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4 @settitle Semi-gnus 6.7.4 Manual
9 @c * Gnus: (gnus). The news reader gnus.
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262 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
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271 Copyright \copyright{} 1995,96,97 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
273 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
274 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
275 are preserved on all copies.
277 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
278 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the
279 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
280 permission notice identical to this one.
282 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
283 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
292 This file documents gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
294 Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
296 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
297 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
298 are preserved on all copies.
301 Permission is granted to process this file through Tex and print the
302 results, provided the printed document carries copying permission
303 notice identical to this one except for the removal of this paragraph
304 (this paragraph not being relevant to the printed manual).
307 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
308 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided also that the
309 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
310 permission notice identical to this one.
312 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
313 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
319 @title Semi-gnus 6.7.4 Manual
321 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
324 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
325 Copyright @copyright{} 1995,96,97 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
327 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
328 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
329 are preserved on all copies.
331 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
332 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the
333 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
334 permission notice identical to this one.
336 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
337 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
346 @top The gnus Newsreader
350 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using gnus. The news
351 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
352 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
355 Semi-gnus provides MIME features based on SEMI API. So Semi-gnus
356 supports your right to read strange messages including big images or
357 other various kinds of formats. Semi-gnus also supports
358 internationalization/localization and multiscript features based on MULE
359 API. So Semi-gnus does not discriminate various language communities.
360 Oh, if you are a Klingon, please wait Unicode Next Generation.
362 This manual corresponds to Semi-gnus 6.7.4.
373 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
374 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
376 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
377 being accused of plagiarism:
379 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
380 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
381 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you can
382 even read news with it!
384 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
385 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
386 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend gnus to make it behave
387 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
388 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
395 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
396 * The Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
397 * The Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
398 * The Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
399 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
400 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
401 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
402 * Various:: General purpose settings.
403 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
404 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
405 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
406 * Key Index:: Key Index.
410 @chapter Starting gnus
415 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting gnus
416 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
419 @findex gnus-other-frame
420 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
421 If you want to start gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
422 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
424 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
425 variables in your @file{~/.gnus} file. This file is similar to
426 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
428 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
429 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
432 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
433 * The First Time:: What does gnus do the first time you start it?
434 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
435 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one gnus active at a time.
436 * Fetching a Group:: Starting gnus just to read a group.
437 * New Groups:: What is gnus supposed to do with new groups?
438 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
439 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
440 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
441 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
442 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
446 @node Finding the News
447 @section Finding the News
450 @vindex gnus-select-method
452 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where gnus should look for
453 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
454 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
455 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are foreign
458 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
459 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
462 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
465 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
468 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
471 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
472 certainly be much faster.
474 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
476 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
477 If this variable is not set, gnus will take a look at the
478 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
479 gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
480 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
481 that fails as well, gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an
482 @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
484 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
485 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
486 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
487 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
489 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
490 You can also make gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
491 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
492 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), gnus will let you choose between the servers
493 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
494 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting.
496 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
498 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
499 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
500 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
501 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
502 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
503 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
505 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
507 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
508 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
509 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
510 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
511 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
512 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
515 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} backend to read your mail, you
516 would typically set this variable to
519 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
524 @section The First Time
525 @cindex first time usage
527 If no startup files exist, gnus will try to determine what groups should
528 be subscribed by default.
530 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
531 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, gnus
532 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
533 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
536 Since she hasn't, gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
537 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
538 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
540 You'll also be subscribed to the gnus documentation group, which should
541 help you with most common problems.
543 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, gnus will just
544 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
548 @node The Server is Down
549 @section The Server is Down
550 @cindex server errors
552 If the default server is down, gnus will understandably have some
553 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
554 the news groups, you may want to start gnus anyway.
556 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
557 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
558 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
559 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
560 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
561 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
562 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
564 @findex gnus-no-server
565 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
567 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
568 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
569 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start gnus. That might come in handy
570 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
571 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
572 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
577 @section Slave Gnusae
580 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one gnus at the
581 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if
582 you are using the two different gnusae to read from two different
583 servers), that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
585 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
588 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the gnus
589 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and @dfn{slaves}.
590 (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have taken out a
591 copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in conjunction
592 with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to me. Usage of
593 the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer Applications})
594 will be much more expensive, of course.)
596 Anyways, you start one gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
597 however you do it). Each subsequent slave gnusae should be started with
598 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
599 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
600 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master gnus
601 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
602 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
603 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
605 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
606 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
609 @node Fetching a Group
610 @section Fetching a Group
611 @cindex fetching a group
613 @findex gnus-fetch-group
614 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
615 group and I don't care whether gnus has been started or not''. This is
616 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
617 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
618 It takes the group name as a parameter.
626 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
627 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
628 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
629 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
630 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
631 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
632 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
633 @code{always}, then gnus will query the backends for new groups even
634 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
637 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
638 * Subscription Methods:: What gnus should do with new groups.
639 * Filtering New Groups:: Making gnus ignore certain new groups.
643 @node Checking New Groups
644 @subsection Checking New Groups
646 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
647 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
648 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
649 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, gnus will ask the
650 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
651 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
652 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
653 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
654 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
655 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
657 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
658 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
659 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
660 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
661 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't work.
662 I could write a function to make gnus guess whether the server supports
663 @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't. You could
664 @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see whether it lists
665 @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If it does, then it
666 might work. (But there are servers that lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} without
667 supporting the function properly.)
669 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, gnus will
670 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
671 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
672 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
673 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
674 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
677 @node Subscription Methods
678 @subsection Subscription Methods
680 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
681 What gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
682 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
684 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
685 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
687 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
691 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
692 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
693 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
694 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
695 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
697 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
698 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
699 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
700 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
702 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
703 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
704 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
706 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
707 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
708 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
709 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
710 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
711 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into it's
712 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
713 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
714 up. Or something like that.
716 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
717 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
718 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that gnus will ask you
719 about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe to
720 will be subscribed hierarchically.
722 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
723 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
728 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
729 A closely related variable is
730 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
731 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, gnus will ask you in a
732 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
733 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
736 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
737 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
738 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
739 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
742 @node Filtering New Groups
743 @subsection Filtering New Groups
745 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
746 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
747 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
750 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
753 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
754 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
755 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
756 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
757 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
758 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
759 subscribing these groups.
760 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
761 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
763 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
764 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
765 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
766 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
767 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
768 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
769 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
770 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
772 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
773 Yet another variable that meddles here is
774 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
775 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
776 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
777 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
778 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
779 that come from mail backends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
780 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, and @code{nnmh}) subscribed. If you
781 don't like that, just set this variable to @code{nil}.
783 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
784 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
787 @node Changing Servers
788 @section Changing Servers
789 @cindex changing servers
791 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
792 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
793 very flaky and you want to use another.
795 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
796 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
800 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
801 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
802 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
803 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
806 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
807 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
808 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
809 functions more than absolutely necessary.
811 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
812 @findex gnus-change-server
813 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
814 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
815 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
816 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
817 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
819 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
820 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
821 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
822 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
823 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
825 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
826 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
827 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
828 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
829 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
830 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
834 @section Startup Files
835 @cindex startup files
840 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
841 information is traditionally stored in this file.
843 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{GNUS}. In addition to
844 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
845 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
846 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
847 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{GNUS} would read whichever one of these
848 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
849 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
851 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
852 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
853 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
854 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
855 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
856 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
858 In addition, gnus does not change anything. Hail comrade Lars!
860 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
861 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
862 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
863 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from gnus faster.
864 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
865 gnus. But hey, who would want to, right?
867 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
868 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
869 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
870 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
871 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
872 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
873 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
874 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
875 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
876 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
877 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
878 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
880 @vindex gnus-startup-file
881 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
882 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
883 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
885 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
886 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
887 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
888 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
889 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
890 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
891 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
892 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
893 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
894 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
897 (defun turn-off-backup ()
898 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
900 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
901 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
904 @vindex gnus-init-file
905 When gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
906 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
907 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
908 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
909 @file{site-init} files with gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
910 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
911 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
912 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
913 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
922 Whenever you do something that changes the gnus data (reading articles,
923 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
924 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
925 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
926 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
929 If gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
930 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file
933 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
934 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, gnus won't create and
935 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
937 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
938 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
939 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, gnus will dribble
940 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
941 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
942 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
944 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
945 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
946 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
949 @node The Active File
950 @section The Active File
952 @cindex ignored groups
954 When gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
955 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
956 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
958 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
959 Before examining the active file, gnus deletes all lines that match the
960 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
961 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make gnus
962 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
963 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
964 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
967 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
968 @c if you set it to anything else.
970 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
972 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
973 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent gnus from
974 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
976 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
977 you actually subscribe to.
979 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
980 variable to @code{nil} will probably make gnus slower, not faster. At
981 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow gnus down
982 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
984 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
985 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
986 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
987 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
988 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
989 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
991 If this variable is @code{nil}, gnus will ask for group info in total
992 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
993 @sc{nntp} server, gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
994 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
995 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
996 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
998 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
999 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1001 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1002 secondary select methods.
1005 @node Startup Variables
1006 @section Startup Variables
1010 @item gnus-load-hook
1011 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1012 A hook run while gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1013 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1014 times you start gnus.
1016 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1017 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1018 A hook run after starting up gnus successfully.
1020 @item gnus-startup-hook
1021 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1022 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up gnus
1024 @item gnus-started-hook
1025 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1026 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up gnus
1029 @item gnus-started-hook
1030 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1031 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1032 generating the group buffer.
1034 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1035 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1036 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1037 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1038 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1039 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1040 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1041 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1043 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1044 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1045 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1046 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1047 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1048 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
1050 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1051 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1052 Message displayed by gnus when no groups are available.
1054 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1055 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1056 If non-@code{nil}, play the gnus jingle at startup.
1058 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1059 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1060 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1061 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1066 @node The Group Buffer
1067 @chapter The Group Buffer
1068 @cindex group buffer
1070 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1071 is the first buffer shown when gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1072 long as gnus is active.
1076 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1077 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group.ps,height=9cm}}
1078 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1079 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1080 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1081 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1082 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1083 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1089 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1090 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1091 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1092 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1093 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1094 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1095 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1096 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1097 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1098 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1099 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1100 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1101 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1102 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1103 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1104 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1105 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1109 @node Group Buffer Format
1110 @section Group Buffer Format
1113 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1114 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1115 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1119 @node Group Line Specification
1120 @subsection Group Line Specification
1121 @cindex group buffer format
1123 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1124 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1126 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1129 25: news.announce.newusers
1130 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1135 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1136 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1137 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1138 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1140 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1141 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1142 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1143 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1144 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1145 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1147 @samp{%M%S%5y: %(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1149 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1150 the colon after performing an operation. Nothing else is required---not
1151 even the group name. All displayed text is just window dressing, and is
1152 never examined by gnus. Gnus stores all real information it needs using
1155 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1156 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1157 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1159 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1164 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1167 Whether the group is subscribed.
1170 Level of subscribedness.
1173 Number of unread articles.
1176 Number of dormant articles.
1179 Number of ticked articles.
1182 Number of read articles.
1185 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1186 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1189 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1192 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1201 Newsgroup description.
1204 @samp{m} if moderated.
1207 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1216 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1220 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1223 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1224 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1225 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1226 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1227 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.emacs.gnus}.
1230 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1232 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1236 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1240 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1241 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1242 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1243 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1244 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1245 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1250 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1251 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1252 group, or a bogus native group.
1255 @node Group Modeline Specification
1256 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1257 @cindex group modeline
1259 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1260 The mode line can be changed by setting
1261 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1262 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1266 The native news server.
1268 The native select method.
1272 @node Group Highlighting
1273 @subsection Group Highlighting
1274 @cindex highlighting
1275 @cindex group highlighting
1277 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1278 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1279 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1280 that look like @var{(form . face)}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1281 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1283 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1287 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-1 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))))
1288 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-2 '((t (:foreground "SeaGreen" :bold t))))
1289 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-3 '((t (:foreground "SpringGreen" :bold t))))
1290 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-4 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))))
1291 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-5 '((t (:foreground "SkyBlue" :bold t))))
1293 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1294 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1295 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1296 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1297 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1298 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1301 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1303 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1310 The number of unread articles in the group.
1314 Whether the group is a mail group.
1316 The level of the group.
1318 The score of the group.
1320 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1322 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1323 MIN-NUMBER plus one.
1325 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1326 topic being inserted.
1329 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1330 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal gnus
1331 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1333 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1334 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1335 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1336 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1337 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1340 @node Group Maneuvering
1341 @section Group Maneuvering
1342 @cindex group movement
1344 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1345 expected, hopefully.
1351 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1352 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1353 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1359 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1360 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1361 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1365 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1366 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
1370 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
1371 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
1375 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
1376 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
1377 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
1381 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
1382 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
1383 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
1386 Three commands for jumping to groups:
1392 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
1393 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
1394 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
1399 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
1400 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
1401 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
1405 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
1406 Jump to the first group with unread articles
1407 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
1410 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
1411 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
1412 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
1413 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
1417 @node Selecting a Group
1418 @section Selecting a Group
1419 @cindex group selection
1424 @kindex SPACE (Group)
1425 @findex gnus-group-read-group
1426 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
1427 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
1428 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
1429 this command, gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
1430 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
1431 determines the number of articles gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
1432 positive, gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
1433 negative, gnus fetches the @var{abs(N)} oldest articles.
1437 @findex gnus-group-select-group
1438 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
1439 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
1440 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
1441 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
1445 @kindex M-RET (Group)
1446 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
1447 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
1448 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
1449 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
1450 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
1451 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
1452 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
1453 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
1454 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
1457 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
1458 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
1459 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
1460 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
1461 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
1464 @kindex M-C-RET (Group)
1465 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
1466 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
1467 doing any processing of its contents
1468 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
1469 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
1470 manner will have no permanent effects.
1474 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
1475 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what gnus should consider
1476 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
1477 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, gnus will query the user
1478 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
1479 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
1480 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
1481 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
1484 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
1485 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
1486 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} control whether any articles are selected
1487 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
1492 Don't select any articles when entering the group. Just display the
1493 full summary buffer.
1496 Select the first unread article when entering the group.
1499 Select the highest scored article in the group when entering the
1503 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
1504 binary group with Huge articles) you can set this variable to @code{nil}
1505 in @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
1509 @node Subscription Commands
1510 @section Subscription Commands
1511 @cindex subscription
1519 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
1520 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
1521 Toggle subscription to the current group
1522 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
1528 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
1529 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
1530 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
1531 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
1537 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
1538 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
1539 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
1545 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
1546 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
1549 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
1550 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
1551 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
1552 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
1553 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
1559 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
1560 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
1564 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
1565 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
1568 @kindex S C-k (Group)
1569 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
1570 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
1571 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
1572 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
1573 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
1574 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
1575 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
1576 @file{.newsrc} file.
1580 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1590 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
1591 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
1592 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
1593 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
1594 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
1595 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group
1596 from the group buffer.
1600 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
1601 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
1602 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
1606 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
1607 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
1608 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
1610 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1611 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1612 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1613 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
1614 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
1615 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
1622 @section Group Levels
1626 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
1627 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
1628 can ask gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
1629 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
1630 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1632 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
1638 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
1639 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
1640 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
1641 prompted for a level.
1644 @vindex gnus-level-killed
1645 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
1646 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
1647 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
1648 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
1649 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
1650 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
1651 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
1652 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
1653 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
1654 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
1655 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
1656 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
1657 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
1658 reasons of efficiency.
1660 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
1661 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
1663 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
1664 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
1665 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
1667 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
1668 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
1669 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
1670 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
1671 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
1672 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
1673 relevant valid ranges.
1675 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
1676 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
1677 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
1678 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
1679 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
1680 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
1683 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
1684 All groups with a level less than or equal to
1685 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
1688 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
1689 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
1690 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
1691 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
1694 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
1695 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
1696 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
1697 use this level as the ``work'' level.
1699 @vindex gnus-activate-level
1700 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
1701 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
1702 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
1703 to 5. The default is 6.
1707 @section Group Score
1712 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
1713 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
1714 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
1717 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can assign a score to each
1718 group. You can then sort the group buffer based on this score.
1719 Alternatively, you can sort on score and then level. (Taken together,
1720 the level and the score is called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group
1721 that is on level 4 and has a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group
1722 on level 5 that has a score of 300. (The level is the most significant
1723 part and the score is the least significant part.))
1725 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
1726 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
1727 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
1728 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
1729 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
1730 action after each summary exit, you can add
1731 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
1732 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
1733 slow things down somewhat.
1736 @node Marking Groups
1737 @section Marking Groups
1738 @cindex marking groups
1740 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
1741 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
1742 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
1743 bidding on those groups.
1745 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
1746 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
1747 with the process mark and then execute the command.
1755 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
1756 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
1762 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
1763 Remove the mark from the current group
1764 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
1768 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
1769 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
1773 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
1774 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
1778 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
1779 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
1783 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
1784 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
1785 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
1788 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
1790 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
1791 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
1792 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
1793 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
1794 the command to be executed.
1797 @node Foreign Groups
1798 @section Foreign Groups
1799 @cindex foreign groups
1801 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
1802 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
1803 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
1804 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
1811 @findex gnus-group-make-group
1812 @cindex making groups
1813 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
1814 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
1815 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
1819 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
1820 @cindex renaming groups
1821 Rename the current group to something else
1822 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
1823 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
1829 @findex gnus-group-customize
1830 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
1834 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
1835 @cindex renaming groups
1836 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
1837 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
1841 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
1842 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
1843 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
1847 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
1848 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
1849 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
1853 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
1855 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
1856 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
1861 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
1862 Make the gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
1866 @cindex (ding) archive
1867 @cindex archive group
1868 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
1869 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
1870 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
1871 Make a gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
1872 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
1873 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
1874 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
1878 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
1880 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
1881 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
1882 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
1883 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
1887 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
1889 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
1890 @code{nneething} backend (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
1891 @xref{Anything Groups}.
1895 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
1896 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
1898 Make a group based on some file or other
1899 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
1900 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
1901 Currently supported types are @code{babyl}, @code{mbox}, @code{digest},
1902 @code{mmdf}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{clari-briefs},
1903 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, and @code{forward}. If you run
1904 this command without a prefix, gnus will guess at the file type.
1905 @xref{Document Groups}.
1909 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
1914 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
1915 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
1916 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
1917 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
1918 include @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
1919 @xref{Web Searches}.
1921 If you use the @code{dejanews} search engine, you can limit the search
1922 to a particular group by using a match string like
1923 @samp{~g alt.sysadmin.recovery shaving}.
1926 @kindex G DEL (Group)
1927 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
1928 This function will delete the current group
1929 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
1930 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
1931 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
1932 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
1933 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
1937 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
1938 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
1939 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
1943 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
1944 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
1945 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
1948 @xref{Select Methods} for more information on the various select
1951 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
1952 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
1953 gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
1954 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
1955 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
1956 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
1960 @node Group Parameters
1961 @section Group Parameters
1962 @cindex group parameters
1964 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
1965 Here's an example group parameter list:
1968 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
1972 We see that each element consists of a ``dotted pair''---the thing
1973 before the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value.
1974 All the parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs,
1975 which are not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
1977 The following group parameters can be used:
1982 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
1985 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
1988 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
1989 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
1990 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
1991 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
1992 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
1994 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
1995 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
1996 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
1997 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
1998 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
1999 list address instead.
2003 Address used when doing a @kbd{a} in that group.
2006 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
2009 It is totally ignored
2010 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2011 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2013 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2014 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2015 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2016 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2017 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2019 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2020 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2021 sending the message.
2025 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2026 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2027 of whether it has any unread articles.
2029 @item broken-reply-to
2030 @cindex broken-reply-to
2031 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2032 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
2033 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
2034 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
2035 broken behavior. So there!
2039 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2040 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2044 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, gnus
2045 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2046 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2051 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2052 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group. If
2053 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2054 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2055 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2056 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2057 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
2061 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2062 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2063 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2066 @cindex total-expire
2067 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2068 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2069 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2070 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2075 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2076 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(expiry-wait
2077 . 10)}, this value will override any @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and
2078 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} when expiring expirable messages.
2079 The value can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or
2080 the symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2083 @cindex score file group parameter
2084 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2085 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2086 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2089 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2090 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2091 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2092 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2095 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2096 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2097 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2098 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2101 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2102 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2106 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2109 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2114 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")} are
2115 arbitrary comments on the group. They are currently ignored by gnus,
2116 but provide a place for you to store information on particular groups.
2118 @item @var{(variable form)}
2119 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2120 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2121 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2122 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2123 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2124 @code{eval}ed there.
2126 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2127 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2128 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2129 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2130 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2134 Use the @kbd{G p} command to edit group parameters of a group. You
2135 might also be interested in reading about topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
2139 @node Listing Groups
2140 @section Listing Groups
2141 @cindex group listing
2143 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
2151 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
2152 List all groups that have unread articles
2153 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
2154 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
2155 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
2156 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
2163 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
2164 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
2165 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
2166 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
2167 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
2168 unsubscribed groups).
2172 @findex gnus-group-list-level
2173 List all unread groups on a specific level
2174 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
2175 with no unread articles.
2179 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
2180 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
2181 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
2182 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
2187 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
2188 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
2192 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
2193 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
2194 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
2198 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
2199 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
2203 @findex gnus-group-list-active
2204 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
2205 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
2206 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
2207 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
2208 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
2209 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
2210 Take the output with some grains of salt.
2214 @findex gnus-group-apropos
2215 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
2216 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
2220 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
2221 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
2222 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
2226 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2227 @cindex visible group parameter
2228 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
2229 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
2230 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
2231 get the same effect.
2233 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
2234 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
2235 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
2236 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
2237 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
2240 @node Sorting Groups
2241 @section Sorting Groups
2242 @cindex sorting groups
2244 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
2245 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
2246 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
2247 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
2248 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
2249 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
2254 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2255 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2256 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
2258 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2259 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2260 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
2262 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
2263 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
2264 Sort by group level.
2266 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
2267 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
2268 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
2270 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2271 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2272 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
2273 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
2275 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2276 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2277 Sort by number of unread articles.
2279 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
2280 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
2281 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
2286 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
2287 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
2291 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
2292 some sorting criteria:
2296 @kindex G S a (Group)
2297 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2298 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
2299 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2302 @kindex G S u (Group)
2303 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
2304 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
2305 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2308 @kindex G S l (Group)
2309 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
2310 Sort the group buffer by group level
2311 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
2314 @kindex G S v (Group)
2315 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
2316 Sort the group buffer by group score
2317 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2320 @kindex G S r (Group)
2321 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
2322 Sort the group buffer by group rank
2323 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2326 @kindex G S m (Group)
2327 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
2328 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by backend name
2329 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
2333 When given a prefix, all these commands will sort in reverse order.
2335 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
2339 @kindex G P a (Group)
2340 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
2341 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer alphabetically by
2342 group name (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
2345 @kindex G P u (Group)
2346 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
2347 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by the number of
2348 unread articles (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
2351 @kindex G P l (Group)
2352 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
2353 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by group level
2354 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
2357 @kindex G P v (Group)
2358 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
2359 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by group score
2360 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2363 @kindex G P r (Group)
2364 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
2365 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by group rank
2366 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2369 @kindex G P m (Group)
2370 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
2371 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer alphabetically by
2372 backend name (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
2378 @node Group Maintenance
2379 @section Group Maintenance
2380 @cindex bogus groups
2385 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
2386 Find bogus groups and delete them
2387 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
2391 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
2392 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
2393 If given a prefix, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
2397 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
2398 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
2399 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
2400 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}).
2403 @kindex C-c M-C-x (Group)
2404 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
2405 Run all articles in all groups through the expiry process
2406 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
2411 @node Browse Foreign Server
2412 @section Browse Foreign Server
2413 @cindex foreign servers
2414 @cindex browsing servers
2419 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
2420 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
2421 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
2422 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
2425 @findex gnus-browse-mode
2426 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
2427 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
2428 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
2430 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
2435 @findex gnus-group-next-group
2436 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
2440 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
2441 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
2444 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
2445 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
2446 Enter the current group and display the first article
2447 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
2450 @kindex RET (Browse)
2451 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
2452 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
2456 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
2457 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
2458 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2464 @findex gnus-browse-exit
2465 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
2469 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
2470 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
2471 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
2476 @section Exiting gnus
2477 @cindex exiting gnus
2479 Yes, gnus is ex(c)iting.
2484 @findex gnus-group-suspend
2485 Suspend gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit
2486 gnus, but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure
2487 why this is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
2491 @findex gnus-group-exit
2492 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
2493 Quit gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
2497 @findex gnus-group-quit
2498 Quit gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files
2499 (@code{gnus-group-quit}). The dribble file will be saved, though
2500 (@pxref{Auto Save}).
2503 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
2504 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
2505 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend gnus and
2506 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit gnus, while
2507 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
2512 If you wish to completely unload gnus and all its adherents, you can use
2513 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
2514 trying to customize meta-variables.
2519 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
2520 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
2521 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
2527 @section Group Topics
2530 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
2531 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
2532 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
2533 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
2534 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
2535 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
2539 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
2540 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group-topic.ps,height=9cm}}
2551 2: alt.religion.emacs
2554 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2556 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2557 13: comp.sources.unix
2560 @findex gnus-topic-mode
2562 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
2563 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
2564 is a toggling command.)
2566 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
2567 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and now
2568 press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
2569 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
2572 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
2573 the hook for the group mode:
2576 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
2580 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
2581 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
2582 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
2583 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
2584 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
2588 @node Topic Variables
2589 @subsection Topic Variables
2590 @cindex topic variables
2592 Now, if you select a topic, it will fold/unfold that topic, which is
2593 really neat, I think.
2595 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
2596 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
2597 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
2610 Number of groups in the topic.
2612 Number of unread articles in the topic.
2614 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
2617 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
2618 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
2619 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
2622 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
2623 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
2625 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
2626 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
2627 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
2630 @node Topic Commands
2631 @subsection Topic Commands
2632 @cindex topic commands
2634 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
2635 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
2636 definitions slightly.
2642 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
2643 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
2644 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
2648 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
2649 Move the current group to some other topic
2650 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
2651 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2655 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
2656 Copy the current group to some other topic
2657 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
2658 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2662 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
2663 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
2664 This command uses the process/prefix convention
2665 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2669 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
2670 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
2671 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
2675 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
2676 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
2677 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
2681 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
2682 Toggle hiding empty topics
2683 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
2687 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
2688 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
2689 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
2692 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
2693 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
2694 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
2695 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
2699 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
2701 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
2702 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
2703 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
2704 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
2705 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
2706 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
2709 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
2710 @findex gnus-topic-indent
2711 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
2712 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
2713 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
2717 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
2718 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
2719 topic will be removed along with the topic.
2723 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
2724 Yank the previously killed group or topic
2725 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
2730 @findex gnus-topic-rename
2731 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
2734 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
2735 @findex gnus-topic-delete
2736 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
2740 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
2741 List all groups that gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
2742 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
2746 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
2747 @cindex group parameters
2748 @cindex topic parameters
2750 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
2751 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
2757 @subsection Topic Sorting
2758 @cindex topic sorting
2760 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
2766 @kindex T S a (Topic)
2767 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2768 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
2769 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2772 @kindex T S u (Topic)
2773 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
2774 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
2775 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2778 @kindex T S l (Topic)
2779 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
2780 Sort the current topic by group level
2781 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
2784 @kindex T S v (Topic)
2785 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
2786 Sort the current topic by group score
2787 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2790 @kindex T S r (Topic)
2791 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
2792 Sort the current topic by group rank
2793 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2796 @kindex T S m (Topic)
2797 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
2798 Sort the current topic alphabetically by backend name
2799 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
2803 @xref{Sorting Groups} for more information about group sorting.
2806 @node Topic Topology
2807 @subsection Topic Topology
2808 @cindex topic topology
2811 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
2817 2: alt.religion.emacs
2820 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2822 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2823 13: comp.sources.unix
2826 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
2827 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
2828 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
2833 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
2834 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
2838 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
2839 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
2840 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
2841 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
2842 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
2843 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
2845 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
2846 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
2847 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
2850 @node Topic Parameters
2851 @subsection Topic Parameters
2852 @cindex topic parameters
2854 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
2855 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
2856 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
2858 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
2859 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
2860 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
2861 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
2867 2: alt.religion.emacs
2871 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2873 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2874 13: comp.sources.unix
2878 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
2879 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
2880 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
2881 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
2882 @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
2883 . "religion.SCORE")}.
2885 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
2886 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
2887 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
2888 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
2889 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
2891 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
2892 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
2893 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
2894 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
2895 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
2896 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
2897 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
2898 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
2901 @node Misc Group Stuff
2902 @section Misc Group Stuff
2905 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
2906 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and gnus.
2907 * Group Timestamp:: Making gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
2908 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the gnus files.
2915 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
2916 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
2917 @xref{The Server Buffer}.
2921 @findex gnus-group-post-news
2922 Post an article to a group (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a
2923 prefix, the current group name will be used as the default.
2927 @findex gnus-group-mail
2928 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}).
