Little Disk Space
21714 @subsection Little Disk Space
21717 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
21718 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
21722 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
21723 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
21724 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
21725 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
21728 @item gnus-read-newsrc-file
21729 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never read @file{.newsrc}---it will
21730 only read @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
21731 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
21734 @item gnus-save-killed-list
21735 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
21736 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
21737 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
21738 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
21744 @subsection Slow Machine
21745 @cindex slow machine
21747 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
21748 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
21750 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
21751 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
21753 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
21754 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
21755 summary buffer faster.
21759 @node Troubleshooting
21760 @section Troubleshooting
21761 @cindex troubleshooting
21763 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
21771 Make sure your computer is switched on.
21774 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
21775 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
21779 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
21780 like @samp{T-gnus 6.14.* (based on Pterodactyl Gnus v0.*; for SEMI 1.1*,
21781 FLIM 1.1*)} you have the right files loaded. If, on the other hand, you
21782 get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp flee}, you have some
21783 old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
21786 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
21790 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
21791 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
21792 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
21793 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
21794 something like that.
21797 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
21800 @cindex reporting bugs
21802 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
21804 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
21805 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
21806 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
21807 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
21809 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
21810 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
21811 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
21812 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
21815 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
21816 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
21817 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
21818 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
21819 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
21820 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
21822 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
21823 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
21824 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
21827 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
21828 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
21830 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
21831 @cindex ding mailing list
21832 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@gnus.org}.
21833 Write to @samp{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
21837 @node Gnus Reference Guide
21838 @section Gnus Reference Guide
21840 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
21841 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
21842 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
21843 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
21846 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
21847 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
21848 backends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
21849 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
21850 and general methods of operation.
21853 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
21854 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
21855 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
21856 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
21857 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
21858 * Group Info:: The group info format.
21859 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
21860 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
21861 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
21865 @node Gnus Utility Functions
21866 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
21867 @cindex Gnus utility functions
21868 @cindex utility functions
21870 @cindex internal variables
21872 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
21873 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
21874 Below is a list of the most common ones.
21878 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
21879 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
21880 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
21882 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
21883 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
21884 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
21886 @item gnus-group-real-name
21887 @findex gnus-group-real-name
21888 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
21891 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
21892 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
21893 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
21894 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
21896 @item gnus-get-info
21897 @findex gnus-get-info
21898 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
21900 @item gnus-group-unread
21901 @findex gnus-group-unread
21902 The number of unread articles in @var{group}, or @code{t} if that is
21906 @findex gnus-active
21907 The active entry for @var{group}.
21909 @item gnus-set-active
21910 @findex gnus-set-active
21911 Set the active entry for @var{group}.
21913 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
21914 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
21915 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
21918 @item gnus-continuum-version
21919 @findex gnus-continuum-version
21920 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
21921 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
21924 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
21925 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
21926 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
21928 @item gnus-news-group-p
21929 @findex gnus-news-group-p
21930 Says whether @var{group} came from a news backend.
21932 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
21933 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
21934 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
21936 @item gnus-server-to-method
21937 @findex gnus-server-to-method
21938 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
21940 @item gnus-server-equal
21941 @findex gnus-server-equal
21942 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
21944 @item gnus-group-native-p
21945 @findex gnus-group-native-p
21946 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
21948 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
21949 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
21950 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
21952 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
21953 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
21954 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
21956 @item group-group-find-parameter
21957 @findex group-group-find-parameter
21958 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
21959 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
21961 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
21962 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
21963 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
21965 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
21966 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
21967 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
21969 @item gnus-check-backend-function
21970 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
21971 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the backend
21972 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
21975 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
21979 @item gnus-read-method
21980 @findex gnus-read-method
21981 Prompts the user for a select method.
21986 @node Backend Interface
21987 @subsection Backend Interface
21989 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
21990 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
21991 server is a @dfn{backend} and some @dfn{backend variables}. As examples
21992 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
21993 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
21994 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
21996 When Gnus asks for information from a backend---say @code{nntp}---on
21997 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
21998 function parameters. (If not, the backend should use the ``current''
21999 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
22000 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
22001 been opened, the function should fail.