2932 Variables for the group buffer:
2936 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
2937 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
2938 is called after the group buffer has been
2941 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
2942 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
2943 is called after the group buffer is
2944 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
2947 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
2948 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
2949 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
2950 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
2952 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2953 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2954 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
2955 whether they are empty or not.
2960 @node Scanning New Messages
2961 @subsection Scanning New Messages
2962 @cindex new messages
2963 @cindex scanning new news
2969 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
2970 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
2971 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
2972 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
2973 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
2974 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
2979 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
2980 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
2981 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
2982 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
2983 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
2984 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
2985 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
2987 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
2988 @cindex activating groups
2990 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
2991 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
2996 @findex gnus-group-restart
2997 Restart gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
2998 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
2999 gnus variables, and then starts gnus all over again.
3003 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
3004 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
3006 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
3007 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
3011 @node Group Information
3012 @subsection Group Information
3013 @cindex group information
3014 @cindex information on groups
3021 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
3022 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
3025 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
3026 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
3027 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
3028 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
3029 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
3030 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
3031 for fetching the file.
3033 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, gnus will attempt to go
3034 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
3038 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
3040 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
3041 @cindex describing groups
3042 @cindex group description
3043 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
3044 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
3045 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
3049 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
3050 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
3051 prefix, force gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
3058 @findex gnus-version
3059 Display current gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
3063 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
3064 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
3067 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
3070 @findex gnus-info-find-node
3071 Go to the gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
3075 @node Group Timestamp
3076 @subsection Group Timestamp
3078 @cindex group timestamps
3080 It can be convenient to let gnus keep track of when you last read a
3081 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
3082 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
3085 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
3088 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
3090 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
3091 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
3094 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3095 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
3098 This will result in lines looking like:
3101 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
3102 0: custom 19961002T012713
3105 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
3106 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
3110 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3111 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
3116 @subsection File Commands
3117 @cindex file commands
3123 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
3124 @vindex gnus-init-file
3125 @cindex reading init file
3126 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
3127 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
3131 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
3132 @cindex saving .newsrc
3133 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
3134 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
3135 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
3138 @c @kindex Z (Group)
3139 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
3140 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
3145 @node The Summary Buffer
3146 @chapter The Summary Buffer
3147 @cindex summary buffer
3149 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
3150 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
3152 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
3153 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
3155 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
3158 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
3159 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
3160 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
3161 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
3162 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
3163 * Canceling and Superseding:: ``Whoops, I shouldn't have called him that.''
3164 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
3165 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
3166 * Threading:: How threads are made.
3167 * Sorting:: How articles and threads are sorted.
3168 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
3169 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
3170 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
3171 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
3172 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
3173 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
3174 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
3175 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
3176 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
3177 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
3178 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
3179 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
3180 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
3181 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
3182 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer.
3183 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
3184 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
3188 @node Summary Buffer Format
3189 @section Summary Buffer Format
3190 @cindex summary buffer format
3194 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
3195 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary.ps,width=7.5cm}}
3196 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-article.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
3202 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
3203 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
3204 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
3207 @findex mail-extract-address-components
3208 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
3209 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
3210 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
3211 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
3212 @code{From} header. Three pre-defined functions exist:
3213 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
3214 fast, and too simplistic solution;
3215 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works nicely, but is
3216 slower; and @code{std11-extract-address-components}, which works very
3217 nicely, but is slower. The default function will return the wrong
3218 answer in 5% of the cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the
3219 other function instead.
3221 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
3222 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
3223 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
3224 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
3227 @node Summary Buffer Lines
3228 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
3230 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
3231 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
3232 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
3233 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
3234 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3236 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%) %s\n}.
3238 The following format specification characters are understood:
3246 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
3247 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
3248 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
3250 Full @code{From} header.
3252 The name (from the @code{From} header).
3254 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
3255 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
3256 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
3257 may be more thorough.
3259 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
3262 Number of lines in the article.
3264 Number of characters in the article.
3266 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3268 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
3269 pushes everything after it off the screen).
3271 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
3272 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3274 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
3275 for adopted articles.
3277 One space for each thread level.
3279 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
3284 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
3285 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
3289 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
3291 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
3292 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
3293 default level. If the difference between
3294 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
3295 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
3303 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
3305 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
3311 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
3312 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
3314 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
3315 article has any children.
3321 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
3322 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
3323 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
3324 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
3325 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
3326 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
3329 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
3330 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, gnus will
3331 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
3332 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
3333 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
3334 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
3336 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
3337 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
3339 This restriction may disappear in later versions of gnus.
3342 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
3343 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
3345 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
3346 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
3347 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
3348 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
3350 Here are the elements you can play with:
3356 Unprefixed group name.
3358 Current article number.
3360 Current article score.
3364 Number of unread articles in this group.
3366 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
3369 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
3370 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
3371 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
3372 and no unselected ones.
3374 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
3375 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
3377 Subject of the current article.
3379 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
3381 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
3383 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
3385 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
3387 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
3389 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
3393 @node Summary Highlighting
3394 @subsection Summary Highlighting
3398 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
3399 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
3400 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
3401 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
3402 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
3404 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
3405 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
3406 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
3407 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
3409 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
3410 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
3411 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
3412 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
3414 @item gnus-summary-highlight
3415 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
3416 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
3417 list where the elements are of the format @var{(FORM . FACE)}. If you
3418 would, for instance, like ticked articles to be italic and high-scored
3419 articles to be bold, you could set this variable to something like
3421 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
3422 ((> score default) . bold))
3424 As you may have guessed, if @var{FORM} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
3425 @var{FACE} will be applied to the line.
3429 @node Summary Maneuvering
3430 @section Summary Maneuvering
3431 @cindex summary movement
3433 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
3434 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
3436 None of these commands select articles.
3441 @kindex M-n (Summary)
3442 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
3443 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
3444 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
3445 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
3449 @kindex M-p (Summary)
3450 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
3451 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
3452 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
3453 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
3458 @kindex G j (Summary)
3459 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
3460 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
3461 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
3464 @kindex G g (Summary)
3465 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
3466 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
3467 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
3470 If gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
3471 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
3472 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
3473 to the group buffer.
3475 Variables related to summary movement:
3479 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
3480 @item gnus-auto-select-next
3481 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
3482 no more unread articles after the current one, gnus will offer to go to
3483 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
3484 empty, gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
3485 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, gnus will select the
3486 next group, no matter whether it has any unread articles or not. As a
3487 special case, if this variable is @code{quietly}, gnus will select the
3488 next group without asking for confirmation. If this variable is
3489 @code{almost-quietly}, the same will happen only if you are located on
3490 the last article in the group. Finally, if this variable is
3491 @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n} command will go to the next group
3492 without confirmation. Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
3494 @item gnus-auto-select-same
3495 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
3496 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
3497 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
3498 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
3499 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) This variable is not
3500 particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
3502 @item gnus-summary-check-current
3503 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
3504 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
3505 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
3506 Instead, they will choose the current article.
3508 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
3509 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
3510 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
3511 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
3512 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
3513 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
3514 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
3515 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
3521 @node Choosing Articles
3522 @section Choosing Articles
3523 @cindex selecting articles
3526 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
3527 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
3531 @node Choosing Commands
3532 @subsection Choosing Commands
3534 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
3535 and they all select and display an article.
3539 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
3540 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
3541 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
3542 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
3547 @kindex G n (Summary)
3548 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
3549 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
3550 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
3555 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
3556 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
3557 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
3562 @kindex G N (Summary)
3563 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
3564 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
3569 @kindex G P (Summary)
3570 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
3571 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
3574 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
3575 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
3576 Go to the next article with the same subject
3577 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
3580 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
3581 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
3582 Go to the previous article with the same subject
3583 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
3587 @kindex G f (Summary)
3589 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
3590 Go to the first unread article
3591 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
3595 @kindex G b (Summary)
3597 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
3598 Go to the article with the highest score
3599 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}).
3604 @kindex G l (Summary)
3605 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
3606 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
3609 @kindex G o (Summary)
3610 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
3612 @cindex article history
3613 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
3614 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
3615 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
3616 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
3617 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
3618 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
3622 @node Choosing Variables
3623 @subsection Choosing Variables
3625 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
3628 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
3629 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
3630 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
3631 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
3632 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
3633 the server and display it in the article buffer.
3635 @item gnus-select-article-hook
3636 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
3637 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
3638 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
3640 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
3641 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
3642 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
3643 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
3644 @findex gnus-unread-mark
3645 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
3646 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
3647 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
3648 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
3649 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
3650 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
3651 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
3652 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
3653 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
3658 @node Paging the Article
3659 @section Scrolling the Article
3660 @cindex article scrolling
3665 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
3666 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
3667 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
3668 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
3669 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
3672 @kindex DEL (Summary)
3673 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
3674 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
3677 @kindex RET (Summary)
3678 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
3679 Scroll the current article one line forward
3680 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
3684 @kindex A g (Summary)
3686 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
3687 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
3688 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
3689 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
3690 the way it came from the server.
3695 @kindex A < (Summary)
3696 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
3697 Scroll to the beginning of the article
3698 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
3703 @kindex A > (Summary)
3704 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
3705 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
3709 @kindex A s (Summary)
3711 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
3712 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
3713 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
3717 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
3718 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
3723 @node Reply Followup and Post
3724 @section Reply, Followup and Post
3727 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
3728 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
3732 @node Summary Mail Commands
3733 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
3735 @cindex composing mail
3737 Commands for composing a mail message:
3743 @kindex S r (Summary)
3745 @findex gnus-summary-reply
3746 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
3747 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
3748 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
3749 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
3754 @kindex S R (Summary)
3755 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
3756 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
3757 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
3758 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
3759 command uses the process/prefix convention.
3762 @kindex S w (Summary)
3763 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
3764 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
3765 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
3766 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
3767 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
3770 @kindex S W (Summary)
3771 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
3772 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
3773 message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This command uses
3774 the process/prefix convention.
3777 @kindex S o m (Summary)
3778 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
3779 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
3780 Forward the current article to some other person
3781 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
3782 headers of the forwarded article.
3787 @kindex S m (Summary)
3788 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
3789 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
3790 Send a mail to some other person
3791 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}).
3794 @kindex S D b (Summary)
3795 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
3796 @cindex bouncing mail
3797 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
3798 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
3799 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
3800 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
3801 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
3802 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, gnus will try to fetch
3803 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
3804 very well fail, though.
3807 @kindex S D r (Summary)
3808 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
3809 Not to be confused with the previous command,
3810 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
3811 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
3812 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
3813 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
3814 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
3815 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
3816 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
3818 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
3819 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
3820 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
3821 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
3822 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muß sein!
3824 This command understands the process/prefix convention
3825 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3828 @kindex S O m (Summary)
3829 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
3830 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
3831 result using mail (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command
3832 uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3835 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
3836 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
3837 @cindex crossposting
3838 @cindex excessive crossposting
3839 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
3840 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
3842 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
3843 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
3844 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
3845 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
3846 command understands the process/prefix convention
3847 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
3851 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
3854 @node Summary Post Commands
3855 @subsection Summary Post Commands
3857 @cindex composing news
3859 Commands for posting a news article:
3865 @kindex S p (Summary)
3866 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
3867 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
3868 Post an article to the current group
3869 (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}).
3874 @kindex S f (Summary)
3875 @findex gnus-summary-followup
3876 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
3877 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
3881 @kindex S F (Summary)
3883 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
3884 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
3885 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
3886 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
3887 process/prefix convention.
3890 @kindex S n (Summary)
3891 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
3892 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
3893 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
3896 @kindex S N (Summary)
3897 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
3898 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
3899 message through mail and include the original message
3900 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
3901 the process/prefix convention.
3904 @kindex S o p (Summary)
3905 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
3906 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
3907 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
3908 headers of the forwarded article.
3911 @kindex S O p (Summary)
3912 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
3914 @cindex making digests
3915 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
3916 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
3917 process/prefix convention.
3920 @kindex S u (Summary)
3921 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
3922 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
3923 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
3924 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
3927 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
3930 @node Canceling and Superseding
3931 @section Canceling Articles
3932 @cindex canceling articles
3933 @cindex superseding articles
3935 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
3936 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
3938 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
3940 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
3942 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
3943 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
3944 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
3945 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
3946 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
3947 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3949 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
3950 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
3953 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
3954 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
3955 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
3957 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
3958 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
3959 your original article.
3961 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
3963 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
3964 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
3965 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
3968 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
3969 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
3970 have posted almost the same article twice.
3972 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
3973 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
3974 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
3975 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
3976 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
3977 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
3978 header by substituting one of those words for the word
3979 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
3980 you would do normally. The previous article will be
3981 canceled/superseded.
3983 Just remember, kids: There is no `c' in `supersede'.
3986 @node Marking Articles
3987 @section Marking Articles
3988 @cindex article marking
3989 @cindex article ticking
3992 There are several marks you can set on an article.
3994 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
3995 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
3996 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
3998 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
4001 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
4002 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
4003 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
4007 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
4011 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
4012 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
4016 @node Unread Articles
4017 @subsection Unread Articles
4019 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
4024 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
4025 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
4027 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
4028 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
4029 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
4030 tick it. However, articles can be expired, so if you want to keep an
4031 article forever, you'll have to make it persistent (@pxref{Persistent
4035 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
4036 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
4038 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
4039 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
4040 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
4043 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
4044 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
4046 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
4051 @subsection Read Articles
4052 @cindex expirable mark
4054 All the following marks mark articles as read.
4059 @vindex gnus-del-mark
4060 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
4061 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
4064 @vindex gnus-read-mark
4065 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
4068 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
4069 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
4070 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
4073 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
4074 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
4077 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
4078 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
4081 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
4082 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
4085 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
4086 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
4089 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
4090 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
4093 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
4094 @sc{SOUP}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
4097 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
4098 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
4102 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
4103 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
4104 (@code{gnus-duplicated-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
4108 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
4109 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
4111 One more special mark, though:
4115 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
4116 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
4118 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
4119 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
4120 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
4121 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by gnus at any time.
4126 @subsection Other Marks
4127 @cindex process mark
4130 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
4136 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
4137 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
4138 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
4139 in the article, and gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
4140 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}
4143 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
4144 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
4145 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
4146 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
4149 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
4150 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
4151 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}
4154 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
4155 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
4156 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
4157 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
4160 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
4161 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
4162 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
4163 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
4164 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
4167 @vindex gnus-process-mark
4168 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
4169 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
4170 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
4171 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
4172 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
4176 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
4177 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
4178 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
4180 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
4181 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
4182 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
4186 @subsection Setting Marks
4187 @cindex setting marks
4189 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
4194 @kindex M c (Summary)
4195 @kindex M-u (Summary)
4196 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
4197 @cindex mark as unread
4198 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
4199 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
4205 @kindex M t (Summary)
4206 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
4207 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
4208 @xref{Article Caching}
4213 @kindex M ? (Summary)
4214 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
4215 Mark the current article as dormant
4216 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}
4220 @kindex M d (Summary)
4222 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
4223 Mark the current article as read
4224 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
4228 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
4229 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
4230 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
4235 @kindex M k (Summary)
4236 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
4237 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
4238 and then select the next unread article
4239 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
4243 @kindex M K (Summary)
4244 @kindex C-k (Summary)
4245 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
4246 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
4247 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
4250 @kindex M C (Summary)
4251 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
4252 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
4253 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
4256 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
4257 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
4258 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
4259 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
4262 @kindex M H (Summary)
4263 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
4264 Catchup the current group to point
4265 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
4268 @kindex C-w (Summary)
4269 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
4270 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
4271 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
4274 @kindex M V k (Summary)
4275 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
4276 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
4277 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
4281 @kindex M e (Summary)
4283 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
4284 Mark the current article as expirable
4285 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
4288 @kindex M b (Summary)
4289 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
4290 Set a bookmark in the current article
4291 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
4294 @kindex M B (Summary)
4295 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
4296 Remove the bookmark from the current article
4297 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
4300 @kindex M V c (Summary)
4301 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
4302 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
4303 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
4306 @kindex M V u (Summary)
4307 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
4308 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
4309 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
4312 @kindex M V m (Summary)
4313 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
4314 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
4315 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
4316 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
4319 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
4320 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
4321 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
4322 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
4323 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
4324 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
4325 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
4326 The default is @code{t}.
4329 @node Setting Process Marks
4330 @subsection Setting Process Marks
4331 @cindex setting process marks
4338 @kindex M P p (Summary)
4339 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
4340 Mark the current article with the process mark
4341 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
4342 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
4346 @kindex M P u (Summary)
4347 @kindex M-# (Summary)
4348 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
4349 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
4352 @kindex M P U (Summary)
4353 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
4354 Remove the process mark from all articles
4355 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
4358 @kindex M P i (Summary)
4359 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
4360 Invert the list of process marked articles
4361 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
4364 @kindex M P R (Summary)
4365 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
4366 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
4367 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
4370 @kindex M P r (Summary)
4371 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
4372 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
4375 @kindex M P t (Summary)
4376 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
4377 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
4378 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
4381 @kindex M P T (Summary)
4382 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
4383 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
4384 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
4387 @kindex M P v (Summary)
4388 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
4389 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
4390 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
4393 @kindex M P s (Summary)
4394 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
4395 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
4398 @kindex M P S (Summary)
4399 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
4400 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
4401 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
4404 @kindex M P a (Summary)
4405 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
4406 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
4409 @kindex M P b (Summary)
4410 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
4411 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
4412 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
4415 @kindex M P k (Summary)
4416 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
4417 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
4418 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
4421 @kindex M P y (Summary)
4422 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
4423 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
4424 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
4427 @kindex M P w (Summary)
4428 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
4429 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
4430 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
4439 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
4440 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
4441 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
4444 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
4445 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
4446 additional articles.
4452 @kindex / / (Summary)
4453 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
4454 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
4455 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}).
4458 @kindex / a (Summary)
4459 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
4460 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
4461 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}).
4465 @kindex / u (Summary)
4467 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
4468 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
4469 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
4470 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
4471 dormant articles will also be excluded.
4474 @kindex / m (Summary)
4475 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
4476 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
4477 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
4480 @kindex / t (Summary)
4481 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
4482 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
4483 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}). If given a prefix, limit to
4484 articles younger than that number of days.
4487 @kindex / n (Summary)
4488 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
4489 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
4490 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
4491 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4494 @kindex / w (Summary)
4495 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
4496 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
4497 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
4501 @kindex / v (Summary)
4502 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
4503 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
4504 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
4508 @kindex M S (Summary)
4509 @kindex / E (Summary)
4510 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
4511 Include all expunged articles in the limit
4512 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
4515 @kindex / D (Summary)
4516 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
4517 Include all dormant articles in the limit
4518 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
4521 @kindex / * (Summary)
4522 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
4523 Include all cached articles in the limit
4524 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
4527 @kindex / d (Summary)
4528 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
4529 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
4530 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
4533 @kindex / T (Summary)
4534 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
4535 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
4538 @kindex / c (Summary)
4539 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
4540 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
4541 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
4544 @kindex / C (Summary)
4545 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
4546 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
4547 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
4548 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
4556 @cindex article threading
4558 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
4559 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
4560 hierarchical fashion.
4562 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
4563 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
4564 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
4565 or simply missing. Weird news propagation excarcerbates the problem,
4566 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
4567 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
4568 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
4570 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
4574 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
4577 A tree-like article structure.
4580 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
4583 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
4584 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
4585 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
4586 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
4587 called loose threads.
4589 @item thread gathering
4590 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
4592 @item sparse threads
4593 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
4594 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
4600 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
4601 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
4605 @node Customizing Threading
4606 @subsection Customizing Threading
4607 @cindex customizing threading
4610 * Loose Threads:: How gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
4611 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
4612 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
4613 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
4618 @subsubsection Loose Threads
4621 @cindex loose threads
4624 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
4625 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
4626 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
4627 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
4628 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
4629 read or killed the root in a previous session.
4631 When there is no real root of a thread, gnus will have to fudge
4632 something. This variable says what fudging method gnus should use.
4633 There are four possible values:
4637 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
4638 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-adopt.ps,width=7.5cm}}
4639 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-empty.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4640 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-none.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4641 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-dummy.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4646 @cindex adopting articles
4651 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
4652 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
4653 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
4654 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
4657 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
4658 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
4659 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
4660 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
4661 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
4662 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
4663 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
4666 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
4667 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
4668 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
4672 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
4673 display them after one another.
4676 Don't gather loose threads.
4679 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
4680 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
4681 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
4682 variable is @code{nil}, gnus requires an exact match between the
4683 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
4684 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
4685 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
4686 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
4687 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
4688 variable to a really low number, you'll find that gnus will gather
4689 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
4691 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
4692 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, gnus will
4693 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
4696 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
4697 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
4698 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
4699 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
4700 simplification is used.
4702 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4703 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4704 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
4705 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
4707 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
4709 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4715 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
4716 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
4717 "answer" "reference" "announce"
4718 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
4723 (mapconcat 'identity
4724 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
4726 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
4729 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
4732 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
4733 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
4734 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
4735 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
4736 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
4737 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
4739 Useful functions to put in this list include:
4742 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
4743 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
4744 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
4746 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
4747 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
4750 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
4751 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
4752 Remove excessive whitespace.
4755 You may also write your own functions, of course.
4758 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
4759 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
4760 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
4761 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
4762 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
4763 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
4764 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
4765 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
4767 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4768 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4769 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
4770 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
4771 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
4772 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
4773 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
4774 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
4775 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
4779 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
4780 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
4781 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
4782 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
4784 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
4785 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
4786 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
4789 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
4793 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4794 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
4800 @node Filling In Threads
4801 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
4804 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
4805 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
4806 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
4807 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you would
4808 like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still connect as
4809 many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable to
4810 @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than that
4811 number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case, fetching
4812 old headers only works if the backend you are using carries overview
4813 files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and
4814 @code{nnml}. Also remember that if the root of the thread has been
4815 expired by the server, there's not much gnus can do about that.
4817 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
4818 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
4819 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
4821 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
4822 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
4823 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
4824 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
4825 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
4826 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
4827 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where gnus guesses that an article
4828 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
4829 lines. If you select a gap, gnus will try to fetch the article in
4830 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, gnus will display all these
4831 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
4832 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, gnus won't cut
4833 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
4834 @code{nil} by default.
4839 @node More Threading
4840 @subsubsection More Threading
4843 @item gnus-show-threads
4844 @vindex gnus-show-threads
4845 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
4846 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
4847 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
4848 slower and more awkward.
4850 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
4851 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
4852 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
4855 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
4856 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
4857 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
4858 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
4859 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
4860 threads are expunged.
4862 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
4863 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
4864 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
4867 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
4868 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
4869 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
4870 this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subject change is ignored. If it
4871 is @code{nil}, which is the default, a change in the subject will result
4874 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
4875 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
4876 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
4882 @node Low-Level Threading
4883 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
4887 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
4888 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
4889 Hook run before parsing any headers. The default value is
4890 @code{(gnus-set-summary-default-charset)}, which sets up local value of
4891 @code{default-mime-charset} in summary buffer based on variable
4892 @code{gnus-newsgroup-default-charset-alist}.
4894 @item gnus-alter-header-function
4895 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
4896 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
4897 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
4898 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
4899 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
4900 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
4901 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
4902 meaningful. Here's one example:
4905 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
4907 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
4908 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
4910 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
4912 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
4919 @node Thread Commands
4920 @subsection Thread Commands
4921 @cindex thread commands
4927 @kindex T k (Summary)
4928 @kindex M-C-k (Summary)
4929 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
4930 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
4931 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
4932 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
4937 @kindex T l (Summary)
4938 @kindex M-C-l (Summary)
4939 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
4940 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
4941 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
4944 @kindex T i (Summary)
4945 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
4946 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
4947 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
4950 @kindex T # (Summary)
4951 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
4952 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
4953 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
4956 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
4957 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
4958 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
4959 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
4962 @kindex T T (Summary)
4963 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
4964 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
4967 @kindex T s (Summary)
4968 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
4969 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
4970 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
4973 @kindex T h (Summary)
4974 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
4975 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
4978 @kindex T S (Summary)
4979 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
4980 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
4983 @kindex T H (Summary)
4984 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
4985 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
4988 @kindex T t (Summary)
4989 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
4990 Re-thread the current article's thread
4991 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
4992 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
4995 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
4996 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
4997 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
4998 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
5002 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
5003 understand the numeric prefix.
5008 @kindex T n (Summary)
5009 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
5010 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
5013 @kindex T p (Summary)
5014 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
5015 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
5018 @kindex T d (Summary)
5019 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
5020 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
5023 @kindex T u (Summary)
5024 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
5025 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
5028 @kindex T o (Summary)
5029 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
5030 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
5033 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
5034 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
5035 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
5036 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
5037 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
5038 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
5039 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
5040 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
5041 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
5042 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
5043 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
5044 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
5051 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
5052 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
5053 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
5054 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
5055 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
5056 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
5057 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
5058 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
5059 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which is a list of functions.
5060 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
5061 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
5062 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
5063 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score}, and
5064 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
5066 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
5067 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
5068 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread. If you use
5069 more than one function, the primary sort key should be the last function
5070 in the list. You should probably always include
5071 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
5072 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
5073 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
5074 ascending article order.
5076 If you would like to sort by score, then by subject, and finally by
5077 number, you could do something like:
5080 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
5081 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
5082 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
5083 gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score))
5086 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
5087 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
5088 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
5089 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
5090 which the articles arrived.
5092 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
5096 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
5098 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
5099 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
5102 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
5103 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
5104 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
5105 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
5108 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
5109 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
5110 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
5111 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
5112 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
5113 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
5114 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or other,
5115 you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions} variable.
5116 It is very similar to the @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that
5117 it uses slightly different functions for article comparison. Available
5118 sorting predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
5119 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject},
5120 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date}, and @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
5122 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
5126 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
5127 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
5128 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
5133 @node Asynchronous Fetching
5134 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
5135 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
5136 @cindex article pre-fetch
5139 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
5140 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
5141 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
5142 article appears. Why can't gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
5143 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
5145 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
5146 article fetching, especially the way gnus does it.
5148 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
5149 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
5150 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
5151 article 3, but since gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
5152 connection is blocked.
5154 To avoid these situations, gnus will open two (count 'em two)
5155 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
5156 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
5157 extra connection takes some time, so gnus startup will be slower.
5159 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
5160 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
5161 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
5162 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
5165 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
5168 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
5169 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
5170 happen automatically.
5172 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
5173 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
5174 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
5175 that when you read an article in the group, the backend will pre-fetch
5176 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the backend will
5177 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
5178 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
5180 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
5181 @findex gnus-async-read-p
5182 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
5183 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This function should
5184 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
5185 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
5186 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
5187 data structure as the only parameter.
5189 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter
5190 than 100 lines, you could say something like:
5193 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
5194 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
5195 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
5196 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
5199 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
5202 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
5203 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down gnus too much. It's
5204 probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
5206 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
5207 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
5208 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
5209 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
5213 Remove articles when they are read.
5216 Remove articles when exiting the group.
5219 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
5221 @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
5222 If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
5223 from the next group.
5226 @node Article Caching
5227 @section Article Caching
5228 @cindex article caching
5231 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
5232 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
5233 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
5234 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
5235 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
5237 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
5239 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
5240 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
5241 @vindex gnus-use-cache
5242 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
5243 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
5244 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
5245 cache is flat or hierarchal is controlled by the
5246 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
5248 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
5249 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
5250 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
5251 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
5252 as dormant, and don't worry.
5254 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
5256 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
5257 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
5258 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
5259 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
5260 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
5261 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
5262 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
5263 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
5264 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
5265 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
5267 @findex gnus-jog-cache
5268 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
5269 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
5270 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
5271 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
5272 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
5273 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
5274 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
5275 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
5276 not then be downloaded by this command.
5278 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
5279 It is likely that you do not want caching on some groups. For instance,
5280 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
5281 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
5282 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space. To limit the caching,
5283 you could set the @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to
5284 @samp{^nnml}, for instance. This variable is @code{nil} by
5287 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
5288 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
5289 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
5290 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
5291 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
5292 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, gnus
5293 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
5294 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
5295 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
5299 @node Persistent Articles
5300 @section Persistent Articles
5301 @cindex persistent articles
5303 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
5304 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
5305 useful in my opinion.
5307 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
5308 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
5309 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
5310 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
5311 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
5312 the expiry going on at the news server.
5314 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
5315 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
5316 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
5322 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
5323 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
5326 @kindex M-* (Summary)
5327 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
5328 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
5329 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
5333 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
5335 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
5336 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
5337 interested in persistent articles:
5340 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
5344 @node Article Backlog
5345 @section Article Backlog
5347 @cindex article backlog
5349 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
5350 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
5351 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where gnus will buffer
5352 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
5353 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
5354 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
5355 that, turning the backlog on will slow gnus down a little bit, and
5356 increase memory usage some.
5358 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
5359 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, gnus will store
5360 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
5361 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, gnus will store
5362 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
5363 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
5364 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
5366 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
5369 @node Saving Articles
5370 @section Saving Articles
5371 @cindex saving articles
5373 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
5374 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
5375 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
5376 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
5377 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
5379 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
5380 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, gnus will not delete
5381 unwanted headers before saving the article.
5383 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
5384 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
5385 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
5386 deleted before saving.
5392 @kindex O o (Summary)
5394 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
5395 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
5396 Save the current article using the default article saver
5397 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
5400 @kindex O m (Summary)
5401 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
5402 Save the current article in mail format
5403 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
5406 @kindex O r (Summary)
5407 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
5408 Save the current article in rmail format
5409 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
5412 @kindex O f (Summary)
5413 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
5414 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
5415 Save the current article in plain file format
5416 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
5419 @kindex O F (Summary)
5420 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
5421 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
5422 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
5425 @kindex O b (Summary)
5426 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
5427 Save the current article body in plain file format
5428 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
5431 @kindex O h (Summary)
5432 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
5433 Save the current article in mh folder format
5434 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
5437 @kindex O v (Summary)
5438 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
5439 Save the current article in a VM folder
5440 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
5443 @kindex O p (Summary)
5444 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
5445 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
5446 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
5449 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
5450 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
5451 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
5452 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
5453 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
5454 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
5455 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
5456 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
5457 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
5458 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
5459 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
5460 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
5464 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
5465 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
5466 gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the four ready-made
5467 functions below, or you can create your own.
5471 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
5472 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
5473 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
5474 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
5475 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
5476 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5477 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
5479 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
5480 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
5481 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
5482 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
5483 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5484 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
5486 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
5487 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
5488 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
5489 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
5490 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
5491 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5492 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
5494 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
5495 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
5496 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
5497 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5498 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
5500 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
5501 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
5502 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
5503 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
5504 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
5507 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
5508 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
5509 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
5510 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
5511 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
5513 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
5514 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
5515 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
5516 reader to use this setting.
5519 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
5520 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
5521 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
5522 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
5525 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
5526 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
5527 available functions that generate names:
5531 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
5532 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
5533 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
5535 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
5536 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
5537 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
5539 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
5540 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
5541 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
5543 @item gnus-plain-save-name
5544 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
5545 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
5548 @vindex gnus-split-methods
5549 You can have gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp
5550 into the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would
5551 like to save articles related to gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and
5552 articles related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable
5556 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
5557 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
5558 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
5559 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
5562 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
5563 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
5564 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
5565 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
5566 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
5567 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
5568 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
5569 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
5570 called returns a string or a list of strings.
5572 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
5573 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
5574 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
5575 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
5577 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
5578 means that gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
5579 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file name.
5581 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
5582 lots of mail groups called things like
5583 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
5584 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
5585 following will do just that:
5588 (defun my-save-name (group)
5589 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
5590 (substring group (match-end 0))))
5592 (setq gnus-split-methods
5593 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
5598 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
5599 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
5600 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
5601 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
5602 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
5603 all the files in the top level directory
5604 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
5605 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
5606 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
5607 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
5609 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
5610 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
5611 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
5612 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
5613 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
5616 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
5620 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
5621 (setq gnus-default-article-saver 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
5624 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
5625 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
5626 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
5627 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
5630 @node Decoding Articles
5631 @section Decoding Articles
5632 @cindex decoding articles
5634 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
5635 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
5638 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
5639 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
5640 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
5641 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
5642 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
5643 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
5647 @cindex article series
5648 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
5649 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
5650 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
5651 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
5652 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
5654 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
5655 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
5656 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
5658 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, gnus
5659 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
5660 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
5662 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
5663 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
5664 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
5667 @node Uuencoded Articles
5668 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
5670 @cindex uuencoded articles
5675 @kindex X u (Summary)
5676 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
5677 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
5678 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
5681 @kindex X U (Summary)
5682 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
5683 Uudecodes and saves the current series
5684 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
5687 @kindex X v u (Summary)
5688 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
5689 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
5692 @kindex X v U (Summary)
5693 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
5694 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
5695 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
5699 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
5700 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
5701 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
5702 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
5703 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
5705 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
5706 @sc{GNUS 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
5707 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
5708 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
5711 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
5712 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
5713 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
5714 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
5715 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
5716 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
5720 @node Shell Archives
5721 @subsection Shell Archives
5723 @cindex shell archives
5724 @cindex shared articles
5726 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
5727 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
5728 some commands to deal with these:
5733 @kindex X s (Summary)
5734 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
5735 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
5738 @kindex X S (Summary)
5739 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
5740 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
5743 @kindex X v s (Summary)
5744 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
5745 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
5748 @kindex X v S (Summary)
5749 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
5750 Unshars, views and saves the current series
5751 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
5755 @node PostScript Files
5756 @subsection PostScript Files
5762 @kindex X p (Summary)
5763 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
5764 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
5767 @kindex X P (Summary)
5768 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
5769 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
5770 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
5773 @kindex X v p (Summary)
5774 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
5775 View the current PostScript series
5776 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
5779 @kindex X v P (Summary)
5780 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
5781 View and save the current PostScript series
5782 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
5787 @subsection Other Files
5791 @kindex X o (Summary)
5792 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
5793 Save the current series
5794 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
5797 @kindex X b (Summary)
5798 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
5799 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
5800 doesn't really work yet.
5804 @node Decoding Variables
5805 @subsection Decoding Variables
5807 Adjective, not verb.
5810 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
5811 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
5812 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
5816 @node Rule Variables
5817 @subsubsection Rule Variables
5818 @cindex rule variables
5820 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
5821 variables are of the form
5824 (list '(regexp1 command2)
5831 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
5832 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
5834 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
5835 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
5838 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
5839 (list '(\"\\\\.au$\" \"sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio\")))
5842 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
5843 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
5844 This variable is consulted if gnus couldn't make any matches from the
5845 user and default view rules.
5847 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
5848 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
5849 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
5854 @node Other Decode Variables
5855 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
5858 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
5860 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
5861 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
5862 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
5863 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
5864 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
5868 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
5869 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
5872 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
5873 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
5874 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
5877 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
5878 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
5879 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
5880 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
5881 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
5884 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
5885 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
5886 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
5888 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
5889 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
5890 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
5891 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
5892 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
5895 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
5896 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
5897 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
5899 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
5900 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
5901 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
5902 looking for files to display.
5904 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
5905 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
5906 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
5909 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
5910 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
5911 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
5914 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
5915 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
5916 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
5919 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
5920 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
5921 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
5924 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
5925 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
5926 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
5927 decoded articles as unread.
5929 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
5930 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
5931 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
5932 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
5934 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
5935 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
5936 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
5938 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
5939 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
5941 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
5942 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
5943 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
5944 @code{metamail} for viewing.
5946 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
5947 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
5948 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
5949 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
5950 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
5951 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC1153---no easy way
5952 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
5953 simply dropped them.
5958 @node Uuencoding and Posting
5959 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
5963 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
5964 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
5965 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
5966 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
5967 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
5968 for you when you post the article.
5970 @item gnus-uu-post-length
5971 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
5972 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
5973 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
5975 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
5976 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
5977 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
5978 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
5979 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
5980 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
5981 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
5983 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
5984 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
5985 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
5986 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
5987 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
5988 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
5989 Default is @code{t}.
5995 @subsection Viewing Files
5996 @cindex viewing files
5997 @cindex pseudo-articles
5999 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, gnus will attempt
6000 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
6001 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
6002 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, gnus will
6003 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
6004 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
6005 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
6007 Finally, gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
6008 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
6009 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
6010 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
6012 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
6013 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
6014 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
6016 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
6017 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
6018 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
6019 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
6020 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
6022 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
6023 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
6024 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
6025 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
6026 a list of parameters to that command.
6028 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
6029 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
6030 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
6032 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
6033 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
6034 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
6037 @node Article Treatment
6038 @section Article Treatment
6040 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
6041 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
6042 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
6043 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
6044 these articles easier.
6047 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
6048 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
6049 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
6050 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
6051 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
6052 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
6053 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
6057 @node Article Highlighting
6058 @subsection Article Highlighting
6061 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
6062 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
6067 @kindex W H a (Summary)
6068 @findex gnus-article-highlight
6069 Highlight the current article (@code{gnus-article-highlight}).
6072 @kindex W H h (Summary)
6073 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
6074 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
6075 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
6076 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
6077 variable, which is a list where each element has the form @var{(regexp
6078 name content)}. @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
6079 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
6080 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
6081 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
6082 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
6085 @kindex W H c (Summary)
6086 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
6087 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
6089 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
6092 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
6094 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
6095 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
6096 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
6098 @item gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
6099 @vindex gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
6100 Regexp matching the longest possible citation prefix on a line.
6102 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
6103 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
6104 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
6106 @item gnus-cite-face-list
6107 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
6108 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
6109 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
6110 gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
6111 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
6113 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
6114 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
6115 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
6117 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
6118 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
6119 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
6121 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
6122 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
6123 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
6124 that it's a citation.
6126 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
6127 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
6128 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
6130 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
6131 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
6132 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
6134 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
6135 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
6136 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
6137 cited text belonging to the attribution.
6143 @kindex W H s (Summary)
6144 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
6145 @vindex gnus-signature-face
6146 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
6147 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
6148 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
6149 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
6150 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
6156 @node Article Fontisizing
6157 @subsection Article Fontisizing
6159 @cindex article emphasis
6161 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
6162 @kindex W e (Summary)
6163 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
6164 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*}. Gnus can make this look nicer by
6165 running the article through the @kbd{W e}
6166 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
6168 @vindex gnus-article-emphasis
6169 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
6170 @code{gnus-article-emphasis} variable. This is an alist where the first
6171 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
6172 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
6173 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
6174 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
6175 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
6179 (setq gnus-article-emphasis
6180 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
6181 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
6184 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
6185 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
6186 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
6187 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
6188 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
6189 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
6190 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
6191 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
6192 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
6193 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
6194 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
6195 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
6196 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
6198 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
6199 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
6200 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
6204 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
6208 @node Article Hiding
6209 @subsection Article Hiding
6210 @cindex article hiding
6212 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
6213 too much cruft in most articles.
6218 @kindex W W a (Summary)
6219 @findex gnus-article-hide
6220 Do maximum hiding on the summary buffer (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}).
6223 @kindex W W h (Summary)
6224 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
6225 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
6229 @kindex W W b (Summary)
6230 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
6231 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
6232 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
6235 @kindex W W s (Summary)
6236 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
6237 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
6241 @kindex W W p (Summary)
6242 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
6243 @vindex gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
6244 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}). The
6245 @code{gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook} hook will be run after a @sc{pgp}
6246 signature has been hidden.
6249 @kindex W W P (Summary)
6250 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
6251 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
6252 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
6255 @kindex W W c (Summary)
6256 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
6257 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
6258 customizing the hiding:
6262 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
6263 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
6264 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
6265 50), hide the cited text.
6267 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
6268 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
6269 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
6272 @item gnus-cited-text-button-line-format
6273 @vindex gnus-cited-text-button-line-format
6274 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
6275 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
6276 by this format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
6281 Start point of the hidden text.
6283 End point of the hidden text.
6285 Length of the hidden text.
6288 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
6289 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
6290 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave shown.
6295 @kindex W W C (Summary)
6296 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
6297 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
6298 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
6299 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
6300 in @code{gnus-article-display-hook} (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
6304 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
6305 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
6306 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
6308 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
6309 citation customization.
6312 @node Article Washing
6313 @subsection Article Washing
6315 @cindex article washing
6317 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
6318 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
6320 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
6321 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
6327 @kindex W l (Summary)
6328 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
6329 Remove page breaks from the current article
6330 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article} for page
6334 @kindex W r (Summary)
6335 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
6336 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
6337 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
6338 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
6339 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
6340 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
6342 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
6343 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
6344 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
6345 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
6348 @kindex W t (Summary)
6349 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
6350 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
6351 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
6354 @kindex W v (Summary)
6355 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-header
6356 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
6357 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-header}).
6360 @kindex W m (Summary)
6361 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-mime
6362 Toggle whether to display the article as @sc{mime} message
6363 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-mime}).
6366 @kindex W o (Summary)
6367 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
6368 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
6371 @kindex W d (Summary)
6372 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
6373 Treat M******** sm*rtq**t*s (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}).
6376 @kindex W w (Summary)
6377 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
6378 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}). If you use this
6379 function in @code{gnus-article-display-hook}, it should be run fairly
6380 late and certainly after any highlighting.
6382 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
6386 @kindex W c (Summary)
6387 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
6388 Remove CR (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines)
6389 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
6392 @kindex W f (Summary)
6394 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
6395 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
6396 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
6397 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
6403 Look for and display any X-Face headers
6404 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}). The command executed by this
6405 function is given by the @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable.
6406 If this variable is a string, this string will be executed in a
6407 sub-shell. If it is a function, this function will be called with the
6408 face as the argument. If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which
6409 is a regexp) matches the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
6410 The default action under Emacs is to fork off an @code{xv} to view the
6411 face; under XEmacs the default action is to display the face before the
6412 @code{From} header. (It's nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with X-Face
6413 support---that will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native
6414 X-Face support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
6415 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and friends.) If you
6416 want to have this function in the display hook, it should probably come
6420 @kindex W b (Summary)
6421 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
6422 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
6423 @xref{Article Buttons}
6426 @kindex W B (Summary)
6427 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
6428 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
6429 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
6432 @kindex W E l (Summary)
6433 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
6434 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
6435 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
6438 @kindex W E m (Summary)
6439 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
6440 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
6441 lines with a single empty line.
6442 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
6445 @kindex W E t (Summary)
6446 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
6447 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
6448 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
6451 @kindex W E a (Summary)
6452 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
6453 Do all the three commands above
6454 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
6457 @kindex W E A (Summary)
6458 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
6459 Remove all blank lines
6460 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
6463 @kindex W E s (Summary)
6464 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
6465 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
6466 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
6471 @node Article Buttons
6472 @subsection Article Buttons
6475 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
6476 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
6477 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
6478 button on these references.
6480 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
6481 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses and Message-IDs. This is controlled by
6482 two variables, one that handles article bodies and one that handles
6487 @item gnus-button-alist
6488 @vindex gnus-button-alist
6489 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
6492 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
6498 All text that match this regular expression will be considered an
6499 external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches embedded URLs:
6500 @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}.
6503 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
6504 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
6505 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
6508 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
6509 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
6510 avoid false matches.
6513 This function will be called when you click on this button.
6516 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
6517 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
6521 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
6524 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
6527 @item gnus-header-button-alist
6528 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
6529 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
6530 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
6531 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
6534 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
6537 @var{HEADER} is a regular expression.
6539 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
6540 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
6541 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
6542 default values of the variables above.
6544 @item gnus-article-button-face
6545 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
6546 Face used on buttons.
6548 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
6549 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
6550 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
6556 @subsection Article Date
6558 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
6559 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
6560 when the article was sent.
6565 @kindex W T u (Summary)
6566 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
6567 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
6568 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
6571 @kindex W T i (Summary)
6572 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
6574 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
6575 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
6578 @kindex W T l (Summary)
6579 @findex gnus-article-date-local
6580 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
6583 @kindex W T s (Summary)
6584 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
6585 @findex gnus-article-date-user
6586 @findex format-time-string
6587 Display the date using a user-defined format
6588 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
6589 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
6590 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
6591 for a list of possible format specs.
6594 @kindex W T e (Summary)
6595 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
6596 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
6597 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
6598 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
6599 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). If you want to have this line
6600 updated continually, you can put
6603 (gnus-start-date-timer)
6606 in your @file{.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
6607 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
6611 @kindex W T o (Summary)
6612 @findex gnus-article-date-original
6613 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
6614 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
6615 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
6616 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
6617 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
6622 @node Article Signature
6623 @subsection Article Signature
6625 @cindex article signature
6627 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
6628 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
6629 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
6630 that says what is to be considered a signature is
6631 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
6632 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
6633 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
6634 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
6635 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
6638 (setq gnus-signature-separator
6639 '("^-- $" ; The standard
6640 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
6641 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
6642 ; line of dashes. Shame!
6643 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
6644 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
6645 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
6648 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
6651 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
6652 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
6657 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
6660 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
6663 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
6664 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
6666 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
6667 in question is not a signature.
6670 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
6671 listed above. Here's an example:
6674 (setq gnus-signature-limit
6675 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
6678 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
6679 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
6680 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
6681 signature after all.
6684 @node Article Commands
6685 @section Article Commands
6692 @kindex A P (Summary)
6693 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
6694 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
6695 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
6696 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will be
6697 run just before printing the buffer.
6702 @node Summary Sorting
6703 @section Summary Sorting
6704 @cindex summary sorting
6706 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
6707 can't really see why you'd want that.
6712 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
6713 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
6714 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
6717 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
6718 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
6719 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
6722 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
6723 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
6724 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
6727 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
6728 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
6729 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
6732 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
6733 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
6734 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
6737 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
6738 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
6739 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
6742 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
6743 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
6744 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
6745 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
6746 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
6750 @node Finding the Parent
6751 @section Finding the Parent
6752 @cindex parent articles
6753 @cindex referring articles
6758 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
6759 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
6760 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
6761 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
6762 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
6763 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
6764 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
6765 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
6766 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
6768 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
6769 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
6770 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, gnus will fetch the parent, the
6771 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
6772 @kbd{-3 ^}, gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
6776 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
6777 @kindex A R (Summary)
6778 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
6779 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
6782 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
6783 @kindex A T (Summary)
6784 Display the full thread where the current article appears
6785 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
6786 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
6787 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
6788 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
6789 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
6790 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
6792 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
6793 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
6794 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
6795 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
6796 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
6797 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
6800 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
6801 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
6803 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
6804 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
6805 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
6806 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
6807 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
6808 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
6809 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
6812 The current select method will be used when fetching by
6813 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
6814 by giving this command a prefix.
6816 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
6817 If the group you are reading is located on a backend that does not
6818 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
6819 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
6820 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
6821 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
6824 Most of the mail backends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but do
6825 not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox} and
6826 @code{nnbabyl} are able to locate articles from any groups, while
6827 @code{nnml} and @code{nnfolder} are only able to locate articles that
6828 have been posted to the current group. (Anything else would be too time
6829 consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not support this at all.
6832 @node Alternative Approaches
6833 @section Alternative Approaches
6835 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
6836 gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
6839 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
6840 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
6845 @subsection Pick and Read
6846 @cindex pick and read
6848 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
6849 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
6850 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
6851 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
6853 @findex gnus-pick-mode
6854 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
6855 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
6856 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
6857 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
6858 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
6860 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
6865 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
6866 Pick the article on the current line
6867 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}). If given a numerical prefix,
6868 go to that article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
6869 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
6872 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
6873 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
6874 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
6875 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
6879 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
6880 Unpick the article (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
6884 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
6885 Unpick all articles (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
6889 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
6890 Pick the thread (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
6894 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
6895 Unpick the thread (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
6899 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
6900 Pick the region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
6904 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-region
6905 Unpick the region (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-region}).
6909 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
6910 Pick articles that match a regexp (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
6914 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp
6915 Unpick articles that match a regexp (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp}).
6919 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
6920 Pick the buffer (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
6924 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-buffer
6925 Unpick the buffer (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-buffer}).
6929 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
6930 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
6931 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
6932 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
6933 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
6934 will still be visible when you are reading.
6938 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
6941 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
6944 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
6945 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
6947 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
6948 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
6949 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
6951 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
6952 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
6953 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
6954 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
6955 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
6956 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
6957 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
6961 @subsection Binary Groups
6962 @cindex binary groups
6964 @findex gnus-binary-mode
6965 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
6966 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
6967 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
6968 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
6969 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
6970 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
6973 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
6974 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
6975 command, when you have turned on this mode
6976 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
6978 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
6979 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
6983 @section Tree Display
6986 @vindex gnus-use-trees
6987 If you don't like the normal gnus summary display, you might try setting
6988 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
6989 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
6992 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
6995 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
6996 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
6997 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
6999 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
7000 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
7001 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
7002 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
7003 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
7005 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
7006 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
7007 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
7008 default is @code{modeline}.
7010 @item gnus-tree-line-format
7011 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
7012 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
7013 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
7014 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
7015 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
7016 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
7022 The name of the poster.
7024 The @code{From} header.
7026 The number of the article.
7028 The opening bracket.
7030 The closing bracket.
7035 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
7037 Variables related to the display are:
7040 @item gnus-tree-brackets
7041 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
7042 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
7043 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @var{((real-open . real-close)
7044 (sparse-open . sparse-close) (dummy-open . dummy-close))}, and the
7045 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
7047 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
7048 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
7049 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
7050 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
7054 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
7055 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
7056 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, gnus will try to keep the tree
7057 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other gnus
7058 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
7059 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
7060 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
7061 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
7062 other windows displayed next to it.
7064 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
7065 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
7066 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
7067 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
7068 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
7069 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
7070 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
7074 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
7077 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
7087 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
7091 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
7092 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
7094 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
7096 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
7101 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
7102 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
7103 following to your @file{.gnus.el} file:
7106 (setq gnus-use-trees t
7107 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
7108 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
7109 (gnus-add-configuration
7113 (summary 0.75 point)
7118 @xref{Windows Configuration}.
7121 @node Mail Group Commands
7122 @section Mail Group Commands
7123 @cindex mail group commands
7125 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
7126 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
7128 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
7129 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7134 @kindex B e (Summary)
7135 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
7136 Expire all expirable articles in the group
7137 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}).
7140 @kindex B M-C-e (Summary)
7141 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
7142 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
7143 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
7144 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
7145 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
7148 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
7149 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
7150 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
7151 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
7152 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
7153 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
7156 @kindex B m (Summary)
7158 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
7159 Move the article from one mail group to another
7160 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}).
7163 @kindex B c (Summary)
7165 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
7166 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
7167 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
7168 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}).
7171 @kindex B B (Summary)
7172 @cindex crosspost mail
7173 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
7174 Crosspost the current article to some other group
7175 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
7176 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
7177 be properly updated.
7180 @kindex B i (Summary)
7181 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
7182 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
7183 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
7184 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
7187 @kindex B r (Summary)
7188 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
7189 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}).
7190 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
7191 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
7192 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
7196 @kindex B w (Summary)
7198 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
7199 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
7200 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
7201 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
7202 (@kbd{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
7203 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, gnus won't re-highlight the article.
7206 @kindex B q (Summary)
7207 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
7208 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
7209 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
7210 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
7213 @kindex B p (Summary)
7214 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
7215 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
7216 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
7217 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
7218 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
7219 article from your news server (or rather, from
7220 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
7221 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
7222 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
7223 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
7224 just not have arrived yet.
7228 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
7229 @cindex moving articles
7230 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have gnus
7231 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
7232 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
7233 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
7234 suggestions you find reasonable.
7237 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
7238 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
7239 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
7240 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
7244 @node Various Summary Stuff
7245 @section Various Summary Stuff
7248 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
7249 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
7250 * Summary Generation Commands:: (Re)generating the summary buffer.
7251 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
7255 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
7256 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
7257 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
7259 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
7260 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
7261 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
7262 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
7263 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
7264 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
7267 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
7268 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
7269 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
7270 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
7271 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
7273 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
7274 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
7275 When gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
7276 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
7277 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
7278 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
7279 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), gnus will rename the
7280 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
7281 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
7282 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
7287 @node Summary Group Information
7288 @subsection Summary Group Information
7293 @kindex H f (Summary)
7294 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
7295 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
7296 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
7297 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
7298 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
7299 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
7300 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
7301 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
7302 be used for fetching the file.
7305 @kindex H d (Summary)
7306 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
7307 Give a brief description of the current group
7308 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
7309 rereading the description from the server.
7312 @kindex H h (Summary)
7313 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
7314 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
7315 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
7318 @kindex H i (Summary)
7319 @findex gnus-info-find-node
7320 Go to the gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
7324 @node Searching for Articles
7325 @subsection Searching for Articles
7330 @kindex M-s (Summary)
7331 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
7332 Search through all subsequent articles for a regexp
7333 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
7336 @kindex M-r (Summary)
7337 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
7338 Search through all previous articles for a regexp
7339 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
7343 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
7344 This command will prompt you for a header field, a regular expression to
7345 match on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
7346 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If given a prefix, search
7350 @kindex M-& (Summary)
7351 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
7352 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
7353 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
7356 @node Summary Generation Commands
7357 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
7362 @kindex Y g (Summary)
7363 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
7364 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
7367 @kindex Y c (Summary)
7368 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
7369 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
7370 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
7375 @node Really Various Summary Commands
7376 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
7381 @kindex C-d (Summary)
7382 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
7383 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
7384 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
7385 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
7386 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
7387 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
7388 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
7389 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
7393 @kindex M-C-d (Summary)
7394 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
7395 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
7396 several documents into one biiig group
7397 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
7398 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
7399 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
7400 command understands the process/prefix convention
7401 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7404 @kindex C-t (Summary)
7405 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
7406 Toggle truncation of summary lines
7407 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
7408 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
7409 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
7413 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
7414 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
7415 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
7418 @kindex M-C-e (Summary)
7419 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
7420 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
7421 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
7426 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
7427 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
7428 @cindex summary exit
7429 @cindex exiting groups
7431 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
7432 group and return you to the group buffer.
7438 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
7440 @findex gnus-summary-exit
7441 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
7442 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
7443 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
7444 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
7445 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
7446 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
7447 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
7448 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
7449 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
7450 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
7454 @kindex Z E (Summary)
7456 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
7457 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
7458 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
7462 @kindex Z c (Summary)
7464 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
7465 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
7466 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
7467 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
7470 @kindex Z C (Summary)
7471 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
7472 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
7473 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
7476 @kindex Z n (Summary)
7477 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
7478 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
7479 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
7482 @kindex Z R (Summary)
7483 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
7484 Exit this group, and then enter it again
7485 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
7486 all articles, both read and unread.
7490 @kindex Z G (Summary)
7491 @kindex M-g (Summary)
7492 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
7493 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
7494 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
7495 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
7496 articles, both read and unread.
7499 @kindex Z N (Summary)
7500 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
7501 Exit the group and go to the next group
7502 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
7505 @kindex Z P (Summary)
7506 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
7507 Exit the group and go to the previous group
7508 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
7511 @kindex Z s (Summary)
7512 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
7513 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
7514 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
7515 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
7516 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
7519 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
7520 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current
7523 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
7524 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
7525 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
7526 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
7527 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
7528 If you do that, gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
7529 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
7530 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
7531 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
7532 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
7533 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
7534 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
7536 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
7538 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
7539 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
7540 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
7541 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
7542 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
7543 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
7544 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
7545 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
7546 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
7549 @node Crosspost Handling
7550 @section Crosspost Handling
7554 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
7555 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
7556 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
7557 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
7558 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
7559 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
7562 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
7563 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
7564 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
7565 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
7566 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
7568 @cindex cross-posting
7571 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
7572 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
7573 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
7574 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
7575 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
7576 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
7577 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
7578 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
7579 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
7580 the cross reference mechanism.
7582 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
7583 @cindex overview.fmt
7584 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
7585 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
7586 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
7587 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
7588 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
7589 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
7592 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
7593 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
7594 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
7599 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
7602 @node Duplicate Suppression
7603 @section Duplicate Suppression
7605 By default, gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
7606 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
7607 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
7608 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various reasons.
7612 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
7613 is evil and not very common.
7616 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
7617 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
7620 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
7621 different @sc{nntp} servers.
7624 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
7627 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
7628 well, but these four are the most common situations.
7630 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
7631 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
7632 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
7633 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
7634 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
7635 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
7636 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
7639 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
7640 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
7641 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
7642 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
7643 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
7647 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
7648 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
7649 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
7651 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
7652 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
7653 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
7654 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
7655 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single gnus
7656 session are suppressed.
7658 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
7659 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
7660 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
7661 suppression list. The default is 10000.
7663 @item gnus-duplicate-file
7664 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
7665 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
7666 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
7669 If you have a tendency to stop and start gnus often, setting
7670 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
7671 you leave gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
7672 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
7673 so that means that if you stop and start gnus often, you should set
7674 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
7675 to you to figure out, I think.
7678 @node The Article Buffer
7679 @chapter The Article Buffer
7680 @cindex article buffer
7682 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
7683 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
7684 tell gnus otherwise.
7687 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
7688 * Using MIME:: Pushing to mime articles as @sc{mime} messages.
7689 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
7690 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
7691 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
7695 @node Hiding Headers
7696 @section Hiding Headers
7697 @cindex hiding headers
7698 @cindex deleting headers
7700 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
7701 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
7703 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
7704 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
7705 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
7706 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
7707 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
7708 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
7709 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
7710 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
7711 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
7713 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
7717 @item gnus-visible-headers
7718 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
7719 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
7720 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
7721 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
7723 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
7724 the article and the subject, you'd say:
7727 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
7730 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
7733 @item gnus-ignored-headers
7734 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
7735 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
7736 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
7737 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
7738 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
7740 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} field
7741 and the @code{Xref} field, you might say:
7744 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
7747 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
7750 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
7751 variable will have no effect.
7755 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
7756 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
7757 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
7758 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
7759 the headers are to be displayed.
7761 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
7762 and then the subject, you might say something like:
7765 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
7768 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
7769 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed
7772 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
7773 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
7774 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
7775 You can hide further boring headers by entering
7776 @code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers} into
7777 @code{gnus-article-display-hook}. What this function does depends on
7778 the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a list, but this
7779 list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is lists various
7780 @dfn{boring conditions} that gnus can check and remove from sight.