22003 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
22004 name. Take this example:
22008 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
22009 (nntp-port-number 4324))
22012 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
22013 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
22015 The backends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
22016 The standard backends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
22017 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
22019 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
22020 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
22021 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
22023 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
22024 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
22025 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
22026 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
22027 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
22028 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
22031 Some backends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} backends, and
22032 some might be said not to be. The latter are backends that generally
22033 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
22034 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
22037 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary backend
22040 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
22043 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
22044 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
22045 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
22046 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
22047 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
22048 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
22052 @node Required Backend Functions
22053 @subsubsection Required Backend Functions
22057 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
22059 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
22060 @code{Message-ID}s. Current backends do not fully support either---only
22061 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most backends do not support
22062 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
22064 The result data should either be HEADs or NOV lines, and the result
22065 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
22066 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
22067 of HEADs and NOV lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
22069 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching "extra
22070 headers", in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
22071 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
22072 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
22073 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the backend finds it
22074 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
22075 number, do maximum fetches.
22077 Here's an example HEAD:
22080 221 1056 Article retrieved.
22081 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
22082 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
22083 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
22084 Subject: Re: Something very droll
22085 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
22086 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
22088 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
22089 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
22090 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
22094 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
22095 these in the data buffer.
22097 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
22101 head = error / valid-head
22102 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
22103 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
22104 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
22105 header = <text> eol
22108 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
22109 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
22113 nov-buffer = *nov-line
22114 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
22115 field = <text except TAB>
22118 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
22122 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
22124 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
22125 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
22127 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The backend
22128 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
22129 server. In fact, it should do so.
22131 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
22132 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
22135 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
22137 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
22138 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
22141 There should be no data returned.
22144 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
22146 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the backend
22147 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that backend
22148 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
22149 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
22151 There should be no data returned.
22154 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
22156 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
22157 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
22158 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
22159 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
22161 There should be no data returned.
22164 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
22166 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
22168 There should be no data returned.
22171 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
22173 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
22174 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
22175 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
22176 it would be nice if that were possible.
22178 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
22179 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
22180 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
22181 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
22182 into its article buffer.
22184 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
22185 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
22186 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
22187 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
22188 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
22189 on successful article retrieval.
22192 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
22194 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
22195 making @var{group} the current group.
22197 If @var{fast}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
22200 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
22203 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
22206 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
22207 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
22208 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
22209 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
22210 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
22211 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
22212 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
22213 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader.
22216 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
22217 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
22218 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
22222 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
22224 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
22225 a no-op on most backends.
22227 There should be no data returned.
22230 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
22232 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
22235 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
22238 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
22239 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
22242 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
22243 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag.
22246 active-file = *active-line
22247 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
22249 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
22252 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
22253 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
22254 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
22257 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
22259 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
22260 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
22261 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
22262 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
22263 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
22264 clear if the posting could not be completed.
22266 There should be no result data from this function.
22271 @node Optional Backend Functions
22272 @subsubsection Optional Backend Functions
22276 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
22278 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
22279 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
22280 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
22282 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
22283 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
22284 former is in the same format as the data from
22285 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
22286 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
22289 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
22293 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
22295 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the backend for
22296 alterations. This comes in handy if the backend really carries all the
22297 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
22298 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
22299 should return the (altered) group info.
22301 There should be no result data from this function.
22304 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
22306 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
22307 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
22308 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
22309 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
22310 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
22311 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
22312 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
22313 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
22315 There should be no result data from this function.
22318 @item (nnchoke-request-set-mark GROUP ACTION &optional SERVER)
22320 Set/remove/add marks on articles. Normally Gnus handles the article
22321 marks (such as read, ticked, expired etc) internally, and store them in
22322 @code{~/.newsrc.eld}. Some backends (such as @sc{imap}) however carry
22323 all information about the articles on the server, so Gnus need to
22324 propagate the mark information to the server.
22326 ACTION is a list of mark setting requests, having this format:
22329 (RANGE ACTION MARK)
22332 Range is a range of articles you wish to update marks on. Action is
22333 @code{set}, @code{add} or @code{del}, respectively used for removing all
22334 existing marks and setting them as specified, adding (preserving the
22335 marks not mentioned) mark and removing (preserving the marks not
22336 mentioned) marks. Mark is a list of marks; where each mark is a symbol.