7782 These conditions are:
7785 Remove all empty headers.
7787 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
7790 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
7791 @code{Newsgroups} header.
7793 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
7796 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
7799 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
7801 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
7804 To include the four first elements, you could say something like;
7807 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
7808 '(empty newsgroups followup-to reply-to))
7811 This is also the default value for this variable.
7815 @section Using @sc{mime}
7818 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
7819 while people stand around yawning.
7821 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
7822 while all newsreaders die of fear.
7824 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
7825 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
7826 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
7828 @vindex gnus-show-mime
7829 @vindex gnus-article-display-method-for-mime
7830 @vindex gnus-strict-mime
7831 @findex gnus-article-display-mime-message
7832 Gnus handles @sc{mime} by pushing the articles through
7833 @code{gnus-article-display-method-for-mime}, which is
7834 @code{gnus-article-display-mime-message} by default. This function
7835 calls the SEMI MIME-View program to actually do the work. For more
7836 information on SEMI MIME-View, see its manual page (however it is not
7837 existed yet, sorry).
7839 Set @code{gnus-show-mime} to @code{t} if you want to use
7840 @sc{mime} all the time. However, if @code{gnus-strict-mime} is
7841 non-@code{nil}, the @sc{mime} method will only be used if there are
7842 @sc{mime} headers in the article. If you have @code{gnus-show-mime}
7843 set, then you'll see some unfortunate display glitches in the article
7844 buffer. These can't be avoided.
7846 In GNUS or Gnus, it might be best to just use the toggling functions
7847 from the summary buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance,
7848 you enter the group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it,
7849 @sc{mime} has decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible
7850 sing-a-long song comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find
7851 the volume button, because there isn't one, and people are starting to
7852 look at you, and you try to stop the program, but you can't, and you
7853 can't find the program to control the volume, and everybody else in the
7854 room suddenly decides to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel
7857 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
7859 To avoid such kind of situation, gnus stops to use
7860 @code{metamail-buffer}. So now, you can set @code{gnus-show-mime} to
7861 non-@code{nil} every-time, then you can push button in the article
7862 buffer when there are nobody else.
7865 @node Customizing Articles
7866 @section Customizing Articles
7867 @cindex article customization
7869 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
7870 The @code{gnus-article-display-hook} is called after the article has
7871 been inserted into the article buffer. It is meant to handle all
7872 treatment of the article before it is displayed.
7874 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
7875 By default this hook just contains @code{gnus-article-hide-headers},
7876 @code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}, and
7877 @code{gnus-article-maybe-highlight}, but there are thousands, nay
7878 millions, of functions you can put in this hook. For an overview of
7879 functions @pxref{Article Highlighting}, @pxref{Article Hiding},
7880 @pxref{Article Washing}, @pxref{Article Buttons} and @pxref{Article
7881 Date}. Note that the order of functions in this hook might affect
7882 things, so you may have to fiddle a bit to get the desired results.
7884 You can, of course, write your own functions. The functions are called
7885 from the article buffer, and you can do anything you like, pretty much.
7886 There is no information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can
7887 change everything. However, you shouldn't delete any headers. Instead
7888 make them invisible if you want to make them go away.
7891 @node Article Keymap
7892 @section Article Keymap
7894 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
7895 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
7896 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
7897 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
7900 A few additional keystrokes are available:
7905 @kindex SPACE (Article)
7906 @findex gnus-article-next-page
7907 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
7910 @kindex DEL (Article)
7911 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
7912 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
7915 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
7916 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
7917 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
7918 @kbd{r}, gnus will try to get that article from the server
7919 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
7922 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
7923 @findex gnus-article-mail
7924 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
7925 given a prefix, include the mail.
7929 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
7930 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
7931 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
7935 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
7936 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
7937 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
7940 @kindex TAB (Article)
7941 @findex gnus-article-next-button
7942 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
7943 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
7946 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
7947 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
7948 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
7954 @section Misc Article
7958 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
7959 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
7960 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
7961 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
7964 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
7965 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
7966 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
7967 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
7968 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
7969 the contents of the article buffer.
7971 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
7972 @item gnus-article-display-hook
7973 This hook is called as the last thing when displaying an article, and is
7974 intended for modifying the contents of the buffer, doing highlights,
7975 hiding headers, and the like.
7977 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
7978 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
7979 Hook called in article mode buffers.
7981 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
7982 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
7983 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
7984 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
7986 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
7987 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
7988 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
7989 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
7990 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with one
7995 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
7996 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
8000 @vindex gnus-break-pages
8002 @item gnus-break-pages
8003 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
8004 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
8005 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
8006 paging will not be done.
8008 @item gnus-page-delimiter
8009 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
8010 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
8015 @node Composing Messages
8016 @chapter Composing Messages
8017 @cindex composing messages
8020 @cindex sending mail
8025 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
8026 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
8027 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the article
8028 by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Top, message, The Message
8029 Manual}. If you are in a foreign news group, and you wish to post the
8030 article using the foreign server, you can give a prefix to @kbd{C-c C-c}
8031 to make gnus try to post using the foreign server.
8034 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
8035 * Post:: Posting and following up.
8036 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
8037 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
8038 * Archived Messages:: Where gnus stores the messages you've sent.
8039 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
8040 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
8043 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
8044 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
8050 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
8053 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
8054 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
8055 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
8056 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched.
8058 @item gnus-add-to-list
8059 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
8060 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
8061 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
8069 Variables for composing news articles:
8072 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-file
8073 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-file
8074 Gnus will keep a @code{Message-ID} history file of all the mails it has
8075 sent. If it discovers that it has already sent a mail, it will ask the
8076 user whether to re-send the mail. (This is primarily useful when
8077 dealing with @sc{soup} packets and the like where one is apt to send the
8078 same packet multiple times.) This variable says what the name of this
8079 history file is. It is @file{~/News/Sent-Message-IDs} by default. Set
8080 this variable to @code{nil} if you don't want gnus to keep a history
8083 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-length
8084 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-length
8085 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the history
8086 file. It is 1000 by default.
8091 @node Posting Server
8092 @section Posting Server
8094 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
8095 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
8097 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
8099 @vindex gnus-post-method
8101 It can be quite complicated. Normally, gnus will use the same native
8102 server. However. If your native server doesn't allow posting, just
8103 reading, you probably want to use some other server to post your
8104 (extremely intelligent and fabulously interesting) articles. You can
8105 then set the @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
8108 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
8111 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
8112 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
8113 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
8114 the ``current'' server for posting.
8116 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
8117 gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
8119 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
8120 If that's the case, gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
8123 Finally, if you want to always post using the same select method as
8124 you're reading from (which might be convenient if you're reading lots of
8125 groups from different private servers), you can set this variable to
8130 @section Mail and Post
8132 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
8136 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
8137 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
8138 @cindex mailing lists
8140 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
8141 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
8142 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
8143 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
8144 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
8145 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
8146 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
8147 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
8148 still a pain, though.
8152 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
8153 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
8154 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
8157 @findex ispell-message
8159 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
8163 @node Archived Messages
8164 @section Archived Messages
8165 @cindex archived messages
8166 @cindex sent messages
8168 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
8169 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
8170 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
8171 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
8174 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
8175 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server gnus is to
8176 use to store sent messages. The default is:
8180 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
8181 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
8182 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
8183 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
8186 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
8187 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likeable select method
8188 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
8189 directory chosen, you could say something like:
8192 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
8193 '(nnfolder "archive"
8194 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
8195 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
8196 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
8199 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
8201 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
8202 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
8203 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
8205 This variable can be used to do the following:
8209 Messages will be saved in that group.
8210 @item a list of strings
8211 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
8212 @item an alist of regexps, functions and forms
8213 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
8215 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
8220 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
8222 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
8225 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
8227 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
8230 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
8232 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
8233 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
8234 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
8235 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
8240 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
8241 '((if (message-news-p)
8246 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
8247 messages in one file per month:
8250 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
8251 '((if (message-news-p)
8253 (concat "mail." (format-time-string
8254 "%Y-%m" (current-time))))))
8257 (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
8258 use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
8260 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
8261 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
8262 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
8263 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
8264 gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
8265 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
8266 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
8267 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
8268 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
8269 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
8271 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
8272 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
8273 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
8274 this will disable archiving.
8277 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
8278 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
8279 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
8280 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
8281 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
8284 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
8285 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
8286 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
8289 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
8290 but the latter is the preferred method.
8294 @c @node Posting Styles
8295 @c @section Posting Styles
8296 @c @cindex posting styles
8299 @c All them variables, they make my head swim.
8301 @c So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
8302 @c on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
8303 @c and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
8306 @c @vindex gnus-posting-styles
8307 @c One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
8308 @c variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
8309 @c came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
8310 @c a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
8315 @c (signature . "Peace and happiness")
8316 @c (organization . "What me?"))
8318 @c (signature . "Death to everybody"))
8319 @c ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
8320 @c (organization . "Emacs is it")))
8323 @c As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
8324 @c @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
8325 @c ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
8326 @c over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
8327 @c applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
8328 @c the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
8329 @c @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
8330 @c signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
8332 @c The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
8333 @c string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
8334 @c If it's a function symbol, that function will be called with no
8335 @c arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the variable will be
8336 @c referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be @code{eval}ed. In
8337 @c any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value, then the style is said
8340 @c Each style may contain a arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
8341 @c attribute consists of a @var{(name . value)} pair. The attribute name
8342 @c can be one of @code{signature}, @code{organization} or @code{from}. The
8343 @c attribute name can also be a string. In that case, this will be used as
8344 @c a header name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the
8347 @c The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function (the
8348 @c return value will be used), a variable (its value will be used) or a
8349 @c list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value will be used).
8351 @c So here's a new example:
8354 @c (setq gnus-posting-styles
8356 @c (signature . "~/.signature")
8357 @c (from . "user@@foo (user)")
8358 @c ("X-Home-Page" . (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
8359 @c (organization . "People's Front Against MWM"))
8361 @c (signature . my-funny-signature-randomizer))
8362 @c ((equal (system-name) "gnarly")
8363 @c (signature . my-quote-randomizer))
8364 @c (posting-from-work-p
8365 @c (signature . "~/.work-signature")
8366 @c (from . "user@@bar.foo (user)")
8367 @c (organization . "Important Work, Inc"))
8369 @c (signature . "~/.mail-signature"))))
8376 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
8377 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
8378 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
8379 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
8380 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
8382 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
8383 some sort using the gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
8384 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
8385 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
8386 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
8390 @vindex nndraft-directory
8391 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
8392 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
8393 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
8394 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
8395 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
8396 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
8398 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
8399 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
8402 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
8403 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
8404 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
8405 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
8406 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
8407 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
8408 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
8409 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
8410 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
8411 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
8412 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
8413 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
8414 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
8415 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
8417 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
8418 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
8419 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
8421 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
8423 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
8424 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
8425 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
8427 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
8430 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
8431 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
8432 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
8433 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
8434 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
8435 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
8436 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
8439 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
8440 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
8441 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
8444 @node Rejected Articles
8445 @section Rejected Articles
8446 @cindex rejected articles
8448 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
8449 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
8450 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
8451 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
8453 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of gnus.
8454 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
8455 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
8456 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So gnus saves these
8457 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
8459 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
8460 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
8461 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
8464 @node Select Methods
8465 @chapter Select Methods
8466 @cindex foreign groups
8467 @cindex select methods
8469 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
8470 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
8471 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
8472 personal mail group.
8474 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
8475 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
8476 list where the first element says what backend to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
8477 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
8478 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
8479 value may have special meaning for the backend in question.
8481 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
8482 we do just that (@pxref{The Server Buffer}).
8484 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the backend will recognize the
8487 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
8488 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
8489 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
8490 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
8491 backend just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
8493 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
8496 * The Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
8497 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
8498 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
8499 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
8500 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
8501 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
8505 @node The Server Buffer
8506 @section The Server Buffer
8508 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
8509 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
8510 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
8511 one backend or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
8512 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
8513 backend represents a virtual server.
8515 For instance, the @code{nntp} backend may be used to connect to several
8516 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
8517 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which backend to
8518 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
8520 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
8521 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
8522 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
8523 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
8524 Anyways, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
8525 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
8526 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
8528 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
8529 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
8532 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
8533 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
8534 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
8535 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
8536 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
8537 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
8538 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
8541 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
8542 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
8545 @node Server Buffer Format
8546 @subsection Server Buffer Format
8547 @cindex server buffer format
8549 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
8550 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
8551 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
8552 variable, with some simple extensions:
8557 How the news is fetched---the backend name.
8560 The name of this server.
8563 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
8566 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
8569 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
8570 The mode line can also be customized by using the
8571 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
8572 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
8582 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
8585 @node Server Commands
8586 @subsection Server Commands
8587 @cindex server commands
8593 @findex gnus-server-add-server
8594 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
8598 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
8599 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
8602 @kindex SPACE (Server)
8603 @findex gnus-server-read-server
8604 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
8608 @findex gnus-server-exit
8609 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
8613 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
8614 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
8618 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
8619 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
8623 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
8624 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
8628 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
8629 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
8633 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
8634 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
8635 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
8640 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
8641 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
8642 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
8643 a mail backend that has gotten out of synch.
8648 @node Example Methods
8649 @subsection Example Methods
8651 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
8654 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
8657 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
8663 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
8664 backend, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
8667 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
8668 @var{(variable form)} pairs.
8670 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
8671 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
8675 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
8678 You should read the documentation to each backend to find out what
8679 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
8681 @code{nnmh} is a mail backend that reads a spool-like structure. Say
8682 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
8683 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
8687 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
8690 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
8693 Here's the method for a public spool:
8697 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
8698 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
8701 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
8702 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
8703 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
8704 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
8705 should probably look something like this:
8709 (nntp-address "the.firewall.machine")
8710 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
8711 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
8712 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
8713 ("telnet" "the.real.nntp.host" "nntp")))
8716 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
8717 compressed connection over the modem line, you could create a virtual
8718 server that would look something like this:
8722 (nntp-address "copper.uio.no")
8723 (nntp-rlogin-program "ssh")
8724 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
8725 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
8726 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
8727 ("telnet" "news.uio.no" "nntp")))
8730 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
8731 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
8732 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
8733 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
8736 @node Creating a Virtual Server
8737 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
8739 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
8740 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
8742 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
8743 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
8744 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
8746 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
8748 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
8749 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
8750 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
8751 will contain the following:
8761 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
8762 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
8763 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
8766 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
8767 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
8768 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
8771 @node Server Variables
8772 @subsection Server Variables
8774 One sticky point when defining variables (both on backends and in Emacs
8775 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
8776 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
8777 change the "base" variable after the variables have been loaded, you
8778 won't change the "derived" variables.
8780 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
8781 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
8782 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
8783 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
8784 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
8785 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
8786 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
8787 variables for each backend, see each backend's section later in this
8788 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
8792 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
8793 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
8794 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
8798 @node Servers and Methods
8799 @subsection Servers and Methods
8801 Wherever you would normally use a select method
8802 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
8803 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
8804 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
8808 @node Unavailable Servers
8809 @subsection Unavailable Servers
8811 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
8812 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
8813 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
8814 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
8815 actually the case or not.
8817 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
8818 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
8819 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
8820 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
8821 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
8822 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
8823 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
8824 it will regard that server as ``down''.
8826 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
8827 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
8829 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{The Server Buffer}) and poke it
8830 with the following commands:
8836 @findex gnus-server-open-server
8837 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
8838 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
8842 @findex gnus-server-close-server
8843 Close the connection (if any) to the server
8844 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
8848 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
8849 Mark the current server as unreachable
8850 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
8853 @kindex M-o (Server)
8854 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
8855 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
8856 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
8859 @kindex M-c (Server)
8860 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
8861 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
8862 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
8866 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
8867 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
8868 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
8874 @section Getting News
8875 @cindex reading news
8876 @cindex news backends
8878 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
8879 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
8880 or it can read from a local spool.
8883 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
8884 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
8889 @subsection @sc{nntp}
8892 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
8893 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
8894 server as the, uhm, address.
8896 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
8897 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
8898 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
8899 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
8901 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
8902 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
8903 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
8905 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
8910 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
8911 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
8912 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
8914 @cindex authentification
8915 @cindex nntp authentification
8916 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
8917 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
8918 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
8919 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
8920 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
8921 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
8922 present in this hook.
8924 @item nntp-authinfo-function
8925 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
8926 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
8927 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
8928 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
8929 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
8930 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
8931 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
8932 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
8933 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
8934 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
8935 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
8939 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
8942 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs. The
8943 valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password}, and
8944 @samp{force}. (The latter is not a valid @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp}
8945 token, which is the only way the @file{.authinfo} file format deviates
8946 from the @file{.netrc} file format.)
8950 Here's an example file:
8953 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
8954 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
8957 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
8958 have to be first, for instance.
8960 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
8961 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
8962 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
8963 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
8964 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
8965 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
8966 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
8968 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
8970 @item nntp-server-action-alist
8971 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
8972 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
8973 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
8974 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
8977 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
8981 You probably don't want to do that, though.
8983 The default value is
8986 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
8987 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
8990 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
8991 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
8993 @item nntp-maximum-request
8994 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
8995 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this backend
8996 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
8997 speed things up, the backend sends lots of these commands without
8998 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
8999 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
9000 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
9002 @c @item nntp-connection-timeout
9003 @c @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
9004 @c If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
9005 @c regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
9006 @c responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
9007 @c time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
9008 @c somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
9009 @c that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} backend should wait for a
9010 @c connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
9011 @c no timeouts are done.
9013 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
9014 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
9015 @c @cindex PPP connections
9016 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
9017 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
9018 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
9019 @c changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
9020 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
9021 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
9022 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
9023 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
9024 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
9025 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
9027 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
9028 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
9029 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
9030 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
9033 @item nntp-server-hook
9034 @vindex nntp-server-hook
9035 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
9038 @findex nntp-open-rlogin
9039 @findex nntp-open-telnet
9040 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
9041 @item nntp-open-connection-function
9042 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
9043 This function is used to connect to the remote system. Four pre-made
9044 functions are supplied:
9047 @item nntp-open-network-stream
9048 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
9051 @item nntp-open-rlogin
9052 Does an @samp{rlogin} on the
9053 remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet} to the @sc{nntp} server
9056 @code{nntp-open-rlogin}-related variables:
9060 @item nntp-rlogin-program
9061 @vindex nntp-rlogin-program
9062 Program used to log in on remote machines. The default is @samp{rsh},
9063 but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
9065 @item nntp-rlogin-parameters
9066 @vindex nntp-rlogin-parameters
9067 This list will be used as the parameter list given to @code{rsh}.
9069 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
9070 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
9071 User name on the remote system.
9075 @item nntp-open-telnet
9076 Does a @samp{telnet} to the remote system and then another @samp{telnet}
9077 to get to the @sc{nntp} server.
9079 @code{nntp-open-telnet}-related variables:
9082 @item nntp-telnet-command
9083 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
9084 Command used to start @code{telnet}.
9086 @item nntp-telnet-switches
9087 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
9088 List of strings to be used as the switches to the @code{telnet} command.
9090 @item nntp-telnet-user-name
9091 @vindex nntp-telnet-user-name
9092 User name for log in on the remote system.
9094 @item nntp-telnet-passwd
9095 @vindex nntp-telnet-passwd
9096 Password to use when logging in.
9098 @item nntp-telnet-parameters
9099 @vindex nntp-telnet-parameters
9100 A list of strings executed as a command after logging in
9103 @item nntp-telnet-shell-prompt
9104 @vindex nntp-telnet-shell-prompt
9105 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the remote machine. The default is
9106 @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
9108 @item nntp-open-telnet-envuser
9109 @vindex nntp-open-telnet-envuser
9110 If non-@code{nil}, the @code{telnet} session (client and server both)
9111 will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for login name.
9112 This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
9116 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
9117 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
9118 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use this
9119 you must have SSLay installed
9120 (@file{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}, and you also need
9121 @file{ssl.el} (from the W3 distributeion, for instance). You then
9122 define a server as follows:
9125 ;; Type `C-c C-c' after you've finished editing.
9127 ;; "snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
9129 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
9130 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
9131 (nntp-port-number "snews")
9132 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
9137 @item nntp-end-of-line
9138 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
9139 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
9140 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
9141 using @code{rlogin} to talk to the server.
9143 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
9144 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
9145 User name on the remote system when using the @code{rlogin} connect
9149 @vindex nntp-address
9150 The address of the remote system running the @sc{nntp} server.
9152 @item nntp-port-number
9153 @vindex nntp-port-number
9154 Port number to connect to when using the @code{nntp-open-network-stream}
9157 @item nntp-buggy-select
9158 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
9159 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
9161 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
9162 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
9163 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
9164 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
9167 @item nntp-xover-commands
9168 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
9171 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
9172 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
9176 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
9177 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
9178 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
9179 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
9180 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
9181 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
9182 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
9183 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
9184 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
9185 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
9186 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
9188 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
9189 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
9190 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
9192 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
9193 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
9194 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
9195 server closes connection.
9197 @item nntp-record-commands
9198 @vindex nntp-record-commands
9199 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
9200 @sc{nntp} server (along with a timestep) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
9201 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@sc{nntp} connection
9202 that doesn't seem to work.
9208 @subsection News Spool
9212 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
9213 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
9214 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
9217 Anyways, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
9218 anything else) as the address.
9220 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
9221 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
9222 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
9223 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
9227 @item nnspool-inews-program
9228 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
9229 Program used to post an article.
9231 @item nnspool-inews-switches
9232 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
9233 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
9235 @item nnspool-spool-directory
9236 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
9237 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
9238 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
9240 @item nnspool-nov-directory
9241 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
9242 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
9243 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
9245 @item nnspool-lib-dir
9246 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
9247 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
9249 @item nnspool-active-file
9250 @vindex nnspool-active-file
9251 The path to the active file.
9253 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
9254 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
9255 The path to the group descriptions file.
9257 @item nnspool-history-file
9258 @vindex nnspool-history-file
9259 The path to the news history file.
9261 @item nnspool-active-times-file
9262 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
9263 The path to the active date file.
9265 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
9266 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
9267 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
9270 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
9271 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
9273 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
9274 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
9275 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
9281 @section Getting Mail
9282 @cindex reading mail
9285 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
9289 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
9290 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
9291 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
9292 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
9293 * Mail and Procmail:: Reading mail groups that procmail create.
9294 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
9295 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
9296 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
9297 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
9298 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
9299 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
9303 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
9304 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
9306 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
9307 mail backend of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
9308 and things will happen automatically.
9310 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a "one file per
9311 mail" backend), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
9314 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
9315 '((nnml "private")))
9318 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this backend will be queried for new
9319 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
9320 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
9321 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
9322 like any other group.
9324 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
9327 (setq nnmail-split-methods
9328 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
9329 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
9333 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
9334 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
9335 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
9338 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
9339 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
9340 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Backend} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
9343 @node Splitting Mail
9344 @subsection Splitting Mail
9345 @cindex splitting mail
9346 @cindex mail splitting
9348 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
9349 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
9350 to be split into groups.
9353 (setq nnmail-split-methods
9354 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
9355 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
9359 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
9360 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
9361 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
9362 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
9363 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
9364 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
9365 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
9368 ("list.\\1" "From:.*\\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
9371 If the first element is the special symbol @code{junk}, then messages
9372 that match the regexp will disappear into the aether. Use with
9375 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
9376 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
9377 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
9378 mail belongs in that group.
9380 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
9381 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any mails
9382 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
9383 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
9384 rule to make a match will "win", unless you have crossposting enabled.
9385 In that case, all matching rules will "win".)
9387 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
9388 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
9389 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
9390 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
9391 thinks should carry this mail message.
9393 Note that the mail backends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
9394 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
9395 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
9396 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
9398 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
9399 The mail backends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
9400 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
9401 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
9402 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
9404 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
9407 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
9408 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
9409 links. If that's the case for you, set
9410 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
9411 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
9413 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
9414 @kindex nnmail-split-history
9415 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
9416 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command.
9418 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
9419 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
9420 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
9421 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
9422 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
9423 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
9424 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
9425 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
9429 @node Mail Backend Variables
9430 @subsection Mail Backend Variables
9432 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
9436 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
9437 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
9438 The mail backends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
9439 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
9441 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
9442 @item nnmail-spool-file
9446 @vindex nnmail-pop-password
9447 @vindex nnmail-pop-password-required
9448 The backends will look for new mail in this file. If this variable is
9449 @code{nil}, the mail backends will never attempt to fetch mail by
9450 themselves. If you are using a POP mail server and your name is
9451 @samp{larsi}, you should set this variable to @samp{po:larsi}. If
9452 your name is not @samp{larsi}, you should probably modify that
9453 slightly, but you may have guessed that already, you smart & handsome
9454 devil! You can also set this variable to @code{pop}, and Gnus will try
9455 to figure out the POP mail string by itself. In any case, Gnus will
9456 call @code{movemail} which will contact the POP server named in the
9457 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable. If the POP server needs a
9458 password, you can either set @code{nnmail-pop-password-required} to
9459 @code{t} and be prompted for the password, or set
9460 @code{nnmail-pop-password} to the password itself.
9462 @code{nnmail-spool-file} can also be a list of mailboxes.
9464 Your Emacs has to have been configured with @samp{--with-pop} before
9465 compilation. This is the default, but some installations have it
9468 When you use a mail backend, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
9469 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
9470 mail if you're not using a mail backend---you have to do a lot of magic
9471 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
9472 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
9473 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
9475 @vindex nnmail-use-procmail
9476 @vindex nnmail-procmail-suffix
9477 @item nnmail-use-procmail
9478 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will look in
9479 @code{nnmail-procmail-directory} for incoming mail. All the files in
9480 that directory that have names ending in @code{nnmail-procmail-suffix}
9481 will be considered incoming mailboxes, and will be searched for new
9484 @vindex nnmail-crash-box
9485 @item nnmail-crash-box
9486 When a mail backend reads a spool file, mail is first moved to this
9487 file, which is @file{~/.gnus-crash-box} by default. If this file
9488 already exists, it will always be read (and incorporated) before any
9491 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
9492 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
9493 This is run in a buffer that holds all the new incoming mail, and can be
9494 used for, well, anything, really.
9496 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
9497 @item nnmail-split-hook
9498 @findex article-decode-rfc1522
9499 @findex RFC1522 decoding
9500 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
9501 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
9502 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
9503 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
9504 in the buffer will show up in any files. @code{gnus-article-decode-rfc1522}
9505 is one likely function to add to this hook.
9507 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
9508 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
9509 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
9510 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
9511 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
9512 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
9513 starting to handle the new mail) and
9514 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
9515 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
9516 default file modes the new mail files get:
9519 (add-hook 'gnus-pre-get-new-mail-hook
9520 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
9522 (add-hook 'gnus-post-get-new-mail-hook
9523 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
9526 @item nnmail-tmp-directory
9527 @vindex nnmail-tmp-directory
9528 This variable says where to move incoming mail to -- while processing
9529 it. This is usually done in the same directory that the mail backend
9530 inhabits (e.g., @file{~/Mail/}), but if this variable is non-@code{nil},
9531 it will be used instead.
9533 @item nnmail-movemail-program
9534 @vindex nnmail-movemail-program
9535 This program is executed to move mail from the user's inbox to her home
9536 directory. The default is @samp{movemail}.
9538 This can also be a function. In that case, the function will be called
9539 with two parameters -- the name of the inbox, and the file to be moved
9542 @item nnmail-delete-incoming
9543 @vindex nnmail-delete-incoming
9544 @cindex incoming mail files
9545 @cindex deleting incoming files
9546 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will delete the temporary incoming
9547 file after splitting mail into the proper groups. This is @code{t} by
9550 @c This is @code{nil} by
9551 @c default for reasons of security.
9553 @c Since Red Gnus is an alpha release, it is to be expected to lose mail.
9554 (No Gnus release since (ding) Gnus 0.10 (or something like that) have
9555 lost mail, I think, but that's not the point. (Except certain versions
9556 of Red Gnus.)) By not deleting the Incoming* files, one can be sure not
9557 to lose mail -- if Gnus totally whacks out, one can always recover what
9560 You may delete the @file{Incoming*} files at will.
9562 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
9563 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
9564 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will use long file and directory
9565 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
9566 (assuming use of @code{nnml} backend) or files (assuming use of
9567 @code{nnfolder} backend) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
9568 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
9570 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
9571 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
9573 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
9575 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
9576 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
9577 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
9578 the backend (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
9579 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
9584 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
9585 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
9586 @cindex mail splitting
9587 @cindex fancy mail splitting
9589 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
9590 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
9591 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
9592 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
9593 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
9594 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
9596 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
9599 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
9600 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
9601 ;; from real errors.
9602 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
9604 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
9605 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
9606 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
9607 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
9608 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
9609 ;; Other mailing lists...
9610 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
9611 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
9613 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
9614 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
9618 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
9619 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
9620 the five possible split syntaxes:
9625 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group name.
9628 @var{(FIELD VALUE SPLIT)}: If the split is a list, the first element of
9629 which is a string, then store the message as specified by SPLIT, if
9630 header FIELD (a regexp) contains VALUE (also a regexp).