22337 Currently used marks are @code{read}, @code{tick}, @code{reply},
22338 @code{expire}, @code{killed}, @code{dormant}, @code{save},
22339 @code{download} and @code{unsend}, but your backend should, if possible,
22340 not limit itself to these.
22342 Given contradictory actions, the last action in the list should be the
22343 effective one. That is, if your action contains a request to add the
22344 @code{tick} mark on article 1 and, later in the list, a request to
22345 remove the mark on the same article, the mark should in fact be removed.
22347 An example action list:
22350 (((5 12 30) 'del '(tick))
22351 ((10 . 90) 'add '(read expire))
22352 ((92 94) 'del '(read)))
22355 The function should return a range of articles it wasn't able to set the
22356 mark on (currently not used for anything).
22358 There should be no result data from this function.
22360 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
22362 If the user tries to set a mark that the backend doesn't like, this
22363 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
22364 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
22365 @var{mark}. If the backend doesn't care, it must return the original
22366 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
22368 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
22369 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
22370 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
22373 There should be no result data from this function.
22376 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
22378 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
22379 request that the backend check for incoming articles, in one way or
22380 another. A mail backend will typically read the spool file or query the
22381 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
22382 to be heeded---if the backend decides that it is too much work just
22383 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
22384 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
22386 There should be no result data from this function.
22389 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
22391 The result data from this function should be a description of
22395 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
22397 description = <text>
22400 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
22402 The result data from this function should be the description of all
22403 groups available on the server.
22406 description-buffer = *description-line
22410 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
22412 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
22413 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date
22414 format. The data should be in the active buffer format.
22417 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
22419 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
22421 There should be no return data.
22424 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
22426 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
22427 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
22428 numbers.) It is left up to the backend to decide how old articles
22429 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
22430 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
22433 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
22436 There should be no result data returned.
22439 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
22442 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
22443 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
22445 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
22446 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
22447 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
22448 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
22449 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
22450 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
22452 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
22453 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
22456 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
22457 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
22459 There should be no data returned.
22462 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
22464 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
22465 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
22466 this function in short order.
22468 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
22469 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
22471 There should be no data returned.
22474 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
22476 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
22477 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
22479 There should be no data returned.
22482 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
22484 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
22485 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
22486 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
22488 There should be no data returned.
22491 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
22493 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
22494 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
22496 There should be no data returned.
22501 @node Error Messaging
22502 @subsubsection Error Messaging
22504 @findex nnheader-report
22505 @findex nnheader-get-report
22506 The backends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
22507 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
22508 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the backend
22509 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
22510 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
22511 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
22514 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
22516 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
22519 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
22520 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
22521 recently reported message for the backend in question. This function
22522 takes one argument---the server symbol.
22524 Internally, these functions access @var{backend}@code{-status-string},
22525 so the @code{nnchoke} backend will have its error message stored in
22526 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
22529 @node Writing New Backends
22530 @subsubsection Writing New Backends
22532 Many backends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
22533 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
22534 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
22535 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
22536 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
22539 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
22540 backends when writing new backends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
22541 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
22543 All the backends declare their public variables and functions by using a
22544 package called @code{nnoo}.
22546 To inherit functions from other backends (and allow other backends to
22547 inherit functions from the current backend), you should use the
22553 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
22554 parameters. For instance:
22557 (nnoo-declare nndir
22561 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
22562 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
22565 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
22566 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
22567 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
22569 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
22570 variables in the parent backends to map the variable to when executing
22571 a function in those backends.
22574 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
22575 "Where nndir will look for groups."
22576 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
22579 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
22580 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
22581 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
22583 @item nnoo-define-basics
22584 This macro defines some common functions that almost all backends should
22588 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
22592 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
22593 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
22594 function as being public so that other backends can inherit it.
22596 @item nnoo-map-functions
22597 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current backend to
22598 functions from the parent backends.
22601 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
22602 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
22603 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
22606 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
22607 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
22608 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
22609 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
22612 This macro allows importing functions from backends. It should be the
22613 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
22614 haven't already been defined.
22620 nnmh-request-newgroups)
22624 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
22625 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
22626 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
22631 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} backend.
22634 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
22635 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
22639 (require 'nnheader)
22643 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
22645 (nnoo-declare nndir
22648 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
22649 "Where nndir will look for groups."