9633 @var{(| SPLIT...)}: If the split is a list, and the first element is
9634 @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each SPLIT until one of them
9635 matches. A SPLIT is said to match if it will cause the mail message to
9636 be stored in one or more groups.
9639 @var{(& SPLIT...)}: If the split is a list, and the first element is
9640 @code{&}, then process all SPLITs in the list.
9643 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
9647 @var{(: function arg1 arg2 ...)}: If the split is a list, and the first
9648 element is @code{:}, then the second element will be called as a
9649 function with @var{args} given as arguments. The function should return
9654 In these splits, @var{FIELD} must match a complete field name.
9655 @var{VALUE} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
9656 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
9657 field names or words. In other words, all @var{VALUE}'s are wrapped in
9658 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
9660 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
9661 @var{FIELD} and @var{VALUE} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
9662 are expanded as specified by the variable
9663 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
9664 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
9667 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
9668 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
9669 when all this splitting is performed.
9671 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
9672 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
9673 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
9676 (any "debian-\\(\\w*\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
9679 @node Mail and Procmail
9680 @subsection Mail and Procmail
9685 Many people use @code{procmail} (or some other mail filter program or
9686 external delivery agent---@code{slocal}, @code{elm}, etc) to split
9687 incoming mail into groups. If you do that, you should set
9688 @code{nnmail-spool-file} to @code{procmail} to ensure that the mail
9689 backends never ever try to fetch mail by themselves.
9691 If you have a combined @code{procmail}/POP/mailbox setup, you can do
9692 something like the following:
9694 @vindex nnmail-use-procmail
9696 (setq nnmail-use-procmail t)
9697 (setq nnmail-spool-file
9698 '("/usr/spool/mail/my-name" "po:my-name"))
9701 This also means that you probably don't want to set
9702 @code{nnmail-split-methods} either, which has some, perhaps, unexpected
9705 When a mail backend is queried for what groups it carries, it replies
9706 with the contents of that variable, along with any groups it has figured
9707 out that it carries by other means. None of the backends, except
9708 @code{nnmh}, actually go out to the disk and check what groups actually
9709 exist. (It's not trivial to distinguish between what the user thinks is
9710 a basis for a newsgroup and what is just a plain old file or directory.)
9712 This means that you have to tell Gnus (and the backends) by hand what
9715 Let's take the @code{nnmh} backend as an example:
9717 The folders are located in @code{nnmh-directory}, say, @file{~/Mail/}.
9718 There are three folders, @file{foo}, @file{bar} and @file{mail.baz}.
9720 Go to the group buffer and type @kbd{G m}. When prompted, answer
9721 @samp{foo} for the name and @samp{nnmh} for the method. Repeat
9722 twice for the two other groups, @samp{bar} and @samp{mail.baz}. Be sure
9723 to include all your mail groups.
9725 That's it. You are now set to read your mail. An active file for this
9726 method will be created automatically.
9728 @vindex nnmail-procmail-suffix
9729 @vindex nnmail-procmail-directory
9730 If you use @code{nnfolder} or any other backend that store more than a
9731 single article in each file, you should never have procmail add mails to
9732 the file that Gnus sees. Instead, procmail should put all incoming mail
9733 in @code{nnmail-procmail-directory}. To arrive at the file name to put
9734 the incoming mail in, append @code{nnmail-procmail-suffix} to the group
9735 name. The mail backends will read the mail from these files.
9737 @vindex nnmail-resplit-incoming
9738 When Gnus reads a file called @file{mail.misc.spool}, this mail will be
9739 put in the @code{mail.misc}, as one would expect. However, if you want
9740 Gnus to split the mail the normal way, you could set
9741 @code{nnmail-resplit-incoming} to @code{t}.
9743 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
9744 If you use @code{procmail} to split things directly into an @code{nnmh}
9745 directory (which you shouldn't do), you should set
9746 @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} to non-@code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
9747 ever expiring the final article (i.e., the article with the highest
9748 article number) in a mail newsgroup. This is quite, quite important.
9750 Here's an example setup: The incoming spools are located in
9751 @file{~/incoming/} and have @samp{""} as suffixes (i.e., the incoming
9752 spool files have the same names as the equivalent groups). The
9753 @code{nnfolder} backend is to be used as the mail interface, and the
9754 @code{nnfolder} directory is @file{~/fMail/}.
9757 (setq nnfolder-directory "~/fMail/")
9758 (setq nnmail-spool-file 'procmail)
9759 (setq nnmail-procmail-directory "~/incoming/")
9760 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnfolder "")))
9761 (setq nnmail-procmail-suffix "")
9765 @node Incorporating Old Mail
9766 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
9768 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
9769 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
9770 backends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
9773 Doing so can be quite easy.
9775 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
9776 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
9777 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
9778 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
9779 your @code{nnml} groups.
9785 Go to the group buffer.
9788 Type `G f' and give the path to the mbox file when prompted to create an
9789 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
9792 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
9795 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
9796 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
9799 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
9800 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
9803 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
9804 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
9805 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
9806 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
9807 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
9809 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
9810 backend to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
9811 using the new mail backend.
9815 @subsection Expiring Mail
9816 @cindex article expiry
9818 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
9819 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
9820 different approach to mail reading.
9822 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
9823 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
9824 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
9825 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
9826 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
9827 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
9830 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
9831 articles as @dfn{expirable}. This does not mean that the articles will
9832 disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
9833 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
9834 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
9835 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
9836 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
9837 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
9839 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
9840 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Groups that
9841 match the regular expression @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will
9842 have all articles that you read marked as expirable automatically. All
9843 articles marked as expirable have an @samp{E} in the first
9844 column in the summary buffer.
9846 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
9847 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
9848 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
9849 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
9852 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
9854 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
9855 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
9856 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
9859 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
9860 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
9861 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
9862 groups expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
9863 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
9865 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
9866 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
9869 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
9870 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
9873 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
9874 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
9876 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
9877 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
9878 don't really mix very well.
9880 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
9881 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
9882 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
9883 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
9886 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
9887 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
9888 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
9889 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
9892 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
9894 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
9896 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
9898 ((string= group "mail.junk")
9900 ((string= group "important")
9906 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
9907 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
9909 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
9910 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
9911 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
9914 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
9915 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
9917 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
9918 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
9919 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
9920 easier for procmail users.
9922 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
9923 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
9924 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
9925 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
9926 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
9927 caution. Even more dangerous is the
9928 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
9929 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
9930 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
9931 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
9932 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
9933 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
9934 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
9937 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
9941 @subsection Washing Mail
9942 @cindex mail washing
9943 @cindex list server brain damage
9944 @cindex incoming mail treatment
9946 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
9947 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC822 doesn't explicitly
9948 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
9949 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
9950 Yes, but RFC822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
9951 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
9953 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
9954 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
9955 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
9958 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
9959 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
9960 storing the mail to disc. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
9961 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
9964 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
9965 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
9966 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
9967 grand, sweeping gestures. Functions to be used include:
9970 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
9971 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
9972 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
9973 Emacs running on MS machines.
9977 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
9978 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
9979 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
9980 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
9983 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
9984 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
9985 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
9986 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
9988 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
9989 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
9990 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
9991 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
9992 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
9993 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
9994 also be a list of regexp.
9996 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
9997 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
10000 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
10001 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
10004 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
10005 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
10006 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
10010 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
10011 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
10012 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
10016 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
10017 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
10018 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
10025 @subsection Duplicates
10027 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
10028 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
10029 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
10030 @cindex duplicate mails
10031 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
10032 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
10033 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
10034 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
10035 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
10036 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
10037 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
10038 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
10039 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
10040 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
10041 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
10042 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
10043 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
10045 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
10046 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
10047 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
10048 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
10050 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
10053 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
10054 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
10058 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
10059 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
10060 ("gnus-warning" "duplication of message" "duplicate")
10061 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
10062 (any mail "mail.misc")
10069 (setq nnmail-split-methods
10070 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:")
10075 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
10076 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
10077 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
10078 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
10079 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
10082 @node Not Reading Mail
10083 @subsection Not Reading Mail
10085 If you start using any of the mail backends, they have the annoying
10086 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
10087 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
10089 If you set @code{nnmail-spool-file} to @code{nil}, none of the backends
10090 will ever attempt to read incoming mail, which should help.
10092 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
10093 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
10094 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
10095 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
10096 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
10097 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
10098 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
10099 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All backends have
10100 variables called backend-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
10101 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
10102 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
10104 All the mail backends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
10105 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
10109 @node Choosing a Mail Backend
10110 @subsection Choosing a Mail Backend
10112 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
10113 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
10114 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
10117 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
10118 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
10119 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
10120 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
10121 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
10125 @node Unix Mail Box
10126 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
10128 @cindex unix mail box
10130 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
10131 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
10132 The @dfn{nnmbox} backend will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
10133 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
10134 which group it belongs in.
10136 Virtual server settings:
10139 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
10140 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
10141 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory.
10143 @item nnmbox-active-file
10144 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
10145 The name of the active file for the mail box.
10147 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
10148 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
10149 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
10155 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
10159 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
10160 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
10161 The @dfn{nnbabyl} backend will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
10162 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each mail
10163 article to say which group it belongs in.
10165 Virtual server settings:
10168 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
10169 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
10170 The name of the rmail mbox file.
10172 @item nnbabyl-active-file
10173 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
10174 The name of the active file for the rmail box.
10176 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
10177 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
10178 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail.
10183 @subsubsection Mail Spool
10185 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
10187 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
10188 format. It should be used with some caution.
10190 @vindex nnml-directory
10191 If you use this backend, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
10192 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
10193 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
10194 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
10196 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
10199 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
10200 in your account, you should not use this backend. As each mail gets its
10201 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
10202 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
10203 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
10204 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
10205 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
10206 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
10208 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest backend when it comes to article
10209 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
10210 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it the fastest
10211 backend when it comes to reading mail.
10213 Virtual server settings:
10216 @item nnml-directory
10217 @vindex nnml-directory
10218 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
10220 @item nnml-active-file
10221 @vindex nnml-active-file
10222 The active file for the @code{nnml} server.
10224 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
10225 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
10226 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
10229 @item nnml-get-new-mail
10230 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
10231 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail.
10233 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
10234 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
10235 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{nov} files.
10237 @item nnml-nov-file-name
10238 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
10239 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
10241 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
10242 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
10243 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
10247 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
10248 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
10249 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
10250 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
10251 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
10252 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
10253 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
10258 @subsubsection MH Spool
10260 @cindex mh-e mail spool
10262 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
10263 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file. This makes
10264 @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower backend than @code{nnml}, but it also
10265 makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
10267 Virtual server settings:
10270 @item nnmh-directory
10271 @vindex nnmh-directory
10272 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory.
10274 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
10275 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
10276 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail.
10279 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
10280 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
10281 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
10282 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
10283 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
10284 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
10285 to set this variable to @code{t}.
10290 @subsubsection Mail Folders
10292 @cindex mbox folders
10293 @cindex mail folders
10295 @code{nnfolder} is a backend for storing each mail group in a separate
10296 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
10297 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
10300 Virtual server settings:
10303 @item nnfolder-directory
10304 @vindex nnfolder-directory
10305 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
10307 @item nnfolder-active-file
10308 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
10309 The name of the active file.
10311 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
10312 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
10313 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File Format}.
10315 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
10316 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
10317 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail.
10320 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
10321 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
10322 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
10323 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
10324 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
10325 @code{nnfolder-directory}.
10328 @node Other Sources
10329 @section Other Sources
10331 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
10332 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
10336 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
10337 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
10338 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
10339 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{SOUP} packets ``offline''.
10340 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
10341 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
10345 @node Directory Groups
10346 @subsection Directory Groups
10348 @cindex directory groups
10350 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
10351 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
10354 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
10355 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
10356 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
10357 backend to read directories. Big deal.
10359 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
10360 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
10361 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
10362 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
10363 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
10365 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
10367 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' backend---you can't delete or expire
10368 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
10369 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
10370 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
10373 @node Anything Groups
10374 @subsection Anything Groups
10377 From the @code{nndir} backend (which reads a single spool-like
10378 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
10379 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
10382 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
10383 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
10384 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
10385 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're
10386 forgetting. @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it
10387 snoops each file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e.,
10388 the first few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head.
10389 If this is just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source
10390 file), @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It
10391 will use file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
10394 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
10395 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
10396 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
10397 in the article buffer, just as usual.
10399 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
10400 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
10401 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
10402 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
10404 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
10405 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
10406 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
10407 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
10408 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
10409 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
10410 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
10411 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
10416 @item nneething-map-file-directory
10417 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
10418 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
10419 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
10421 @item nneething-exclude-files
10422 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
10423 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
10424 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
10426 @item nneething-map-file
10427 @vindex nneething-map-file
10428 Name of the map files.
10432 @node Document Groups
10433 @subsection Document Groups
10435 @cindex documentation group
10438 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
10439 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
10446 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
10451 The standard Unix mbox file.
10453 @cindex MMDF mail box
10455 The MMDF mail box format.
10458 Several news articles appended into a file.
10461 @cindex rnews batch files
10462 The rnews batch transport format.
10463 @cindex forwarded messages
10466 Forwarded articles.
10470 @cindex MIME digest
10471 @cindex 1153 digest
10472 @cindex RFC 1153 digest
10473 @cindex RFC 341 digest
10474 MIME (RFC 1341) digest format.
10476 @item standard-digest
10477 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
10480 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
10483 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
10484 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
10485 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
10488 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
10489 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
10490 group. And that's it.
10492 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
10493 new & spiffy Gnus mail backend, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
10494 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
10495 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
10496 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
10497 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
10498 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
10499 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
10500 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
10501 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
10503 Virtual server variables:
10506 @item nndoc-article-type
10507 @vindex nndoc-article-type
10508 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
10509 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
10510 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-digest}, @code{standard-digest},
10511 @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs} or @code{guess}.
10513 @item nndoc-post-type
10514 @vindex nndoc-post-type
10515 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
10516 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
10521 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
10525 @node Document Server Internals
10526 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
10528 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
10529 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
10530 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
10531 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
10533 First, here's an example document type definition:
10537 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
10538 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
10541 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
10542 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
10543 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
10544 types can be defined with very few settings:
10547 @item first-article
10548 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
10549 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
10552 @item article-begin
10553 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
10554 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
10556 @item head-begin-function
10557 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
10560 @item nndoc-head-begin
10561 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
10564 @item nndoc-head-end
10565 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
10566 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
10568 @item body-begin-function
10569 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
10573 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
10576 @item body-end-function
10577 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
10581 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
10584 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
10585 regexp will be totally ignored.
10589 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
10590 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
10591 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
10592 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
10593 something that's palatable for Gnus:
10596 @item prepare-body-function
10597 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
10598 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
10599 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
10601 @item article-transform-function
10602 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
10603 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
10604 body of the article.
10606 @item generate-head-function
10607 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
10608 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
10609 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
10610 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
10614 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
10619 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
10620 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
10621 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
10622 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
10623 (head-end . "^ ?$")
10624 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
10625 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
10626 (subtype digest guess))
10629 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
10630 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
10631 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
10632 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
10633 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
10635 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
10636 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
10637 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
10638 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
10639 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
10640 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
10641 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
10642 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
10643 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
10644 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
10652 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
10653 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
10654 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
10656 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
10657 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
10658 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
10661 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something a that's a bit
10662 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
10663 that interested in doing things properly.
10665 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
10666 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
10669 First some terminology:
10674 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
10675 get news and/or mail from.
10678 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
10679 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
10682 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
10686 @item message packets
10687 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
10688 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
10689 default, where @var{X} is a number.
10691 @item response packets
10692 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
10693 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
10694 default, where @var{X} is a number.
10704 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
10705 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
10706 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
10707 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
10710 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
10713 You put the packet in your home directory.
10716 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} backend as
10717 the native or secondary server.
10720 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
10721 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
10724 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
10728 You transfer this packet to the server.
10731 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
10734 You then repeat until you die.
10738 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
10739 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
10742 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
10743 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
10744 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
10748 @node SOUP Commands
10749 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
10751 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
10755 @kindex G s b (Group)
10756 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
10757 Pack all unread articles in the current group
10758 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
10759 process/prefix convention.
10762 @kindex G s w (Group)
10763 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
10764 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
10767 @kindex G s s (Group)
10768 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
10769 Send all replies from the replies packet
10770 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
10773 @kindex G s p (Group)
10774 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
10775 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
10778 @kindex G s r (Group)
10779 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
10780 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
10783 @kindex O s (Summary)
10784 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
10785 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
10786 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
10787 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
10792 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
10797 @item gnus-soup-directory
10798 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
10799 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
10800 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
10802 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
10803 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
10804 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
10805 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
10807 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
10808 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
10809 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
10810 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
10812 @item gnus-soup-packer
10813 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
10814 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
10815 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
10817 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
10818 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
10819 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
10820 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
10822 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
10823 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
10824 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
10826 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
10827 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
10828 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
10829 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
10835 @subsubsection @sc{soup} Groups
10838 @code{nnsoup} is the backend for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
10839 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
10840 you can read them at leisure.
10842 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
10846 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
10847 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
10848 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
10849 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
10851 @item nnsoup-directory
10852 @vindex nnsoup-directory
10853 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
10854 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
10856 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
10857 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
10858 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
10859 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
10861 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
10862 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
10863 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
10864 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
10865 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
10867 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
10868 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
10869 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
10870 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
10872 @item nnsoup-active-file
10873 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
10874 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
10875 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
10876 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
10877 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
10879 @item nnsoup-packer
10880 @vindex nnsoup-packer
10881 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
10882 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
10884 @item nnsoup-unpacker
10885 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
10886 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
10887 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
10889 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
10890 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
10891 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
10894 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
10895 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
10896 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
10899 @item nnsoup-always-save
10900 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
10901 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
10907 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
10909 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
10910 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
10911 more for that to happen.
10913 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
10914 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
10915 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
10918 In specific, this is what it does:
10921 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
10922 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
10925 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
10926 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
10927 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
10931 @subsection Web Searches
10935 @cindex InReference
10936 @cindex Usenet searches
10937 @cindex searching the Usenet
10939 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
10940 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
10941 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
10942 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
10943 searches without having to use a browser.
10945 The @code{nnweb} backend allows an easy interface to the mighty search
10946 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
10947 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
10948 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
10949 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
10951 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
10952 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
10953 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
10954 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
10955 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
10956 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
10957 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
10958 engines (DejaNews, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
10959 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
10960 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
10963 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
10964 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
10965 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
10966 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
10967 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
10968 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
10970 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
10971 to use @code{nnweb}.
10973 Virtual server variables:
10978 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
10979 are @code{dejanews}, @code{dejanewsold}, @code{altavista} and
10983 @vindex nnweb-search
10984 The search string to feed to the search engine.
10986 @item nnweb-max-hits
10987 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
10988 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
10991 @item nnweb-type-definition
10992 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
10993 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
10994 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
10999 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
11003 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
11006 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
11009 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
11013 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
11020 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
11021 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
11022 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
11025 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
11026 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
11027 The @code{nngateway} backend provides the interface.
11029 Note that you can't read anything from this backend---it can only be
11035 @item nngateway-address
11036 @vindex nngateway-address
11037 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
11039 @item nngateway-header-transformation
11040 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
11041 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
11042 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
11043 transformation should be called, and defaults to
11044 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
11045 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
11048 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
11049 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
11050 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
11053 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
11056 will get this @code{From} header inserted:
11059 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
11062 The following pre-defined functions exist:
11064 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
11067 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
11068 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
11069 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
11071 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
11073 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
11074 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
11075 @code{nngateway-address}.
11080 (setq gnus-post-method
11081 '(nngateway "mail2news@@replay.com"
11082 (nngateway-header-transformation
11083 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
11091 So, to use this, simply say something like:
11094 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
11098 @node Combined Groups
11099 @section Combined Groups
11101 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
11105 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
11106 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
11110 @node Virtual Groups
11111 @subsection Virtual Groups
11113 @cindex virtual groups
11115 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
11118 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
11119 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
11120 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
11122 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
11123 regexp to match component groups.
11125 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
11126 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
11127 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it came.
11128 (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be shown in
11129 the virtual group.)
11131 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
11132 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
11135 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
11138 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
11139 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
11141 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
11142 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
11143 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
11144 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
11147 "^nntp\\+some\\.server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+some\\.server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
11150 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
11151 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
11152 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
11154 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
11155 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
11156 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
11157 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
11158 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
11160 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
11161 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
11162 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
11164 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
11165 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
11166 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
11167 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
11168 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
11169 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
11170 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
11171 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
11172 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
11173 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
11174 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
11177 @node Kibozed Groups
11178 @subsection Kibozed Groups
11182 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
11183 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a backend that will do this for
11184 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
11185 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
11187 @kindex G k (Group)
11188 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
11191 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
11192 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
11193 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
11194 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
11196 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
11197 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
11198 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
11200 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
11201 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
11202 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
11203 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
11204 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
11205 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
11206 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
11207 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
11209 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
11210 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
11211 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
11212 Stranger things have happened.
11214 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
11215 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
11217 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
11218 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
11219 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
11220 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
11221 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
11222 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
11224 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
11225 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
11228 @node Gnus Unplugged
11229 @section Gnus Unplugged
11234 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
11236 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
11237 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
11238 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
11239 read news. Believe it or not.
11241 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
11242 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
11243 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
11244 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
11245 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
11247 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
11248 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
11249 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
11250 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
11251 reading news on a machine.
11253 Using Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple.
11257 First, set up Gnus as you would do if you were running it on a machine
11258 that has full connection to the net. Go ahead. I'll still be waiting
11262 Then, put the following magical incantation at the end of your
11263 @file{.gnus.el} file:
11270 That's it. Gnus is now an ``offline'' newsreader.
11272 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
11275 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
11276 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
11277 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
11278 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
11279 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
11280 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
11281 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
11282 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
11287 @subsection Agent Basics
11289 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
11291 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
11292 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
11293 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
11294 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
11296 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
11297 connected to the net continuously.
11299 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
11300 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
11302 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
11307 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
11308 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
11309 already fetched while in this mode.
11312 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
11313 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
11314 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged}.
11317 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
11318 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{J
11319 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
11320 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
11323 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
11324 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
11325 then you read the news offline.
11328 And then you go to step 2.
11331 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
11337 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
11338 backend, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
11339 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
11340 @kbd{J a} the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
11341 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}). This will typically be only the
11342 primary select method, which is listed on the bottom in the buffer.
11345 Decide on download policy. @xref{Agent Categories}
11352 @node Agent Categories
11353 @subsection Agent Categories
11355 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
11356 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
11357 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
11358 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
11359 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
11360 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
11361 you're interested in the articles anyway.
11363 The main way to control what is to be downloaded is to create a
11364 @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all) groups to this category.
11365 Gnus has its own buffer for creating and managing categories.
11368 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
11369 * The Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
11370 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
11374 @node Category Syntax
11375 @subsubsection Category Syntax
11377 A category consists of two things.
11381 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
11382 are eligible for downloading; and
11385 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
11386 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
11387 score} is wholly unrelated to normal scores.)
11390 A predicate consists of predicates with logical operators sprinkled in
11393 Perhaps some examples are in order.
11395 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
11396 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
11402 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
11403 short (for some value of ``short'').
11405 Here's a more complex predicate:
11414 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
11415 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
11418 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
11419 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
11420 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
11422 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
11423 you want to do, you can write your own.
11427 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
11428 lines; default 100.
11431 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
11432 lines; default 200.
11435 True iff the article has a download score less than
11436 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
11439 True iff the article has a download score greater than
11440 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
11443 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
11444 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
11445 checksum and sees whether articles match.
11454 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
11455 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
11456 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
11459 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
11460 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
11461 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
11462 following headers can be scored on: @code{From}, @code{Subject},
11463 @code{Date}, @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars}, @code{Message-ID},
11464 and @code{References}.
11467 @node The Category Buffer
11468 @subsubsection The Category Buffer
11470 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
11471 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
11472 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
11474 The following commands are available in this buffer:
11478 @kindex q (Category)
11479 @findex gnus-category-exit
11480 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
11483 @kindex k (Category)
11484 @findex gnus-category-kill
11485 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
11488 @kindex c (Category)
11489 @findex gnus-category-copy
11490 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
11493 @kindex a (Category)
11494 @findex gnus-category-add
11495 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
11498 @kindex p (Category)
11499 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
11500 Edit the predicate of the current category
11501 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
11504 @kindex g (Category)
11505 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
11506 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
11507 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
11510 @kindex s (Category)
11511 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
11512 Edit the download score rule of the current category
11513 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
11516 @kindex l (Category)
11517 @findex gnus-category-list
11518 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
11522 @node Category Variables
11523 @subsubsection Category Variables
11526 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
11527 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
11528 Hook run in category buffers.
11530 @item gnus-category-line-format
11531 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
11532 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
11533 Variables}). Legal elements are:
11537 The name of the category.
11540 The number of groups in the category.
11543 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
11544 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
11545 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
11547 @item gnus-agent-short-article
11548 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
11549 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
11551 @item gnus-agent-long-article
11552 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
11553 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
11555 @item gnus-agent-low-score
11556 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
11557 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
11560 @item gnus-agent-high-score
11561 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
11562 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
11568 @node Agent Commands
11569 @subsection Agent Commands
11571 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
11572 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged} command works in all modes, and
11573 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
11577 * Group Agent Commands::
11578 * Summary Agent Commands::
11579 * Server Agent Commands::
11582 You can run a complete batch fetch from the command line with the
11583 following incantation:
11585 @cindex gnus-agent-batch-fetch
11587 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-agent-batch-fetch
11592 @node Group Agent Commands
11593 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
11597 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
11598 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
11599 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
11600 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
11603 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
11604 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
11605 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
11608 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
11609 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
11610 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
11611 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
11614 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
11615 @findex gnus-group-send-drafts
11616 Send all sendable messages in the draft group
11617 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}). @xref{Drafts}
11620 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
11621 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
11622 Add the current group to an Agent category
11623 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}).
11628 @node Summary Agent Commands
11629 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
11633 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
11634 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
11635 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
11638 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
11639 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
11640 Remove the downloading mark from the article
11641 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
11644 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
11645 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
11646 Toggle whether to download the article (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}).
11649 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
11650 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
11651 Mark all undownloaded articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}).
11656 @node Server Agent Commands
11657 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
11661 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
11662 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
11663 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
11664 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
11667 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
11668 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
11669 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
11670 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
11676 @subsection Agent Expiry
11678 @vindex gnus-agent-expiry-days
11679 @findex gnus-agent-expiry
11680 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expiry
11681 @cindex Agent expiry
11682 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
11685 @code{nnagent} doesn't handle expiry. Instead, there's a special
11686 @code{gnus-agent-expiry} command that will expire all read articles that
11687 are older than @code{gnus-agent-expiry-days} days. It can be run
11688 whenever you feel that you're running out of space. It's not
11689 particularly fast or efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to
11690 interrupt it (with @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started it.
11692 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
11693 if @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, this command will
11694 expire all articles---unread, read, ticked and dormant. If @code{nil}
11695 (which is the default), only read articles are eligible for expiry, and
11696 unread, ticked and dormant articles will be kept indefinitely.
11699 @node Outgoing Messages
11700 @subsection Outgoing Messages
11702 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
11703 stored in the draft groups (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view them there
11704 after posting, and edit them at will.
11706 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
11707 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
11708 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
11709 messages in the draft group.
11713 @node Agent Variables
11714 @subsection Agent Variables
11717 @item gnus-agent-directory
11718 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
11719 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
11720 @file{~/News/agent/}.
11722 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
11723 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
11724 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
11725 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
11726 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
11729 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
11730 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
11731 Hook run when connecting to the network.
11733 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
11734 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
11735 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
11740 @node Example Setup
11741 @subsection Example Setup
11743 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
11744 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
11745 @file{.gnus.el} file to get started.
11748 ;;; Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over NNTP
11749 ;;; from your ISP's server.
11750 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "nntp.your-isp.com"))
11752 ;;; Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from
11753 ;;; your ISP's POP server.
11754 (setenv "MAILHOST" "pop.your-isp.com")
11755 (setq nnmail-spool-file "po:username")
11757 ;;; Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.
11758 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
11760 ;;; Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.
11764 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
11765 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
11768 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
11769 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
11770 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
11771 @sc{nntp} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
11772 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
11775 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
11776 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
11777 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
11778 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
11779 back all the killed groups.)
11781 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
11782 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
11783 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
11786 @node Batching Agents
11787 @subsection Batching Agents
11789 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
11790 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
11791 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
11795 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null
11804 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
11805 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
11806 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
11809 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
11810 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
11811 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
11812 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
11813 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
11815 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
11816 before generating the summary buffer.
11818 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
11819 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
11820 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
11822 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
11823 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
11824 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
11825 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
11828 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
11829 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
11830 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
11831 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
11832 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
11833 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
11834 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
11835 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
11836 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
11837 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
11838 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
11839 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
11840 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
11841 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
11842 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
11843 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
11847 @node Summary Score Commands
11848 @section Summary Score Commands
11849 @cindex score commands
11851 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
11852 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
11853 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
11854 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
11855 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
11857 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
11858 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
11859 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
11860 score file the current one.