22650 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
22652 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
22653 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
22656 (defvoo nndir-current-group "" nil nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
22657 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
22658 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
22660 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
22661 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
22663 ;;; Interface functions.
22665 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
22667 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
22668 (setq nndir-directory
22669 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
22671 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
22672 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
22673 (push `(nndir-current-group
22674 ,(file-name-nondirectory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
22676 (push `(nndir-top-directory
22677 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
22679 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
22681 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
22682 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
22683 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
22684 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
22685 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
22689 nnmh-status-message
22691 nnmh-request-newgroups))
22697 @node Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
22698 @subsubsection Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
22700 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
22701 Having Gnus start using your new backend is rather easy---you just
22702 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
22703 enter the backend into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
22705 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the backend name and
22706 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
22711 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
22714 The abilities can be:
22718 This is a mailish backend---followups should (probably) go via mail.
22720 This is a newsish backend---followups should (probably) go via news.
22722 This backend supports both mail and news.
22724 This is neither a post nor mail backend---it's something completely
22727 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
22728 articles and groups.
22730 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
22731 true for almost all backends.
22732 @item prompt-address
22733 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
22734 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for backends like
22735 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
22739 @node Mail-like Backends
22740 @subsubsection Mail-like Backends
22742 One of the things that separate the mail backends from the rest of the
22743 backends is the heavy dependence by the mail backends on common
22744 functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the definition of
22745 @code{nnml-request-scan}:
22748 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
22749 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
22750 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
22753 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
22754 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
22757 This function takes four parameters.
22761 This should be a symbol to designate which backend is responsible for
22764 @item exit-function
22765 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
22767 @item temp-directory
22768 Where the temporary files should be stored.
22771 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
22772 performed for one group only.
22775 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{backend}@code{-save-mail} to
22776 save each article. @var{backend}@code{-active-number} will be called to
22777 find the article number assigned to this article.
22779 The function also uses the following variables:
22780 @var{backend}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
22781 this backend); and @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} and
22782 @var{backend}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
22783 @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
22787 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
22788 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
22792 @node Score File Syntax
22793 @subsection Score File Syntax
22795 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
22796 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
22797 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
22799 Here's a typical score file:
22803 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
22810 BNF definition of a score file:
22813 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
22814 element = rule / atom
22815 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
22816 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
22817 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
22818 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
22820 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
22821 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
22822 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
22823 date-header = "date"
22824 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
22825 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
22826 score = "nil" / <integer>
22827 date = "nil" / <natural number>
22828 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
22829 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
22830 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
22831 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
22832 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
22833 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
22834 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
22835 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
22836 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
22837 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
22838 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
22839 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
22840 exclude-files / read-only / touched
22841 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
22842 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
22843 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
22844 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
22845 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
22846 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
22847 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
22848 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
22849 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
22850 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
22851 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
22852 eval = "eval" space <form>
22853 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
22856 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
22859 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
22860 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
22861 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
22862 one looong line, then that's ok.
22864 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
22865 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
22869 @subsection Headers
22871 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
22872 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
22873 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
22874 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
22876 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
22877 RFC 1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
22878 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
22879 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
22880 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
22881 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
22882 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
22884 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
22885 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
22886 @code{xref}, and @code{extra}. There are macros for accessing and
22887 setting these slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
22888 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
22890 All these slots contain strings, except the @code{extra} slot, which
22891 contains an alist of header/value pairs (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
22897 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
22898 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
22900 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
22901 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
22902 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
22903 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
22905 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
22909 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
22912 is transformed into
22915 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
22918 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
22919 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
22922 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
22925 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
22926 is slightly tricky:
22929 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
22935 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
22938 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
22944 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
22951 and is equal to the previous range.
22953 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
22954 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
22955 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
22959 range = simple-range / normal-range
22960 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
22961 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
22962 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
22963 number *[ " " contents ]
22966 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
22967 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
22968 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
22969 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
22970 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
22975 @subsection Group Info
22977 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
22978 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
22979 describes the group.
22981 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
22982 second is a more complex one:
22985 ("no.group" 5 ((1 . 54324)))
22987 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
22988 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
22990 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
22993 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
22994 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
22995 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
22996 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
22997 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
22998 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
22999 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
23000 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
23001 this section is about.