11862 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
11867 @kindex V s (Summary)
11868 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
11869 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
11872 @kindex V S (Summary)
11873 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
11874 Display the score of the current article
11875 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
11878 @kindex V t (Summary)
11879 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
11880 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
11881 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
11884 @kindex V R (Summary)
11885 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
11886 Run the current summary through the scoring process
11887 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
11888 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
11889 effect you're having.
11892 @kindex V c (Summary)
11893 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
11894 Make a different score file the current
11895 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
11898 @kindex V e (Summary)
11899 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
11900 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
11901 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
11905 @kindex V f (Summary)
11906 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
11907 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
11908 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
11911 @kindex V F (Summary)
11912 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
11913 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
11914 after editing score files.
11917 @kindex V C (Summary)
11918 @findex gnus-score-customize
11919 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
11920 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
11924 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
11929 @kindex V m (Summary)
11930 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
11931 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
11932 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
11935 @kindex V x (Summary)
11936 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
11937 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
11938 expunge all articles below this score
11939 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
11942 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
11943 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
11946 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
11947 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
11951 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
11952 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
11954 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
11955 keys are available:
11959 Score on the author name.
11962 Score on the subject line.
11965 Score on the Xref line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
11968 Score on thread---the References line.
11974 Score on the number of lines.
11977 Score on the Message-ID.
11980 Score on followups.
11990 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
11991 what headers you are scoring on.
12003 Substring matching.
12006 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
12035 Greater than number.
12040 The fourth and final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e., expiring)
12041 score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry, or whether
12042 it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score file.
12046 Temporary score entry.
12049 Permanent score entry.
12052 Immediately scoring.
12057 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
12058 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
12059 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
12060 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
12062 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
12063 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
12064 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
12065 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
12066 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
12068 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
12069 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
12070 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
12071 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
12072 current score file.
12074 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
12075 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
12076 pretend they are keymaps or not.
12079 @node Group Score Commands
12080 @section Group Score Commands
12081 @cindex group score commands
12083 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
12088 @kindex W f (Group)
12089 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
12090 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
12091 all the time. This command will flush the cache
12092 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
12096 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
12098 @findex gnus-batch-score
12099 @cindex batch scoring
12101 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l gnus -f gnus-batch-score
12105 @node Score Variables
12106 @section Score Variables
12107 @cindex score variables
12111 @item gnus-use-scoring
12112 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
12113 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
12114 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
12116 @item gnus-kill-killed
12117 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
12118 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
12119 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
12120 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
12121 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
12122 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
12123 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
12125 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
12126 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
12127 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
12128 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
12129 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
12131 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
12132 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
12133 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
12134 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
12136 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
12137 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
12138 @cindex score cache
12139 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
12140 score files. However, if this might make you Emacs grow big and
12141 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
12142 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
12143 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
12144 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
12147 @item gnus-save-score
12148 @vindex gnus-save-score
12149 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
12150 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
12151 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
12153 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
12154 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
12155 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
12156 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
12157 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
12158 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
12159 manually entered data.
12161 @item gnus-summary-default-score
12162 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
12163 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
12165 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
12166 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
12167 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
12168 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
12169 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
12170 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
12172 @item gnus-score-over-mark
12173 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
12174 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
12175 default. Default is @samp{+}.
12177 @item gnus-score-below-mark
12178 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
12179 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
12180 default. Default is @samp{-}.
12182 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
12183 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
12184 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
12185 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
12187 Predefined functions available are:
12190 @item gnus-score-find-single
12191 @findex gnus-score-find-single
12192 Only apply the group's own score file.
12194 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
12195 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
12196 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
12197 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
12198 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
12199 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
12200 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
12201 then a regexp match is done.
12203 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
12204 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
12206 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
12207 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
12208 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
12209 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
12211 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
12212 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
12213 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
12214 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
12215 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE}.
12218 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all these
12219 functions will be called, and all the returned lists of score files will
12220 be applied. These functions can also return lists of score alists
12221 directly. In that case, the functions that return these non-file score
12222 alists should probably be placed before the ``real'' score file
12223 functions, to ensure that the last score file returned is the local
12226 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
12227 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
12228 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
12229 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
12230 are expired. It's 7 by default.
12232 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
12233 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
12234 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, matching score entries will have
12235 their dates updated. (This is how Gnus controls expiry---all
12236 non-matching entries will become too old while matching entries will
12237 stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this variable to @code{nil},
12238 even matching entries will grow old and will have to face that oh-so
12241 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
12242 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
12243 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
12245 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
12246 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
12247 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be simplified
12248 for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
12249 threading---according to the current value of
12250 gnus-simplify-subject-functions. If the scoring entry uses
12251 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
12252 simplified in this manner.
12257 @node Score File Format
12258 @section Score File Format
12259 @cindex score file format
12261 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
12262 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
12263 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
12265 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
12269 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
12271 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
12273 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
12275 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
12280 (mark-and-expunge -10)
12284 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
12285 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
12286 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
12287 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
12291 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
12292 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
12294 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
12295 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
12296 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
12298 Six keys are supported by this alist:
12303 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
12304 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
12305 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
12306 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
12307 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
12308 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
12309 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
12310 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
12311 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
12312 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
12313 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
12314 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
12315 to articles that matches these score entries.
12317 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
12318 score entry has one to four elements.
12322 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
12323 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
12327 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
12328 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
12329 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
12330 is successful. If this element is not present, the
12331 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
12332 instead. This is 1000 by default.
12335 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
12336 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
12337 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
12338 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
12339 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
12342 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
12343 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
12344 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
12345 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
12348 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
12349 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
12350 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
12351 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
12352 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
12353 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
12354 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
12355 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
12356 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
12357 instead, if you feel like.
12360 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
12361 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
12363 These predicates are true if
12366 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
12369 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
12370 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
12377 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
12378 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
12379 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
12380 it's not. I think.)
12382 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some backends (like
12383 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
12384 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
12385 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
12388 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
12389 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
12390 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
12391 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
12392 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
12393 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
12394 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
12398 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
12399 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
12400 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
12401 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
12402 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
12403 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
12404 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
12405 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
12408 @item Head, Body, All
12409 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
12413 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
12414 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
12415 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
12416 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
12417 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
12418 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
12419 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
12423 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
12424 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread started by an article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{X}, then you add a
12425 @samp{thread} match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each
12426 article that has @var{X} in its @code{References} header. (These new
12427 @samp{thread} matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching
12428 articles.) This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an
12429 entire thread, even though some articles in the thread may not have
12430 complete @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
12431 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
12432 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
12436 @cindex Score File Atoms
12438 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
12439 lower than this number will be marked as read.
12442 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
12443 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
12445 @item mark-and-expunge
12446 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
12447 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
12450 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
12451 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
12452 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
12453 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
12454 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
12457 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
12458 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
12461 @item exclude-files
12462 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
12463 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
12467 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
12468 ignored when handling global score files.
12471 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
12472 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
12473 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
12474 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
12477 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
12478 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
12479 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
12480 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
12482 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
12486 (mark-and-expunge -100)
12489 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
12490 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
12491 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
12492 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
12493 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
12495 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where there
12496 exist a few interesting threads which can't be found automatically by
12497 ordinary scoring rules.
12500 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
12501 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
12502 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
12503 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
12504 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
12505 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
12506 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
12507 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
12508 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
12509 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
12510 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
12514 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
12515 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
12516 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
12517 file for a number of groups.
12520 @cindex local variables
12521 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
12522 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
12523 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
12524 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
12525 much. Note that the @var{value} won't be evaluated.
12529 @node Score File Editing
12530 @section Score File Editing
12532 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
12533 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
12534 with a mode for that.
12536 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
12537 additional commands:
12542 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
12543 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
12544 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
12545 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
12548 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
12549 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
12550 Insert the current date in numerical format
12551 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
12552 you were wondering.
12555 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
12556 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
12557 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
12558 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
12559 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
12564 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
12566 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
12567 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
12569 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
12570 e} to begin editing score files.
12573 @node Adaptive Scoring
12574 @section Adaptive Scoring
12575 @cindex adaptive scoring
12577 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
12578 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
12579 stupidity, to be precise.
12581 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
12582 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
12583 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
12584 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
12585 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
12586 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
12587 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
12588 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
12589 variable to @code{(word line)}.
12591 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
12592 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
12593 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
12594 might look something like this:
12597 (defvar gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
12598 '((gnus-unread-mark)
12599 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
12600 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
12601 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
12602 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
12603 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
12604 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
12605 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
12606 (gnus-ancient-mark)
12607 (gnus-low-score-mark)
12608 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
12611 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
12612 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
12613 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
12614 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
12615 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
12616 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
12619 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
12620 will be applied to each article.
12622 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
12623 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
12624 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
12625 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
12627 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
12628 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
12629 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
12630 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
12632 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
12633 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
12634 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
12635 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
12637 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
12638 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
12639 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
12640 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
12641 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
12642 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
12644 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
12645 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
12646 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
12647 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
12648 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
12649 aspirins afterwards.)
12651 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
12652 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
12653 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
12655 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
12656 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
12657 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
12659 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
12660 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
12661 let you use different rules in different groups.
12663 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
12664 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
12665 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
12668 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
12669 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
12670 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
12671 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
12672 the length of the match is less than
12673 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
12674 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
12677 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
12678 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
12679 headers. If you adapt on words, the
12680 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
12681 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
12684 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
12685 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
12686 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
12687 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
12688 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
12691 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
12692 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
12693 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
12694 score with 30 points.
12696 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
12697 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
12698 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
12699 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
12700 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
12702 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
12703 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
12704 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
12705 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
12707 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
12708 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
12709 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
12710 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
12712 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
12713 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
12714 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
12716 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
12717 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
12718 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
12719 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
12722 @node Home Score File
12723 @section Home Score File
12725 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
12726 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
12727 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
12728 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
12730 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
12731 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
12732 could perhaps use the same home score file.
12734 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
12735 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
12740 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
12744 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
12745 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
12749 A list. The elements in this list can be:
12753 @var{(regexp file-name)}. If the @var{regexp} matches the group name,
12754 the @var{file-name} will will be used as the home score file.
12757 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
12758 the home score file.
12761 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
12764 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
12769 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
12772 (setq gnus-home-score-file
12773 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
12776 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
12777 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
12780 (setq gnus-home-score-file
12781 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
12784 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
12786 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
12787 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
12788 their own home score files:
12791 (setq gnus-home-score-file
12792 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
12793 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
12794 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
12795 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
12798 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
12799 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
12800 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
12801 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
12802 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
12804 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
12805 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
12806 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
12807 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
12808 precedence over this variable.
12811 @node Followups To Yourself
12812 @section Followups To Yourself
12814 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
12815 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
12816 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
12817 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
12818 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
12819 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
12823 @item gnus-score-followup-article
12824 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
12825 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
12828 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
12829 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
12830 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
12834 @vindex message-sent-hook
12835 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
12836 @code{message-sent-hook}.
12838 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
12839 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
12843 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
12844 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
12847 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
12848 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
12853 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore.no>"
12857 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
12858 is system-dependent.
12862 @section Scoring Tips
12863 @cindex scoring tips
12869 @cindex scoring crossposts
12870 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
12871 the @code{Xref} header.
12873 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
12876 @item Multiple crossposts
12877 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
12878 more than, say, 3 groups:
12880 ("xref" ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+" -1000 nil r))
12883 @item Matching on the body
12884 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
12885 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
12886 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
12887 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
12888 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
12889 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
12890 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
12893 @item Marking as read
12894 You will probably want to mark articles that has a score below a certain
12895 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
12896 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
12900 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
12902 @item Negated character classes
12903 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
12904 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
12905 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
12909 @node Reverse Scoring
12910 @section Reverse Scoring
12911 @cindex reverse scoring
12913 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
12914 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
12915 like this in your score file:
12919 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
12924 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
12925 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
12928 @node Global Score Files
12929 @section Global Score Files
12930 @cindex global score files
12932 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
12933 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
12934 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
12936 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
12937 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
12938 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
12940 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
12941 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
12942 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
12943 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
12944 files are applicable to which group.
12946 Say you want to use the score file
12947 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
12948 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory:
12951 (setq gnus-global-score-files
12952 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
12953 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
12956 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
12957 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
12958 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
12959 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
12960 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
12962 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
12963 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
12965 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
12966 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
12967 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
12968 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
12969 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
12970 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
12972 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
12978 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
12980 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
12982 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
12984 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
12985 lowered out of existence.
12987 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
12988 articles completely.
12991 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
12992 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
12993 old articles for a long time.
12996 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
12997 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
12998 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
12999 holding our breath yet?
13003 @section Kill Files
13006 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
13007 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
13008 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
13010 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
13011 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
13012 files into score files.
13014 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
13015 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
13016 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
13017 that isn't a very good idea.
13019 Normal kill files look like this:
13022 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
13023 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
13027 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
13028 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
13030 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
13031 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
13034 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
13039 @kindex M-k (Summary)
13040 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
13041 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
13044 @kindex M-K (Summary)
13045 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
13046 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
13049 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
13054 @kindex M-k (Group)
13055 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
13056 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
13059 @kindex M-K (Group)
13060 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
13061 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
13064 Kill file variables:
13067 @item gnus-kill-file-name
13068 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
13069 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
13070 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
13071 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
13072 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
13073 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
13075 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
13076 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
13077 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
13078 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
13081 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
13082 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
13083 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
13084 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
13085 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
13086 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
13087 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
13088 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
13089 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
13091 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
13092 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
13093 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
13098 @node Converting Kill Files
13099 @section Converting Kill Files
13101 @cindex converting kill files
13103 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
13104 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
13105 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
13108 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
13109 You can fetch it from
13110 @file{http://www.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-other/gnus-kill-to-score}.
13112 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
13113 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
13114 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
13122 GroupLens is a collaborative filtering system that helps you work
13123 together with other people to find the quality news articles out of the
13124 huge volume of news articles generated every day.
13126 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
13127 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
13128 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
13129 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
13130 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
13131 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
13132 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
13133 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
13137 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
13138 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
13139 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
13140 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
13144 @node Using GroupLens
13145 @subsection Using GroupLens
13147 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
13149 @samp{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
13150 better bit in town at the moment.
13152 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
13156 @item gnus-use-grouplens
13157 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
13158 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
13159 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
13161 @item grouplens-pseudonym
13162 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
13163 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
13164 with the Better Bit Bureau.
13166 @item grouplens-newsgroups
13167 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
13168 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
13172 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
13173 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
13174 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
13175 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
13176 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
13177 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
13180 @node Rating Articles
13181 @subsection Rating Articles
13183 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
13184 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
13185 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
13186 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
13189 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
13194 @kindex r (GroupLens)
13195 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
13196 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
13199 @kindex k (GroupLens)
13200 @findex grouplens-score-thread
13201 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
13202 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
13203 threads in rec.humor.
13207 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
13208 the score of the article you're reading.
13213 @kindex n (GroupLens)
13214 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
13215 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
13218 @kindex , (GroupLens)
13219 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
13220 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
13224 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
13225 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
13228 @node Displaying Predictions
13229 @subsection Displaying Predictions
13231 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
13232 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
13233 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
13234 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
13235 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
13237 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
13238 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
13239 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
13240 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
13241 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
13242 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
13243 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
13244 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
13245 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
13246 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
13247 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
13248 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
13249 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
13251 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
13252 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
13253 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
13254 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
13256 The following are valid values for that variable.
13259 @item prediction-spot
13260 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
13263 @item confidence-interval
13264 A numeric confidence interval.
13266 @item prediction-bar
13267 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
13269 @item confidence-bar
13270 Numerical confidence.
13272 @item confidence-spot
13273 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
13275 @item prediction-num
13276 Plain-old numeric value.
13278 @item confidence-plus-minus
13279 Prediction +/- confidence.
13284 @node GroupLens Variables
13285 @subsection GroupLens Variables
13289 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
13290 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
13291 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
13292 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%)
13295 @item grouplens-bbb-host
13296 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
13299 @item grouplens-bbb-port
13300 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
13302 @item grouplens-score-offset
13303 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
13304 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
13307 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
13308 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
13309 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
13314 @node Advanced Scoring
13315 @section Advanced Scoring
13317 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
13318 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
13319 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
13320 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
13321 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
13323 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
13327 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
13328 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
13329 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
13333 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
13334 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
13336 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
13337 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
13338 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
13339 non-@code{nil} value.
13341 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
13342 operator, and various match operators.
13349 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
13350 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
13351 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
13356 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
13357 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
13358 then this operator will return @code{false}.
13363 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
13364 logical negation of the value of its argument.
13368 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
13369 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
13370 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
13371 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
13372 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
13373 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
13374 the ancestry you want to go.
13376 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
13377 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
13378 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
13379 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
13380 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
13383 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
13384 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
13386 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
13387 when he's talking about Gnus:
13391 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
13392 ("subject" "Gnus"))
13398 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
13402 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
13409 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
13410 really don't want to read what he's written:
13414 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
13415 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
13419 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
13420 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
13421 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
13428 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
13429 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
13430 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
13431 ("body" "white.*socks"))
13435 The possibilities are endless.
13438 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
13439 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
13441 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
13442 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
13443 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
13444 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
13445 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
13446 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
13447 @samp{subject}) first.
13449 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
13450 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
13461 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
13462 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
13468 ("subject" "Gnus")))
13475 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
13476 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
13481 @section Score Decays
13482 @cindex score decays
13485 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
13486 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
13487 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
13488 use them in any sensible way.
13490 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
13491 @findex gnus-decay-score
13492 @vindex gnus-score-decay-function
13493 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
13494 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
13495 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
13496 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
13497 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-score-decay-function}
13498 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
13499 definition of that function:
13502 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
13503 "Decay SCORE according to `gnus-score-decay-constant' and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
13506 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
13508 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
13510 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
13513 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
13514 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
13515 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
13516 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
13520 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
13523 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
13526 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
13530 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
13531 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
13532 the new score, which should be an integer.
13534 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
13535 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
13542 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
13543 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
13544 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
13545 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
13546 * Windows Configuration:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
13547 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
13548 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
13549 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
13550 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
13551 * Buttons:: Get tendonitis in ten easy steps!
13552 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
13553 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
13554 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
13555 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
13556 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
13557 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
13558 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
13559 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
13563 @node Process/Prefix
13564 @section Process/Prefix
13565 @cindex process/prefix convention
13567 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
13568 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
13570 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
13571 command to be performed on.
13575 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
13576 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
13577 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
13578 with the current one.
13580 @vindex transient-mark-mode
13581 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
13582 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
13584 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
13585 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
13588 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
13589 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
13591 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
13594 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
13595 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
13596 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
13597 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
13599 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
13600 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
13601 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
13602 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
13603 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
13604 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
13605 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
13606 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
13610 @section Interactive
13611 @cindex interaction
13615 @item gnus-novice-user
13616 @vindex gnus-novice-user
13617 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
13618 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
13619 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
13620 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
13623 @item gnus-expert-user
13624 @vindex gnus-expert-user
13625 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
13626 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
13627 matter how strange.
13629 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
13630 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
13631 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
13632 is @code{t} by default.
13634 @item gnus-interactive-exit
13635 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
13636 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
13641 @node Symbolic Prefixes
13642 @section Symbolic Prefixes
13643 @cindex symbolic prefixes
13645 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
13646 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
13647 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
13648 rule of 900 to the current article.
13650 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
13651 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
13652 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
13653 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
13654 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
13655 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
13656 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
13658 @kindex M-i (Summary)
13659 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
13660 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
13661 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
13662 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
13663 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a M-C-u} means ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u}
13664 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b M-C-u} means
13665 ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
13666 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
13668 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
13669 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
13670 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
13672 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
13676 @node Formatting Variables
13677 @section Formatting Variables
13678 @cindex formatting variables
13680 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
13681 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
13682 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
13683 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
13684 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
13687 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
13688 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
13689 lots of percentages everywhere.
13692 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
13693 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
13694 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
13695 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
13696 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
13699 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
13700 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
13701 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
13702 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
13703 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
13704 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
13705 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
13706 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
13708 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
13709 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
13711 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
13712 @findex gnus-update-format
13713 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
13714 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
13715 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
13716 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
13720 @node Formatting Basics
13721 @subsection Formatting Basics
13723 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
13724 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
13725 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
13727 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
13728 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
13729 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
13730 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
13731 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
13734 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
13735 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
13736 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
13737 less than 4 characters wide.
13740 @node Mode Line Formatting
13741 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
13743 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
13744 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
13745 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
13746 with the following two differences:
13751 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
13754 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
13755 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
13756 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
13757 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
13758 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
13759 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
13760 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
13765 @node Advanced Formatting
13766 @subsection Advanced Formatting
13768 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
13769 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
13770 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
13771 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
13773 These are the valid modifiers:
13778 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
13782 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
13787 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
13790 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
13795 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
13798 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
13801 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
13804 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
13808 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
13809 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
13810 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
13811 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
13812 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
13813 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
13814 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
13816 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
13817 last operation, padding.
13819 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
13820 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
13821 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
13822 @xref{Compilation}.
13825 @node User-Defined Specs
13826 @subsection User-Defined Specs
13828 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
13829 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
13830 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
13831 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
13832 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
13833 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
13834 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
13835 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
13836 should protect against that.
13838 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
13839 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
13840 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
13841 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
13845 @node Formatting Fonts
13846 @subsection Formatting Fonts
13848 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
13849 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
13850 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
13851 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
13854 Text inside the @samp{%[} and @samp{%]} specifiers will have their
13855 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
13856 default. If you say @samp{%1[}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
13857 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
13858 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
13859 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
13861 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
13864 ;; Create three face types.
13865 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
13866 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
13868 ;; We want the article count to be in
13869 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
13870 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
13871 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
13873 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
13874 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
13876 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
13877 (setq gnus-group-line-format
13878 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
13881 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
13882 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
13884 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
13885 mode-line variables.
13888 @node Windows Configuration
13889 @section Windows Configuration
13890 @cindex windows configuration
13892 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
13894 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
13895 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
13896 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
13897 @code{t} by default.
13899 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
13900 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
13901 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
13904 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
13905 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
13906 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
13910 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
13911 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
13912 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
13913 possible names is listed below.
13915 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
13916 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
13919 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
13923 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
13924 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
13925 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
13926 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
13927 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
13928 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
13929 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
13930 size spec per split.
13932 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
13933 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
13934 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
13935 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
13936 present) gets focus.
13938 Here's a more complicated example:
13941 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
13942 (summary 0.25 point)
13943 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
13947 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
13948 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
13949 occupy, not a percentage.
13951 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
13952 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
13953 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
13954 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
13955 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
13958 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
13961 (article (horizontal 1.0
13966 (summary 0.25 point)
13971 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
13972 @code{horizontal} thingie?
13974 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
13975 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
13976 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
13977 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
13978 the screen is to be given to this strip.
13980 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
13981 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
13982 lines from the splits.
13984 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
13988 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
13989 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
13990 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
13991 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
13992 buffer = "(" buffer-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
13993 size = number | frame-params
13994 buffer-name = group | article | summary ...
13997 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
13998 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
13999 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
14000 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
14002 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
14003 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
14004 @cindex window height
14005 @cindex window width
14006 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
14007 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
14008 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
14009 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
14010 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
14011 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
14013 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
14014 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
14015 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
14016 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
14018 @findex gnus-configure-frame
14019 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
14020 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
14021 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
14022 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
14023 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
14024 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
14025 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
14026 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
14027 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
14028 configuration list.
14031 (gnus-configure-frame
14035 (article 0.3 point))
14043 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
14044 @code{frame} split:
14047 (gnus-configure-frame
14050 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
14052 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
14053 (user-position . t)
14054 (left . -1) (top . 1))
14059 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
14060 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
14061 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
14062 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
14063 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
14064 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
14065 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
14066 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
14069 Here's a list of all possible keys for
14070 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration}:
14072 @code{group}, @code{summary}, @code{article}, @code{server},
14073 @code{browse}, @code{message}, @code{pick}, @code{info},
14074 @code{summary-faq}, @code{edit-group}, @code{edit-server},
14075 @code{edit-score}, @code{post}, @code{reply}, @code{forward},
14076 @code{reply-yank}, @code{mail-bounce}, @code{draft}, @code{pipe},
14077 @code{bug}, @code{compose-bounce}, and @code{score-trace}.
14079 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
14080 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
14081 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
14085 (message (horizontal 1.0
14086 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
14088 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
14093 @findex gnus-add-configuration
14094 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
14095 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
14096 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
14097 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
14100 (gnus-add-configuration
14101 '(article (vertical 1.0
14103 (summary .25 point)
14107 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
14108 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
14109 Gnus has been loaded.
14111 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
14112 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
14113 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
14114 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
14115 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
14118 @node Faces and Fonts
14119 @section Faces and Fonts
14124 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
14125 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
14126 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
14131 @section Compilation
14132 @cindex compilation
14133 @cindex byte-compilation
14135 @findex gnus-compile
14137 Remember all those line format specification variables?
14138 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
14139 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
14140 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
14141 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
14142 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
14145 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
14146 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
14147 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
14148 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
14149 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
14150 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
14151 them into the @code{.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
14155 @section Mode Lines
14158 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
14159 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
14160 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
14161 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
14162 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
14163 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
14164 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
14167 @cindex display-time
14169 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
14170 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
14171 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
14172 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
14173 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
14174 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
14175 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
14176 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
14179 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
14181 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
14182 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
14184 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
14185 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
14186 (length display-time-string)))))
14189 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
14190 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
14191 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
14192 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
14193 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
14196 @node Highlighting and Menus
14197 @section Highlighting and Menus
14199 @cindex highlighting
14202 @vindex gnus-visual
14203 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
14204 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
14205 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
14208 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
14209 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
14212 @item group-highlight
14213 Do highlights in the group buffer.
14214 @item summary-highlight
14215 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
14216 @item article-highlight
14217 Do highlights in the article buffer.
14219 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
14221 Create menus in the group buffer.
14223 Create menus in the summary buffers.
14225 Create menus in the article buffer.
14227 Create menus in the browse buffer.
14229 Create menus in the server buffer.
14231 Create menus in the score buffers.
14233 Create menus in all buffers.
14236 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
14237 buffers, you could say something like:
14240 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
14243 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
14246 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
14249 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
14250 in all Gnus buffers.
14252 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
14255 @item gnus-mouse-face
14256 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
14257 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
14258 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
14262 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
14266 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
14267 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
14268 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
14270 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
14271 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
14272 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
14274 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
14275 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
14276 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
14278 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
14279 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
14280 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
14282 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
14283 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
14284 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
14286 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
14287 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
14288 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
14299 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
14300 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
14301 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
14302 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
14303 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
14307 @vindex gnus-carpal
14308 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
14309 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
14310 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
14315 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
14316 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
14317 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
14319 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
14320 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
14321 Face used on buttons.
14323 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
14324 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
14325 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
14327 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
14328 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
14329 Buttons in the group buffer.
14331 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
14332 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
14333 Buttons in the summary buffer.
14335 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
14336 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
14337 Buttons in the server buffer.
14339 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
14340 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
14341 Buttons in the browse buffer.
14344 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
14345 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
14346 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
14354 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
14355 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
14356 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
14357 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
14358 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
14360 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
14361 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
14362 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
14364 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
14365 been idle for thirty minutes:
14368 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
14371 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
14375 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
14378 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
14379 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
14380 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
14382 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
14383 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
14384 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
14385 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
14387 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
14388 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
14389 @var{idle} minutes.
14391 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
14392 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
14395 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
14396 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
14397 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
14399 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
14400 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
14401 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
14402 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
14404 @vindex gnus-use-demon
14405 To set the whole thing in motion, though, you have to set
14406 @code{gnus-use-demon} to @code{t}.
14408 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
14409 your @file{.gnus} file:
14411 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
14413 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
14416 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
14417 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
14418 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
14419 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
14420 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
14421 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
14422 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
14423 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
14424 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
14425 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
14426 @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
14428 @findex gnus-demon-init
14429 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
14430 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
14431 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
14432 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
14433 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
14435 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
14436 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
14437 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
14446 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
14447 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
14449 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
14450 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
14451 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
14452 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
14455 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
14456 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
14457 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
14458 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
14460 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
14461 this will make spam disappear.
14463 There are some variables to customize, of course:
14466 @item gnus-use-nocem
14467 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
14468 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
14471 @item gnus-nocem-groups
14472 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
14473 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
14474 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
14475 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
14477 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
14478 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
14479 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
14480 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
14481 "rbraver@@ohww.norman.ok.us" "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca"
14482 "jem@@xpat.com" "snowhare@@xmission.com" "red@@redpoll.mrfs.oh.us
14483 (Richard E. Depew)")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
14485 Known despammers that you can put in this list include:
14488 @item clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca;
14489 @cindex Chris Lewis
14490 Chris Lewis---Major Canadian despammer who has probably canceled more
14491 usenet abuse than anybody else.
14494 @cindex CancelMoose[tm]
14495 The CancelMoose[tm] on autopilot. The CancelMoose[tm] is reputed to be
14496 Norwegian, and was the person(s) who invented NoCeM.
14498 @item jem@@xpat.com;
14500 John Milburn---despammer located in Korea who is getting very busy these
14503 @item red@@redpoll.mrfs.oh.us (Richard E. Depew)
14504 Richard E. Depew---lone American despammer. He mostly cancels binary
14505 postings to non-binary groups and removes spews (regurgitated articles).
14508 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
14509 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
14510 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
14511 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
14512 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
14513 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
14514 @var{(issuer conditions ...)} elements in the list. Each condition is
14515 either a string (which is a regexp that matches types you want to use)
14516 or a list on the form @code{(not STRING)}, where @var{string} is a
14517 regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
14519 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
14520 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
14523 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
14526 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
14527 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
14530 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
14533 The specs are applied left-to-right.
14536 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
14537 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
14539 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
14540 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
14541 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
14542 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
14544 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
14545 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
14548 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
14550 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
14558 This might be dangerous, though.
14560 @item gnus-nocem-directory
14561 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
14562 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
14563 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
14565 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
14566 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
14567 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
14568 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
14569 might then see old spam.
14573 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
14574 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
14575 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
14576 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
14583 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
14584 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
14585 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
14587 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
14588 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
14589 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
14590 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
14591 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
14592 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
14593 @code{undo} function.
14595 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
14596 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
14597 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
14598 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
14599 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
14600 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
14601 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
14602 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
14603 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
14604 never be totally undoable.
14606 @findex gnus-undo-mode
14607 @vindex gnus-use-undo
14609 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
14610 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
14611 default. The @kbd{M-C-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo} command
14612 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
14617 @section Moderation
14620 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
14621 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
14622 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
14625 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
14629 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
14632 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
14634 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
14639 You split your incoming mail by matching on
14640 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
14641 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
14644 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
14645 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
14648 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
14649 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
14653 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
14656 (setq gnus-moderated-list
14657 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
14661 @node XEmacs Enhancements
14662 @section XEmacs Enhancements
14665 XEmacs is able to display pictures and stuff, so Gnus has taken
14669 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
14670 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
14671 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
14672 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
14685 So... You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
14686 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
14687 over your shoulder as you read news.
14690 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
14691 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
14692 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
14693 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
14694 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
14699 @subsubsection Picon Basics
14701 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
14710 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
14711 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
14712 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
14713 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
14714 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
14715 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
14716 @code{GIF} formats.
14719 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
14720 If you have a permanent connection to the Internet you can use Steve
14721 Kinzler's Picons Search engine by setting
14722 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} to the string
14723 @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/search.html}.
14725 @vindex gnus-picons-database
14726 Otherwise you need a local copy of his database. For instructions on
14727 obtaining and installing the picons databases, point your Web browser at
14728 @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}. Gnus expects
14729 picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
14730 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
14733 @node Picon Requirements
14734 @subsubsection Picon Requirements
14736 To have Gnus display Picons for you, you must be running XEmacs
14737 19.13 or greater since all other versions of Emacs aren't yet able to
14740 Additionally, you must have @code{x} support compiled into XEmacs. To
14741 display color picons which are much nicer than the black & white one,
14742 you also need one of @code{xpm} or @code{gif} compiled into XEmacs.
14744 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
14745 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you should have
14746 the @code{xface} support compiled into XEmacs. Otherwise you must have
14747 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
14748 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
14752 @subsubsection Easy Picons
14754 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
14755 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
14758 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
14759 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-article-display-picons t)
14760 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-picons-article-display-x-face)
14763 and make sure @code{gnus-picons-database} points to the directory
14764 containing the Picons databases.
14766 Alternatively if you want to use the web piconsearch engine add this:
14769 (setq gnus-picons-piconsearch-url "http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch")
14774 @subsubsection Hard Picons
14782 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
14783 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
14784 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
14785 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
14786 feature, you need to select where to get the picons from, and where to
14791 @item gnus-picons-database
14792 @vindex gnus-picons-database
14793 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
14794 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
14795 subdirectories. This is only useful if
14796 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} is @code{nil}. Defaults to
14797 @file{/usr/local/faces/}.
14799 @item gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
14800 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
14801 The URL for the web picons search engine. The only currently known
14802 engine is @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch}. To
14803 workaround network delays, icons will be fetched in the background. If
14804 this is @code{nil} 'the default), then picons are fetched from local
14805 database indicated by @code{gnus-picons-database}.
14807 @item gnus-picons-display-where
14808 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
14809 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
14810 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
14811 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
14812 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
14813 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
14814 routines---@pxref{Windows Configuration}.
14816 @item gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
14817 @vindex gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
14818 Groups that are matched by this regexp won't have their group icons
14823 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
14824 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
14826 Now that you've made those decision, you need to add the following
14827 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get displayed
14830 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
14831 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
14833 @item gnus-article-display-picons
14834 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
14835 Looks up and displays the picons for the author and the author's domain
14836 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer. Should be added to the
14837 @code{gnus-article-display-hook}.
14839 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
14840 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
14841 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present. This function
14842 should be added to @code{gnus-article-display-hook}.
14846 Note: You must append them to the hook, so make sure to specify 't'
14847 for the append flag of @code{add-hook}:
14850 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-article-display-picons t)
14854 @node Picon Useless Configuration
14855 @subsubsection Picon Useless Configuration
14863 The following variables offer further control over how things are
14864 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
14865 don't need to worry about.
14869 @item gnus-picons-news-directories
14870 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directories
14871 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
14872 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
14874 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
14875 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
14876 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
14877 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc")} is the default.
14879 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
14880 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
14881 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
14882 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
14883 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
14885 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
14886 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
14887 If you don't have @code{xface} support builtin XEmacs, this is the
14888 command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
14889 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
14890 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
14891 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
14893 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
14894 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
14895 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
14896 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
14898 @item gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
14899 @vindex gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
14900 If you have set @code{gnus-picons-display-where} to @code{picons}, your
14901 XEmacs frame will become really cluttered. To alleviate this a bit you
14902 can set @code{gnus-picons-has-modeline-p} to @code{nil}; this will
14903 remove the mode line from the Picons buffer. This is only useful if
14904 @code{gnus-picons-display-where} is @code{picons}.
14906 @item gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
14907 @vindex gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
14908 If non-nil, display the article buffer before computing the picons.
14909 Defaults to @code{nil}.
14911 @item gnus-picons-display-as-address
14912 @vindex gnus-picons-display-as-address
14913 If @code{t} display textual email addresses along with pictures.
14914 Defaults to @code{t}.
14916 @item gnus-picons-file-suffixes
14917 @vindex gnus-picons-file-suffixes
14918 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
14919 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your XEmacs.
14921 @item gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
14922 @vindex gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
14923 Whether to move point to first empty line when displaying picons. This
14924 has only an effect if `gnus-picons-display-where' has value `article'.
14926 @item gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
14927 @vindex gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
14928 Whether to clear the picons cache when exiting gnus. Gnus caches every
14929 picons it finds while it is running. This saves some time in the search
14930 process but eats some memory. If this variable is set to @code{nil},
14931 Gnus will never clear the cache itself; you will have to manually call
14932 @code{gnus-picons-clear-cache} to clear it. Otherwise the cache will be
14933 cleared every time you exit Gnus. Defaults to @code{t}.
14944 @subsection Smileys
14949 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/BigFace.ps,height=20cm}}
14954 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
14955 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
14957 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
14958 @file{.gnus.el} file:
14961 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-smiley-display t)
14964 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{:-=}, @samp{:-(} and
14965 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
14966 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
14967 text and maps that to file names.
14969 @vindex smiley-nosey-regexp-alist
14970 @vindex smiley-deformed-regexp-alist
14971 Smiley supplies two example conversion alists by default:
14972 @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist} (which matches @samp{:)}, @samp{:(}
14973 and so on), and @code{smiley-nosey-regexp-alist} (which matches
14974 @samp{:-)}, @samp{:-(} and so on).
14976 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist} variable,
14977 which defaults to the value of @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist}.
14979 The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched; the second
14980 element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by the picture;
14981 and the third element is the name of the file to be displayed.
14983 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
14984 files, as well as the color to be used and stuff:
14988 @item smiley-data-directory
14989 @vindex smiley-data-directory
14990 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
14992 @item smiley-flesh-color
14993 @vindex smiley-flesh-color
14994 Skin color. The default is @samp{yellow}, which is really racist.
14996 @item smiley-features-color
14997 @vindex smiley-features-color
14998 Color of the features of the face. The default is @samp{black}.
15000 @item smiley-tongue-color
15001 @vindex smiley-tongue-color
15002 Color of the tongue. The default is @samp{red}.
15004 @item smiley-circle-color
15005 @vindex smiley-circle-color
15006 Color of the circle around the face. The default is @samp{black}.
15008 @item smiley-mouse-face
15009 @vindex smiley-mouse-face
15010 Face used for mouse highlighting over the smiley face.
15016 @subsection Toolbar
15026 @item gnus-use-toolbar
15027 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
15028 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
15029 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
15030 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
15032 @item gnus-group-toolbar
15033 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
15034 The toolbar in the group buffer.
15036 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
15037 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
15038 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
15040 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
15041 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
15042 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
15048 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
15051 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
15052 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
15053 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
15054 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
15055 unusual directory structure.
15057 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
15058 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
15059 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
15060 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
15062 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
15063 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
15064 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
15065 Legal values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
15066 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
15067 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
15069 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
15070 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
15071 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
15085 @node Fuzzy Matching
15086 @section Fuzzy Matching
15087 @cindex fuzzy matching
15089 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
15090 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
15092 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
15093 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
15094 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
15096 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
15097 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
15098 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
15099 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
15100 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
15103 @node Thwarting Email Spam
15104 @section Thwarting Email Spam
15108 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
15110 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
15111 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
15112 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
15113 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
15114 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
15115 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
15116 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
15117 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
15120 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
15121 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
15122 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
15123 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
15124 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
15125 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
15129 The way to deal with this is having Gnus split out all spam into a
15130 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
15132 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
15133 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
15134 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
15135 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
15136 sysadm whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
15137 part of the mail address.)
15140 (setq message-default-news-headers
15141 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
15144 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
15145 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
15150 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
15151 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
15152 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
15158 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
15159 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
15160 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
15161 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
15163 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @code{smtp} server
15164 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
15165 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
15166 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
15167 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
15168 your fancy split rule in this way:
15173 (to "larsi" "misc")
15177 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
15178 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
15179 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
15180 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
15181 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
15183 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
15184 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
15185 at @file{<URL:http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html>}.
15186 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
15187 cosmic balance somewhat.
15189 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
15190 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
15191 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
15192 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
15195 @node Various Various
15196 @section Various Various
15202 @item gnus-home-directory
15203 All Gnus path variables will be initialized from this variable, which
15204 defaults to @file{~/}.
15206 @item gnus-directory
15207 @vindex gnus-directory
15208 Most Gnus storage path variables will be initialized from this variable,
15209 which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or
15210 @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
15212 Note that gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{.gnus.el} file is read.
15213 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
15214 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
15215 @file{.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
15217 @item gnus-default-directory
15218 @vindex gnus-default-directory
15219 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
15220 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
15221 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
15222 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
15223 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
15224 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
15227 @vindex gnus-verbose
15228 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
15229 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
15230 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
15231 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
15232 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
15234 @item gnus-verbose-backends
15235 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
15236 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
15237 to the Gnus backends instead of Gnus proper.
15239 @item nnheader-max-head-length
15240 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
15241 When the backends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
15242 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
15243 the absolute max length the backends will try to read before giving up
15244 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
15245 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
15246 @code{t}, the backends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
15247 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
15248 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
15250 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
15251 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
15252 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
15253 read when doing the operation described above.
15255 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
15256 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
15258 @cindex invalid characters in file names
15259 @cindex characters in file names
15260 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
15261 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
15262 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
15265 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
15269 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
15270 Windows (phooey) systems.
15272 @item gnus-hidden-properties
15273 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
15274 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
15275 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
15276 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
15278 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
15279 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
15280 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
15281 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
15282 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
15284 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
15285 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
15286 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
15295 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
15296 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
15298 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
15300 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
15306 Not because of victories @*
15309 but for the common sunshine,@*
15311 the largess of the spring.
15315 but for the day's work done@*
15316 as well as I was able;@*
15317 not for a seat upon the dais@*
15318 but at the common table.@*
15323 @chapter Appendices
15326 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
15327 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
15328 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
15329 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
15330 * A Programmers Guide to Gnus:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
15331 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
15332 * Frequently Asked Questions:: A question-and-answer session.
15340 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
15341 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
15343 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage, you
15344 can point your (feh!) web browser to
15345 @file{http://www.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/}. This is also the primary
15346 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is known
15347 as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
15349 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
15350 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
15351 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
15352 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
15353 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
15354 appropriate name, don't you think?)
15356 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
15357 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
15358 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
15359 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
15361 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
15362 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
15363 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
15365 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
15366 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
15368 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
15369 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4''.
15371 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
15372 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'' --
15373 don't panic. Don't let it know that you're frightened. Back away.
15374 Slowly. Whatever you do, don't run. Walk away, calmly, until you're
15375 out of its reach. Find a proper released version of Gnus and snuggle up
15379 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
15380 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
15381 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
15382 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
15383 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
15384 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
15385 * Newest Features:: Features so new that they haven't been written yet.
15392 What's the point of Gnus?
15394 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
15395 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
15396 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
15397 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
15398 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
15399 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
15400 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
15401 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
15402 keep track of millions of people who post?
15404 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
15405 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
15406 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
15407 to separate the newsreader from the backends, Gnus now offers a simple
15408 interface for anybody who wants to write new backends for fetching mail
15409 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
15410 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
15411 every one of you to explore and invent.
15413 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
15414 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
15417 @node Compatibility
15418 @subsection Compatibility
15420 @cindex compatibility
15421 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
15422 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
15423 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
15428 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
15432 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
15435 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
15438 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
15439 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
15440 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
15441 important variables have their values copied into their global
15442 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
15443 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
15445 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
15446 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
15447 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
15448 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
15449 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
15453 @cindex highlighting
15454 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
15455 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
15456 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
15457 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
15458 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
15459 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
15462 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
15463 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
15464 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
15465 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
15467 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
15468 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
15469 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
15470 to stop doing it the old way.
15472 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
15474 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
15476 @cindex reporting bugs
15478 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
15479 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
15480 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
15482 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
15483 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
15484 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
15485 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
15490 @subsection Conformity
15492 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
15493 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
15500 There are no known breaches of this standard.
15504 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
15506 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
15507 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
15508 We do have some breaches to this one.
15513 Gnus does no MIME handling, and this standard-to-be seems to think that
15514 MIME is the bees' knees, so we have major breakage here.
15517 This is considered to be a ``vanity header'', while I consider it to be
15518 consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted articles
15519 coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use either of
15520 those for posting articles. I would not have known that if it wasn't
15521 for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
15526 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
15527 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
15532 @subsection Emacsen
15538 Gnus should work on :
15543 Emacs 19.32 and up.
15546 XEmacs 19.14 and up.
15549 Mule versions based on Emacs 19.32 and up.
15553 Gnus will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than that. Not
15554 reliably, at least.
15556 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
15557 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
15558 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
15563 @subsection Contributors
15564 @cindex contributors
15566 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
15567 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
15568 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
15569 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
15570 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
15571 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
15572 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
15573 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
15574 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
15575 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
15577 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
15583 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
15586 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
15587 well as numerous other things).
15590 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
15593 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
15596 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
15597 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
15600 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
15603 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
15604 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
15607 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
15610 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
15613 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
15616 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
15619 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
15620 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
15623 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
15626 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
15629 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
15632 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
15636 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
15639 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
15642 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
15645 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
15646 well as autoconf support.
15650 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
15651 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
15653 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
15662 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
15666 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
15688 Massimo Campostrini,
15695 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
15701 Michael Welsh Duggan,
15704 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
15708 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
15714 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
15716 Michelangelo Grigni,
15719 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
15721 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c ?
15723 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
15728 François Felix Ingrand,
15729 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
15731 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
15739 Peter Skov Knudsen,
15740 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
15741 Thor Kristoffersen,
15743 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
15760 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
15761 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
15768 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
15772 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
15774 John McClary Prevost,
15779 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
15784 Christian von Roques,
15786 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
15792 Philippe Schnoebelen,
15794 Randal L. Schwartz,
15822 Katsumi Yamaoka, @c Yamaoka
15824 Shenghuo Zhu. @c Zhu
15826 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
15827 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
15828 (550kB and counting).
15830 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
15833 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
15834 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
15838 @subsection New Features
15839 @cindex new features
15842 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
15843 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.3/5.3.
15844 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
15845 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6.21.
15848 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
15849 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
15850 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
15854 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
15856 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
15861 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
15862 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
15865 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
15866 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
15869 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
15872 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
15873 All the mail backends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
15874 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
15877 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
15878 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
15879 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
15880 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
15883 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
15884 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
15887 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
15888 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
15889 (@pxref{The Active File}).
15892 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
15893 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
15896 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
15897 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
15898 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
15901 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
15902 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
15903 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
15906 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
15907 the @file{.emacs} file.
15910 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
15911 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
15914 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
15915 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
15918 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
15919 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
15922 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
15923 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
15926 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
15927 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
15930 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
15933 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
15934 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
15937 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
15938 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
15941 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
15942 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
15945 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
15948 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
15949 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
15952 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
15956 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
15960 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
15961 configuration (@pxref{Windows Configuration}).
15964 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
15970 @node September Gnus
15971 @subsubsection September Gnus
15975 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/september.ps,height=20cm}}
15979 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
15984 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
15985 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
15989 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
15990 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
15994 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
15998 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
15999 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
16002 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
16006 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
16009 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
16012 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
16015 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
16019 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
16020 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
16023 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
16027 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
16031 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
16035 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
16039 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
16042 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
16043 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
16046 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
16050 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
16051 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
16054 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
16057 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
16058 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
16059 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
16062 Gnus has a new backend (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
16066 The Gnus cache is much faster.
16069 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
16073 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
16074 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
16077 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
16078 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
16081 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
16082 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
16085 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
16086 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
16087 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
16090 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
16091 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
16094 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
16097 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
16100 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook
16101 'gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head)
16105 All mail backends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
16108 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
16111 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
16112 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
16115 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Windows
16119 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
16122 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}}
16127 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
16130 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
16134 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
16137 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
16141 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
16144 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
16147 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
16148 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
16151 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
16152 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
16156 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
16157 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
16160 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
16164 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
16165 buffer to allow easier treatment.
16168 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
16171 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
16175 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
16179 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
16180 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
16183 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
16187 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
16188 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
16191 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
16192 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
16195 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
16199 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
16202 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook
16203 'gnus-article-hide-boring-headers t)
16207 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
16210 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
16216 @subsubsection Red Gnus
16218 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
16222 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/red.ps,height=20cm}}
16229 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
16232 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
16233 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
16236 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
16237 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
16241 Article washing status can be displayed in the
16242 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
16245 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
16248 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
16249 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
16252 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
16256 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
16257 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
16261 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
16262 Server Internals}).
16265 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
16269 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
16272 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
16273 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
16276 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
16277 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
16278 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
16281 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
16282 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
16285 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
16286 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
16289 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{M-C-_}
16293 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
16294 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
16297 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
16298 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
16301 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
16305 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
16308 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
16312 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
16313 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
16316 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
16317 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
16320 A new command for reading collections of documents
16321 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{M-C-d}
16322 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
16325 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
16329 A new mail-to-news backend makes it possible to post even when the NNTP
16330 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
16333 A new backend for reading searches from Web search engines
16334 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
16335 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
16338 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
16339 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
16343 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
16347 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
16351 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}}
16356 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
16360 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
16364 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
16365 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
16368 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
16371 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-article-emphasize)
16378 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
16380 New features in Gnus 5.6.21:
16385 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
16386 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
16387 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
16390 The @code{nndraft} backend has returned, but works differently than
16391 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
16392 group, which is created automatically.
16395 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
16399 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
16402 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
16403 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
16406 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
16410 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
16413 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
16414 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
16417 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
16420 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section "Symbolic
16421 Prefixes" in the Gnus manual for details.
16424 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
16425 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the "all.SCORE" file.
16428 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
16429 control over simplification.
16432 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
16435 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
16439 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
16442 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
16445 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
16446 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
16447 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
16450 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
16451 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
16454 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
16458 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
16459 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
16462 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
16463 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @sc{nntp} servers.
16466 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
16470 A history of where mails have been split is available.
16473 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
16476 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
16477 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
16480 A new function for citing in Message has been
16481 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
16484 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
16487 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
16491 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
16492 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
16495 The "lapsed date" article header can be kept continually
16496 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
16499 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} backend.
16502 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
16507 @node Newest Features
16508 @subsection Newest Features
16511 Also known as the @dfn{todo list}. Sure to be implemented before the
16514 Be afraid. Be very afraid.
16516 (That a feature appears in this list doesn't necessarily mean that I've
16517 decided to actually implement it. It just means that I think it sounds
16520 (Yes, this is the actual, up-to-the-second todo list.)
16525 Native @sc{mime} support is something that should be done.
16528 Really do unbinhexing.
16531 I would like the zombie-page to contain an URL to the source of the
16532 latest version of gnus or some explanation on where to find it.
16535 A way to continue editing the latest Message composition.
16538 http://www.sonicnet.com/feature/ari3/
16541 facep is not declared.
16544 Include a section in the manual on why the number of articles
16545 isn't the same in the group buffer and on the SPC prompt.
16548 Interacting with rmail fcc isn't easy.
16553 <URL:http://www.falch.no/people/pepper/DSSSL-Lite/archives/>
16554 <URL:http://www.eit.com/software/hypermail/hypermail.html>
16555 <URL:http://homer.ncm.com/>
16556 <URL:http://www.yahoo.com/Computers_and_Internet/Internet/World_Wide_Web/HTML_Converters/>
16557 http://www.uwsg.indiana.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/9610/index.html
16558 <URL:http://union.ncsa.uiuc.edu/HyperNews/get/www/html/converters.html>
16559 http://www.miranova.com/gnus-list/
16564 @samp{^-- } is made into - in LaTeX.
16567 gnus-kill is much slower than it was in GNUS 4.1.3.
16570 when expunging articles on low score, the sparse nodes keep hanging on?
16572 starting the first time seems to hang Gnus on some systems. Does
16573 NEWGROUPS answer too fast?
16575 nndir doesn't read gzipped files.
16577 FAQ doesn't have an up node?
16579 when moving mail from a procmail spool to the crash-box,
16580 the crash-box is only appropriate to one specific group.
16582 `t' `t' makes X-Faces disappear.
16584 nnmh-be-safe means that crossposted articles will
16585 be marked as unread.
16587 Orphan score entries don't show on "V t" score trace
16589 when clearing out data, the cache data should also be reset.
16591 rewrite gnus-summary-limit-children to be non-recursive
16592 to avoid exceeding lisp nesting on huge groups.
16594 expunged articles are counted when computing scores.
16596 implement gnus-batch-brew-soup
16598 ticked articles aren't easy to read in pick mode -- `n' and
16599 stuff just skips past them. Read articles are the same.
16601 topics that contain just groups with ticked
16602 articles aren't displayed.
16604 nndoc should always allocate unique Message-IDs.
16606 implement gnus-score-thread
16608 If there are mail groups the first time you use Gnus, Gnus'll
16609 make the mail groups killed.
16611 no "no news is good news" when using topics.
16613 when doing crosspost marking, the cache has to be consulted
16614 and articles have to be removed.
16616 nnweb should fetch complete articles when they are split into several
16619 scoring on head immediate doesn't work.
16621 finding short score file names takes forever.
16623 canceling articles in foreign groups.
16625 nntp-open-rlogin no longer works.
16627 C-u C-x C-s (Summary) switches to the group buffer.
16629 move nnmail-split-history out to the backends.
16631 nnweb doesn't work properly.
16633 using a virtual server name as `gnus-select-method' doesn't work?
16635 when killing/yanking a group from one topic to another in a slave, the
16636 master will yank it first to one topic and then add it to another.
16640 warn user about `=' redirection of a group in the active file?
16642 really unbinhex binhex files.
16644 take over the XEmacs menubar and offer a toggle between the XEmacs
16645 bar and the Gnus bar.
16648 push active file and NOV file parsing down into C code.
16649 `(canonize-message-id id)'
16650 `(mail-parent-message-id references n)'
16651 `(parse-news-nov-line &optional dependency-hashtb)'
16652 `(parse-news-nov-region beg end &optional dependency-hashtb fullp)'
16653 `(parse-news-active-region beg end hashtb)'
16658 nnml .overview directory with splits.
16662 postponed commands.
16664 the selected article show have its Subject displayed in its summary line.
16666 when entering groups, get the real number of unread articles from
16669 sort after gathering threads -- make false roots have the
16670 headers of the oldest orphan with a 0 article number?
16672 nndoc groups should inherit the score files of their parents? Also
16673 inherit copy prompts and save files.
16675 command to start up Gnus (if not running) and enter a mail mode buffer.
16677 allow editing the group description from the group buffer
16678 for backends that support that.
16680 gnus-hide,show-all-topics
16682 groups and sub-topics should be allowed to mingle inside each topic,
16683 and not just list all subtopics at the end.
16685 a command to remove all read articles that are not needed to connect
16686 threads -- `gnus-summary-limit-to-sparse-unread'?
16688 a variable to turn off limiting/cutting of threads in the tree buffer.
16690 a variable to limit how many files are uudecoded.
16692 add zombie groups to a special "New Groups" topic.
16694 server mode command: close/open all connections
16696 put a file date in gnus-score-alist and check whether the file
16697 has been changed before using it.
16699 on exit from a digest group, go to the next article in the parent group.
16701 hide (sub)threads with low score.
16703 when expiring, remove all marks from expired articles.
16705 gnus-summary-limit-to-body
16707 a regexp alist that says what level groups are to be subscribed
16708 on. Eg. -- `(("nnml:" . 1))'.
16710 easier interface to nnkiboze to create ephemeral groups that
16711 contain groups that match a regexp.
16713 allow newlines in <URL:> urls, but remove them before using
16716 If there is no From line, the mail backends should fudge one from the
16719 fuzzy simplifying should strip all non-alpha-numerical info
16720 from subject lines.
16722 gnus-soup-brew-soup-with-high-scores.
16724 nntp-ping-before-connect
16726 command to check whether NOV is evil. "list overview.fmt".
16728 when entering a group, Gnus should look through the score
16729 files very early for `local' atoms and set those local variables.
16731 message annotations.
16733 topics are always yanked before groups, and that's not good.
16735 (set-extent-property extent 'help-echo "String to display in minibuf")
16736 to display help in the minibuffer on buttons under XEmacs.
16738 allow group line format spec to say how many articles there
16743 support qmail maildir spools
16745 `run-with-idle-timer' in gnus-demon.
16747 stop using invisible text properties and start using overlays instead
16749 C-c C-f C-e to add an Expires header.
16751 go from one group to the next; everything is expunged; go to the
16752 next group instead of going to the group buffer.
16754 gnus-renumber-cache -- to renumber the cache using "low" numbers.
16756 record topic changes in the dribble buffer.
16758 `nnfolder-generate-active-file' should look at the folders it
16759 finds and generate proper active ranges.
16761 nneething-look-in-files-for-article-heads variable to control
16762 whether nneething should sniff all files in the directories.
16764 gnus-fetch-article -- start Gnus, enter group, display article
16766 gnus-dont-move-articles-to-same-group variable when respooling.
16768 when messages are crossposted between several auto-expirable groups,
16769 articles aren't properly marked as expirable.
16771 nneething should allow deletion/moving.
16773 TAB on the last button should go to the first button.
16775 if the car of an element in `mail-split-methods' is a function,
16776 and the function returns non-nil, use that as the name of the group(s) to
16779 command for listing all score files that have been applied.
16781 a command in the article buffer to return to `summary' config.
16783 `gnus-always-post-using-current-server' -- variable to override
16784 `C-c C-c' when posting.
16786 nnmail-group-spool-alist -- says where each group should use
16789 when an article is crossposted to an auto-expirable group, the article
16790 should be marker as expirable.
16792 article mode command/menu for "send region as URL to browser".
16794 on errors, jump to info nodes that explain the error. For instance,
16795 on invalid From headers, or on error messages from the nntp server.
16797 when gathering threads, make the article that has no "Re: " the parent.
16798 Also consult Date headers.
16800 a token in splits to call shrink-window-if-larger-than-buffer
16802 `1 0 A M' to do matches on the active hashtb.
16804 duplicates -- command to remove Gnus-Warning header, use the read
16805 Message-ID, delete the "original".
16807 when replying to several messages at once, put the "other" message-ids
16808 into a See-Also header.
16810 support setext: URL:http://www.bsdi.com/setext/
16812 support ProleText: <URL:http://proletext.clari.net/prole/proletext.html>
16814 when browsing a foreign server, the groups that are already subscribed
16815 should be listed as such and not as "K".
16817 generate font names dynamically.
16819 score file mode auto-alist.
16821 allow nndoc to change/add/delete things from documents. Implement
16822 methods for each format for adding an article to the document.
16824 `gnus-fetch-old-headers' `all' value to incorporate
16825 absolutely all headers there is.
16827 function like `|', but concatenate all marked articles
16828 and pipe them to the process.