23003 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
23004 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
23005 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
23007 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
23010 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
23011 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
23012 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
23013 group = quote <string> quote
23014 ralevel = rank / level
23015 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
23016 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
23017 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
23019 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
23020 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
23021 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
23022 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
23025 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
23026 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
23029 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
23030 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
23033 @item gnus-info-group
23034 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
23035 @findex gnus-info-group
23036 @findex gnus-info-set-group
23037 Get/set the group name.
23039 @item gnus-info-rank
23040 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
23041 @findex gnus-info-rank
23042 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
23043 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
23045 @item gnus-info-level
23046 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
23047 @findex gnus-info-level
23048 @findex gnus-info-set-level
23049 Get/set the group level.
23051 @item gnus-info-score
23052 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
23053 @findex gnus-info-score
23054 @findex gnus-info-set-score
23055 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
23057 @item gnus-info-read
23058 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
23059 @findex gnus-info-read
23060 @findex gnus-info-set-read
23061 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
23063 @item gnus-info-marks
23064 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
23065 @findex gnus-info-marks
23066 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
23067 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
23069 @item gnus-info-method
23070 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
23071 @findex gnus-info-method
23072 @findex gnus-info-set-method
23073 Get/set the group select method.
23075 @item gnus-info-params
23076 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
23077 @findex gnus-info-params
23078 @findex gnus-info-set-params
23079 Get/set the group parameters.
23082 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
23083 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
23085 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
23086 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
23087 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
23088 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
23091 @node Extended Interactive
23092 @subsection Extended Interactive
23093 @cindex interactive
23094 @findex gnus-interactive
23096 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
23097 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
23098 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
23101 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
23102 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
23107 The best thing to do would have been to implement
23108 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
23109 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
23110 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
23111 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
23112 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
23113 @code{interactive}.
23115 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
23120 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
23121 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
23125 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
23126 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
23127 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
23130 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
23134 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
23138 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
23144 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
23145 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
23149 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
23150 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
23151 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
23153 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
23154 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
23155 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
23156 Gnus, that's very useful.
23158 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
23159 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
23160 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
23161 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
23162 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
23163 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
23164 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
23165 following function:
23168 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
23172 (,function ,@@args))
23176 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
23177 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
23178 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
23181 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
23182 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
23183 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
23185 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
23186 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
23187 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
23190 @node Various File Formats
23191 @subsection Various File Formats
23194 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
23195 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
23199 @node Active File Format
23200 @subsubsection Active File Format
23202 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
23203 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
23206 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
23209 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
23210 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
23211 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
23212 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
23213 no.general 1000 900 y
23216 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
23219 active = *group-line
23220 group-line = group space high-number space low-number space flag <NEWLINE>
23221 group = <non-white-space string>
23223 high-number = <non-negative integer>
23224 low-number = <positive integer>
23225 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
23228 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
23229 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
23232 @node Newsgroups File Format
23233 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
23235 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
23236 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
23237 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
23240 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
23241 Here's the definition:
23245 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
23246 group = <non-white-space string>
23248 description = <string>
23253 @node Emacs for Heathens
23254 @section Emacs for Heathens
23256 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
23257 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
23258 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{M-C-a}'', ``kill the
23259 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
23260 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
23261 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
23262 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
23266 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
23267 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
23272 @subsection Keystrokes
23276 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
23279 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
23282 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
23283 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
23284 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
23285 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
23286 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
23287 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
23289 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
23290 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
23291 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
23292 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
23293 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
23294 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
23295 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
23297 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
23298 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{M-C-m}
23299 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
23300 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
23301 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
23302 ``Press @kbd{M-C-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
23303 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
23305 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
23306 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
23307 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
23308 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
23309 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
23315 @subsection Emacs Lisp
23317 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
23318 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
23319 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
23320 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
23322 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
23323 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
23324 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
23325 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
23326 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
23327 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
23328 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
23331 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
23332 write the following:
23335 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
23338 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
23339 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
23340 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
23343 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
23344 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
23345 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
23346 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
23347 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
23349 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
23350 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
23351 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
23355 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
23359 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
23362 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
23363 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
23366 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
23369 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
23370 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
23373 @include gnus-faq.texi