16830 cache the list of killed (or active) groups in a separate file. Update
16831 the file whenever we read the active file or the list
16832 of killed groups in the .eld file reaches a certain length.
16834 function for starting to edit a file to put into
16835 the current mail group.
16837 score-find-trace should display the total score of the article.
16839 "ghettozie" -- score on Xref header and nix it out after using it
16840 to avoid marking as read in other groups it has been crossposted to.
16842 look at procmail splitting. The backends should create
16843 the groups automatically if a spool file exists for that group.
16845 function for backends to register themselves with Gnus.
16847 when replying to several process-marked articles,
16848 have all the From end up in Cc headers? Variable to toggle.
16850 command to delete a crossposted mail article from all
16851 groups it has been mailed to.
16853 `B c' and `B m' should be crosspost aware.
16855 hide-pgp should also hide PGP public key blocks.
16857 Command in the group buffer to respool process-marked groups.
16859 `gnus-summary-find-matching' should accept
16860 pseudo-"headers" like "body", "head" and "all"
16862 When buttifying <URL: > things, all white space (including
16863 newlines) should be ignored.
16865 Process-marking all groups in a topic should process-mark
16866 groups in subtopics as well.
16868 Add non-native groups to the list of killed groups when killing them.
16870 nntp-suggest-kewl-config to probe the nntp server and suggest
16873 add edit and forward secondary marks.
16875 nnml shouldn't visit its .overview files.
16877 allow customizing sorting within gathered threads.
16879 `B q' shouldn't select the current article.
16881 nnmbox should support a newsgroups file for descriptions.
16883 allow fetching mail from several pop servers.
16885 Be able to specify whether the saving commands save the original
16886 or the formatted article.
16888 a command to reparent with the child process-marked (cf. `T ^'.).
16890 I think the possibility to send a password with nntp-open-rlogin
16891 should be a feature in Red Gnus.
16893 The `Z n' command should be possible to execute from a mouse click.
16895 more limiting functions -- date, etc.
16897 be able to limit on a random header; on body; using reverse matches.
16899 a group parameter (`absofucking-total-expiry') that will make Gnus expire
16900 even unread articles.
16902 a command to print the article buffer as postscript.
16904 variable to disable password fetching when opening by nntp-open-telnet.
16906 manual: more example servers -- nntp with rlogin, telnet
16908 checking for bogus groups should clean topic alists as well.
16910 canceling articles in foreign groups.
16912 article number in folded topics isn't properly updated by
16915 Movement in the group buffer to the next unread group should go to the
16916 next closed topic with unread messages if no group can be found.
16918 Extensive info pages generated on the fly with help everywhere --
16919 in the "*Gnus edit*" buffers, for instance.
16921 Topic movement commands -- like thread movement. Up, down, forward, next.
16923 a way to tick/mark as read Gcc'd articles.
16925 a way to say that all groups within a specific topic comes
16926 from a particular server? Hm.
16928 `gnus-article-fill-if-long-lines' -- a function to fill
16929 the article buffer if there are any looong lines there.
16931 `T h' should jump to the parent topic and fold it.
16933 a command to create an ephemeral nndoc group out of a file,
16934 and then splitting it/moving it to some other group/backend.
16936 a group parameter for nnkiboze groups that says that
16937 all kibozed articles should be entered into the cache.
16939 It should also probably be possible to delimit what
16940 `gnus-jog-cache' does -- for instance, work on just some groups, or on
16941 some levels, and entering just articles that have a score higher than
16944 nnfolder should append to the folder instead of re-writing
16945 the entire folder to disk when accepting new messages.
16947 allow all backends to do the proper thing with .gz files.
16949 a backend for reading collections of babyl files nnbabylfolder?
16951 a command for making the native groups into foreign groups.
16953 server mode command for clearing read marks from all groups
16956 when following up multiple articles, include all To, Cc, etc headers
16959 a command for deciding what the total score of the current
16960 thread is. Also a way to highlight based on this.
16962 command to show and edit group scores
16964 a gnus-tree-minimize-horizontal to minimize tree buffers
16967 command to generate nnml overview file for one group.
16969 `C-u C-u a' -- prompt for many crossposted groups.
16971 keep track of which mail groups have received new articles (in this session).
16972 Be able to generate a report and perhaps do some marking in the group
16975 gnus-build-sparse-threads to a number -- build only sparse threads
16976 that are of that length.
16978 have nnmh respect mh's unseen sequence in .mh_profile.
16980 cache the newsgroups descriptions locally.
16982 asynchronous posting under nntp.
16984 be able to control word adaptive scoring from the score files.
16986 a variable to make `C-c C-c' post using the "current" select method.
16988 `limit-exclude-low-scored-articles'.
16990 if `gnus-summary-show-thread' is a number, hide threads that have
16991 a score lower than this number.
16993 split newsgroup subscription variable up into "order" and "method".
16995 buttonize ange-ftp file names.
16997 a command to make a duplicate copy of the current article
16998 so that each copy can be edited separately.
17000 nnweb should allow fetching from the local nntp server.
17002 record the sorting done in the summary buffer so that
17003 it can be repeated when limiting/regenerating the buffer.
17005 nnml-generate-nov-databses should generate for
17008 when the user does commands in the group buffer, check
17009 the modification time of the .newsrc.eld file and use
17010 ask-user-about-supersession-threat. Also warn when trying
17011 to save .newsrc.eld and it has changed.
17013 M-g on a topic will display all groups with 0 articles in
17016 command to remove all topic stuff.
17018 allow exploding incoming digests when reading incoming mail
17019 and splitting the resulting digests.
17021 nnsoup shouldn't set the `message-' variables.
17023 command to nix out all nnoo state information.
17025 nnmail-process-alist that calls functions if group names
17026 matches an alist -- before saving.
17028 use buffer-invisibility-spec everywhere for hiding text.
17030 variable to activate each group before entering them
17031 to get the (new) number of articles. `gnus-activate-before-entering'.
17033 command to fetch a Message-ID from any buffer, even
17034 starting Gnus first if necessary.
17036 when posting and checking whether a group exists or not, just
17037 ask the nntp server instead of relying on the active hashtb.
17039 buttonize the output of `C-c C-a' in an apropos-like way.
17041 `G p' should understand process/prefix, and allow editing
17042 of several groups at once.
17044 command to create an ephemeral nnvirtual group that
17045 matches some regexp(s).
17047 nndoc should understand "Content-Type: message/rfc822" forwarded messages.
17049 it should be possible to score "thread" on the From header.
17051 hitting RET on a "gnus-uu-archive" pseudo article should unpack it.
17053 `B i' should display the article at once in the summary buffer.
17055 remove the "*" mark at once when unticking an article.
17057 `M-s' should highlight the matching text.
17059 when checking for duplicated mails, use Resent-Message-ID if present.
17061 killing and yanking groups in topics should be better. If killing one copy
17062 of a group that exists in multiple topics, only that copy should
17063 be removed. Yanking should insert the copy, and yanking topics
17064 should be possible to be interspersed with the other yankings.
17066 command for enter a group just to read the cached articles. A way to say
17067 "ignore the nntp connection; just read from the cache."
17069 `X u' should decode base64 articles.
17071 a way to hide all "inner" cited text, leaving just the most
17072 recently cited text.
17074 nnvirtual should be asynchronous.
17076 after editing an article, gnus-original-article-buffer should
17079 there should probably be a way to make Gnus not connect to the
17080 server and just read the articles in the server
17082 allow a `set-default' (or something) to change the default
17083 value of nnoo variables.
17085 a command to import group infos from a .newsrc.eld file.
17087 groups from secondary servers have the entire select method
17088 listed in each group info.
17090 a command for just switching from the summary buffer to the group
17093 a way to specify that some incoming mail washing functions
17094 should only be applied to some groups.
17096 Message `C-f C-t' should ask the user whether to heed
17097 mail-copies-to: never.
17099 new group parameter -- `post-to-server' that says to post
17100 using the current server. Also a variable to do the same.
17102 the slave dribble files should autosave to the slave file names.
17104 a group parameter that says what articles to display on group entry, based
17107 a way to visually distinguish slave Gnusae from masters. (Whip instead
17110 Use DJ Bernstein "From " quoting/dequoting, where applicable.
17112 Why is hide-citation-maybe and hide-citation different? Also
17115 group user-defined meta-parameters.
17119 From: John Griffith <griffith@@sfs.nphil.uni-tuebingen.de>
17121 I like the option for trying to retrieve the FAQ for a group and I was
17122 thinking it would be great if for those newsgroups that had archives
17123 you could also try to read the archive for that group. Part of the
17124 problem is that archives are spread all over the net, unlike FAQs.
17125 What would be best I suppose is to find the one closest to your site.
17127 In any case, there is a list of general news group archives at
17128 ftp://ftp.neosoft.com/pub/users/claird/news.lists/newsgroup_archives.html
17135 From: Jason L Tibbitts III <tibbs@@hpc.uh.edu>
17136 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
17138 (gnus-group-add-parameter group
17139 (cons 'gnus-group-date-last-entered (list (current-time-string))))))
17141 (defun gnus-user-format-function-d (headers)
17142 "Return the date the group was last read."
17143 (cond ((car (gnus-group-get-parameter gnus-tmp-group 'gnus-group-date-last-entered)))
17148 tanken var at når du bruker `gnus-startup-file' som prefix (FOO) til å lete
17149 opp en fil FOO-SERVER, FOO-SERVER.el, FOO-SERVER.eld, kan du la den være en
17150 liste hvor du bruker hvert element i listen som FOO, istedet. da kunne man
17151 hatt forskjellige serveres startup-filer forskjellige steder.
17155 LMI> Well, nnbabyl could alter the group info to heed labels like
17156 LMI> answered and read, I guess.
17158 It could also keep them updated (the same for the Status: header of
17161 They could be used like this:
17165 `M l <name> RET' add label <name> to current message.
17166 `M u <name> RET' remove label <name> from current message.
17167 `/ l <expr> RET' limit summary buffer according to <expr>.
17169 <expr> would be a boolean expression on the labels, e.g.
17171 `/ l bug & !fixed RET'
17174 would show all the messages which are labeled `bug' but not labeled
17177 One could also imagine the labels being used for highlighting, or
17178 affect the summary line format.
17182 Sender: abraham@@dina.kvl.dk
17184 I'd like a gnus-find-file which work like find file, except that it
17185 would recognize things that looks like messages or folders:
17187 - If it is a directory containing numbered files, create an nndir
17190 - For other directories, create a nneething summary buffer.
17192 - For files matching "\\`From ", create a nndoc/mbox summary.
17194 - For files matching "\\`BABYL OPTIONS:", create a nndoc/baby summary.
17196 - For files matching "\\`[^ \t\n]+:", create an *Article* buffer.
17198 - For other files, just find them normally.
17200 I'd like `nneething' to use this function, so it would work on a
17201 directory potentially containing mboxes or babyl files.
17204 Please send a mail to bwarsaw@@cnri.reston.va.us (Barry A. Warsaw) and
17205 tell him what you are doing.
17208 Currently, I get prompted:
17212 decend into sci.something ?
17216 The problem above is that since there is really only one subsection of
17217 science, shouldn't it prompt you for only descending sci.something? If
17218 there was a sci.somethingelse group or section, then it should prompt
17219 for sci? first the sci.something? then sci.somethingelse?...
17222 Ja, det burde være en måte å si slikt. Kanskje en ny variabel?
17223 `gnus-use-few-score-files'? SÃ¥ kunne score-regler legges til den
17224 "mest" lokale score-fila. F. eks. ville no-gruppene betjenes av
17225 "no.all.SCORE", osv.
17228 What i want is for Gnus to treat any sequence or combination of the following
17229 as a single spoiler warning and hide it all, replacing it with a "Next Page"
17235 more than n blank lines
17237 more than m identical lines
17238 (which should be replaced with button to show them)
17240 any whitespace surrounding any of the above
17244 Well, we could allow a new value to `gnus-thread-ignore-subject' --
17245 `spaces', or something. (We could even default to that.) And then
17246 subjects that differ in white space only could be considered the
17247 "same" subject for threading purposes.
17250 Modes to preprocess the contents (e.g. jka-compr) use the second form
17251 "(REGEXP FUNCTION NON-NIL)" while ordinary modes (e.g. tex) use the first
17252 form "(REGEXP . FUNCTION)", so you could use it to distinguish between
17253 those two types of modes. (auto-modes-alist, insert-file-contents-literally.)
17256 Under XEmacs -- do funny article marks:
17259 soup - bowl of soup
17260 score below - dim light bulb
17261 score over - bright light bulb
17264 Yes. I think the algorithm is as follows:
17269 show-list-of-articles-in-group
17270 if (key-pressed == SPACE)
17271 if (no-more-articles-in-group-to-select)
17272 if (articles-selected)
17273 start-reading-selected-articles;
17274 junk-unread-articles;
17279 else if (key-pressed = '.')
17280 if (consolidated-menus) # same as hide-thread in Gnus
17281 select-thread-under-cursor;
17283 select-article-under-cursor;
17287 if (key-pressed == SPACE)
17288 if (more-pages-in-article)
17290 else if (more-selected-articles-to-read)
17297 My precise need here would have been to limit files to Incoming*.
17298 One could think of some `nneething-only-files' variable, but I guess
17299 it would have been unacceptable if one was using many unrelated such
17302 A more useful approach would be to, in response to the `G D' prompt, be
17303 allowed to say something like: `~/.mail/Incoming*', somewhat limiting
17304 the top-level directory only (in case directories would be matched by
17305 the wildcard expression).
17308 It would be nice if it also handled
17310 <URL:news://sunsite.auc.dk/>
17312 which should correspond to `B nntp RET sunsite.auc.dk' in *Group*.
17317 Take a look at w3-menu.el in the Emacs-W3 distribution - this works out
17318 really well. Each menu is 'named' by a symbol that would be on a
17319 gnus-*-menus (where * would be whatever, but at least group, summary, and
17320 article versions) variable.
17322 So for gnus-summary-menus, I would set to '(sort mark dispose ...)
17324 A value of '1' would just put _all_ the menus in a single 'GNUS' menu in
17325 the main menubar. This approach works really well for Emacs-W3 and VM.
17329 nndoc should take care to create unique Message-IDs for all its
17332 gnus-score-followup-article only works when you have a summary buffer
17333 active. Make it work when posting from the group buffer as well.
17334 (message-sent-hook).
17336 rewrite gnus-demon to use run-with-idle-timers.
17339 * Enhancements to Gnus:
17343 * gnus-servers (gnus-start-server-buffer?)--enters Gnus and goes
17344 straight to the server buffer, without opening any connections to
17347 * gnus-server-read-server-newsrc--produces a buffer very similar to
17348 the group buffer, but with only groups from that server listed;
17349 quitting this buffer returns to the server buffer.
17352 add a command to check the integrity of an nnfolder folder --
17353 go through the article numbers and see that there are no duplicates,
17357 `unsmileyfy-buffer' to undo smileification.
17360 a command to give all relevant info on an article, including all
17364 when doing `-request-accept-article', the backends should do
17365 the nnmail duplicate checking.
17368 allow `message-signature-file' to be a function to return the
17369 value of the signature file.
17372 In addition, I would love it if I could configure message-tab so that it
17373 could call `bbdb-complete-name' in other headers. So, some sort of
17376 (setq message-tab-alist
17377 '((message-header-regexp message-expand-group)
17378 ("^\\(To\\|[cC]c\\|[bB]cc\\)" bbdb-complete-name)))
17380 then you could run the relevant function to complete the information in
17384 cache the newsgroups file locally to avoid reloading it all the time.
17387 a command to import a buffer into a group.
17390 nnweb should allow fetching by Message-ID from servers.
17393 point in the article buffer doesn't always go to the
17394 beginning of the buffer when selecting new articles.
17397 a command to process mark all unread articles.
17400 `gnus-gather-threads-by-references-and-subject' -- first
17401 do gathering by references, and then go through the dummy roots and
17402 do more gathering by subject.
17405 gnus-uu-mark-in-numerical-order -- process mark articles in
17406 article numerical order.
17409 (gnus-thread-total-score
17410 (gnus-id-to-thread (mail-header-id (gnus-summary-article-header))))
17414 sorting by score is wrong when using sparse threads.
17417 a command to fetch an arbitrary article -- without having to be
17418 in the summary buffer.
17421 a new nncvs backend. Each group would show an article, using
17422 version branches as threading, checkin date as the date, etc.
17425 http://www.dejanews.com/forms/dnsetfilter_exp.html ?
17426 This filter allows one to construct advance queries on the Dejanews
17427 database such as specifying start and end dates, subject, author,
17428 and/or newsgroup name.
17431 new Date header scoring type -- older, newer
17434 use the summary toolbar in the article buffer.
17437 a command to fetch all articles that are less than X days old.
17440 in pick mode, `q' should save the list of selected articles in the
17441 group info. The next time the group is selected, these articles
17442 will automatically get the process mark.
17445 Isn't it possible to (also?) allow M-^ to automatically try the
17446 default server if it fails on the current server? (controlled by a
17447 user variable, (nil, t, 'ask)).
17450 make it possible to cancel articles using the select method for the
17454 `gnus-summary-select-article-on-entry' or something. It'll default
17455 to t and will select whatever article decided by `gnus-auto-select-first'.
17458 a new variable to control which selection commands should be unselecting.
17459 `first', `best', `next', `prev', `next-unread', `prev-unread' are
17463 be able to select groups that have no articles in them
17464 to be able to post in them (using the current select method).
17467 be able to post via DejaNews.
17470 `x' should retain any sortings that have been performed.
17473 allow the user to specify the precedence of the secondary marks. Also
17474 allow them to be displayed separately.
17477 gnus-summary-save-in-pipe should concatenate the results from
17478 the processes when doing a process marked pipe.
17481 a new match type, like Followup, but which adds Thread matches on all
17482 articles that match a certain From header.
17485 a function that can be read from kill-emacs-query-functions to offer
17486 saving living summary buffers.
17489 a function for selecting a particular group which will contain
17490 the articles listed in a list of article numbers/id's.
17493 a battery of character translation functions to translate common
17494 Mac, MS (etc) characters into ISO 8859-1.
17497 (defun article-fix-m$word ()
17498 "Fix M$Word smartquotes in an article."
17501 (let ((buffer-read-only nil))
17502 (goto-char (point-min))
17503 (while (search-forward "\221" nil t)
17504 (replace-match "`" t t))
17505 (goto-char (point-min))
17506 (while (search-forward "\222" nil t)
17507 (replace-match "'" t t))
17508 (goto-char (point-min))
17509 (while (search-forward "\223" nil t)
17510 (replace-match "\"" t t))
17511 (goto-char (point-min))
17512 (while (search-forward "\224" nil t)
17513 (replace-match "\"" t t)))))
17518 (add-hook 'gnus-exit-query-functions
17520 (if (and (file-exists-p nnmail-spool-file)
17521 (> (nnheader-file-size nnmail-spool-file) 0))
17522 (yes-or-no-p "New mail has arrived. Quit Gnus anyways? ")
17523 (y-or-n-p "Are you sure you want to quit Gnus? "))))
17527 allow message-default-headers to be a function.
17530 new Date score match types -- < > = (etc) that take floating point
17531 numbers and match on the age of the article.
17534 gnus-cacheable-groups
17538 > > > If so, I've got one gripe: It seems that when I fire up gnus 5.2.25
17539 > > > under xemacs-19.14, it's creating a new frame, but is erasing the
17540 > > > buffer in the frame that it was called from =:-O
17542 > > Hm. How do you start up Gnus? From the toolbar or with
17543 > > `M-x gnus-other-frame'?
17545 > I normally start it up from the toolbar; at
17546 > least that's the way I've caught it doing the
17551 all commands that react to the process mark should push
17552 the current process mark set onto the stack.
17555 gnus-article-hide-pgp
17556 Selv ville jeg nok ha valgt å slette den dersom teksten matcher
17558 "\\(This\s+\\)?[^ ]+ has been automatically signed by"
17560 og det er maks hundre tegn mellom match-end og ----linja. Men -det-
17561 er min type heuristikk og langt fra alles.
17564 `gnus-subscribe-sorted' -- insert new groups where they would have been
17565 sorted to if `gnus-group-sort-function' were run.
17568 gnus-(group,summary)-highlight should respect any `face' text props set
17572 use run-with-idle-timer for gnus-demon instead of the
17573 home-brewed stuff for better reliability.
17576 add a way to select which NoCeM type to apply -- spam, troll, etc.
17579 nndraft-request-group should tally autosave files.
17582 implement nntp-retry-on-break and nntp-command-timeout.
17585 gnus-article-highlight-limit that says when not to highlight (long)
17589 (nnoo-set SERVER VARIABLE VALUE)
17595 interrupitng agent fetching of articles should save articles.
17598 command to open a digest group, and copy all the articles there to the
17602 a variable to disable article body highlights if there's more than
17603 X characters in the body.
17606 handle 480/381 authinfo requests separately.
17609 include the texi/dir file in the distribution.
17612 format spec to "tab" to a position.
17615 Move all prompting to the new `M-n' default style.
17618 command to display all dormant articles.
17621 gnus-auto-select-next makeover -- list of things it should do.
17624 a score match type that adds scores matching on From if From has replied
17625 to something someone else has said.
17628 Read Netscape discussion groups:
17629 snews://secnews.netscape.com/netscape.communicator.unix
17632 One command to edit the original version if an article, and one to edit
17633 the displayed version.
17636 @kbd{T v} -- make all process-marked articles the children of the
17640 Switch from initial text to the new default text mechanism.
17643 How about making it possible to expire local articles? Will it be
17644 possible to make various constraints on when an article can be
17645 expired, e.g. (read), (age > 14 days), or the more interesting (read
17649 New limit command---limit to articles that have a certain string
17650 in the head or body.
17653 Allow breaking lengthy NNTP commands.
17656 gnus-article-highlight-limit, to disable highlighting in big articles.
17659 Editing an article should put the article to be edited
17660 in a special, unique buffer.
17663 A command to send a mail to the admin-address group param.
17666 A Date scoring type that will match if the article
17667 is less than a certain number of days old.
17670 New spec: %~(tab 56) to put point on column 56
17673 Allow Gnus Agent scoring to use normal score files.
17676 Rething the Agent active file thing. `M-g' doesn't update the active
17677 file, for instance.
17680 With dummy roots, `^' and then selecing the first article
17681 in any other dummy thread will make gnus highlight the
17682 dummy root instead of the first article.
17685 Solve the halting problem.
17694 @section The Manual
17698 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
17699 either @code{texi2dvi}
17701 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
17702 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
17704 to get what you hold in your hands now.
17706 The following conventions have been used:
17711 This is a @samp{string}
17714 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
17717 This is a @file{file}
17720 This is a @code{symbol}
17724 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
17728 (setq flargnoze "yes")
17731 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
17734 (setq flumphel 'yes)
17737 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
17738 ever get them confused.
17742 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
17743 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
17744 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
17745 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
17746 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
17747 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
17748 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
17756 @section Terminology
17758 @cindex terminology
17763 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
17764 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
17765 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
17766 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
17767 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
17771 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
17772 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
17773 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
17774 not posting, and replying is not following up.
17778 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
17782 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
17787 Gnus gets fed articles from a number of backends, both news and mail
17788 backends. Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this
17789 is all done by the backends.
17793 Gnus will always use one method (and backend) as the @dfn{native}, or
17794 default, way of getting news.
17798 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
17799 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary backends for getting
17804 Secondary backends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
17805 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
17809 A message that has been posted as news.
17812 @cindex mail message
17813 A message that has been mailed.
17817 A mail message or news article
17821 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
17826 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
17831 A line from the head of an article.
17835 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
17836 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
17840 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the backend for the headers of all
17841 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
17842 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
17843 normal @sc{head} format.
17847 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
17848 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
17849 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
17850 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
17851 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
17852 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
17854 @item killed groups
17855 @cindex killed groups
17856 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
17857 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
17859 @item zombie groups
17860 @cindex zombie groups
17861 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
17864 @cindex active file
17865 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
17866 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
17867 is rather large, as you might surmise.
17870 @cindex bogus groups
17871 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
17872 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
17873 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
17876 @cindex activating groups
17877 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
17878 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
17879 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
17883 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
17885 @item select method
17886 @cindex select method
17887 A structure that specifies the backend, the server and the virtual
17890 @item virtual server
17891 @cindex virtual server
17892 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
17893 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
17894 whole is a virtual server.
17898 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
17899 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
17902 @item ephemeral groups
17903 @cindex ephemeral groups
17904 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
17905 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
17906 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
17909 @cindex solid groups
17910 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
17911 group buffer are solid groups.
17913 @item sparse articles
17914 @cindex sparse articles
17915 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
17916 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
17920 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
17921 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
17925 @cindex thread root
17926 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
17927 articles in the thread.
17931 An article that has responses.
17935 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
17939 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
17940 specified by RFC1153.
17946 @node Customization
17947 @section Customization
17948 @cindex general customization
17950 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
17951 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
17952 for some quite common situations.
17955 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
17956 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
17957 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
17958 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
17962 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
17963 @subsection Slow/Expensive @sc{nntp} Connection
17965 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
17966 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
17967 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
17971 @item gnus-read-active-file
17972 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
17973 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
17974 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
17975 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
17976 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
17978 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
17979 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
17980 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
17981 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
17985 @node Slow Terminal Connection
17986 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
17988 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
17989 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
17990 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
17994 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
17995 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
17996 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
17997 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
17998 horizontal and vertical recentering.
18000 @item gnus-visible-headers
18001 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
18002 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
18003 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
18004 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
18006 @item gnus-article-display-hook
18007 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
18009 (setq gnus-article-display-hook
18010 '(gnus-article-hide-headers gnus-article-hide-signature
18011 gnus-article-hide-citation))
18014 @item gnus-use-full-window
18015 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
18016 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
18017 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
18018 want to read them anyway.
18020 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
18021 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
18024 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
18025 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
18026 lines, which might save some time.
18030 @node Little Disk Space
18031 @subsection Little Disk Space
18034 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
18035 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
18039 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
18040 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
18041 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
18042 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
18045 @item gnus-save-killed-list
18046 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
18047 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
18048 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
18049 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
18055 @subsection Slow Machine
18056 @cindex slow machine
18058 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
18059 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
18061 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
18062 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
18064 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
18065 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
18066 summary buffer faster.
18068 Set @code{gnus-article-display-hook} to @code{nil} to make article
18069 processing a bit faster.
18073 @node Troubleshooting
18074 @section Troubleshooting
18075 @cindex troubleshooting
18077 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
18085 Make sure your computer is switched on.
18088 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
18089 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
18093 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
18094 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
18095 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
18096 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
18099 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
18103 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
18104 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
18105 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
18106 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
18107 something like that.
18110 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
18113 @cindex reporting bugs
18115 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
18117 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
18118 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
18119 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
18120 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
18122 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
18123 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
18124 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
18125 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
18128 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
18129 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
18130 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
18131 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
18132 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
18133 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
18135 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
18136 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
18137 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
18140 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
18141 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
18143 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
18144 @cindex ding mailing list
18145 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@gnus.org}.
18146 Write to @samp{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
18150 @node A Programmers Guide to Gnus
18151 @section A Programmer@'s Guide to Gnus
18153 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
18154 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
18155 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
18156 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
18159 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
18160 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
18161 backends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
18162 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
18163 and general methods of operation.
18166 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
18167 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
18168 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
18169 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
18170 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
18171 * Group Info:: The group info format.
18172 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
18173 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
18174 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
18178 @node Gnus Utility Functions
18179 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
18180 @cindex Gnus utility functions
18181 @cindex utility functions
18183 @cindex internal variables
18185 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
18186 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
18187 Below is a list of the most common ones.
18191 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
18192 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
18193 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
18195 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
18196 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
18197 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
18199 @item gnus-group-real-name
18200 @findex gnus-group-real-name
18201 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
18204 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
18205 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
18206 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
18207 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
18209 @item gnus-get-info
18210 @findex gnus-get-info
18211 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
18213 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
18214 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
18215 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
18218 @item gnus-continuum-version
18219 @findex gnus-continuum-version
18220 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
18221 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
18224 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
18225 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
18226 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
18228 @item gnus-news-group-p
18229 @findex gnus-news-group-p
18230 Says whether @var{group} came from a news backend.
18232 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
18233 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
18234 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
18236 @item gnus-server-to-method
18237 @findex gnus-server-to-method
18238 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
18240 @item gnus-server-equal
18241 @findex gnus-server-equal
18242 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
18244 @item gnus-group-native-p
18245 @findex gnus-group-native-p
18246 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
18248 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
18249 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
18250 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
18252 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
18253 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
18254 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
18256 @item group-group-find-parameter
18257 @findex group-group-find-parameter
18258 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
18259 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
18261 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
18262 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
18263 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
18265 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
18266 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
18267 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
18269 @item gnus-check-backend-function
18270 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
18271 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the backend
18272 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
18275 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
18279 @item gnus-read-method
18280 @findex gnus-read-method
18281 Prompts the user for a select method.
18286 @node Backend Interface
18287 @subsection Backend Interface
18289 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
18290 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
18291 server is a @dfn{backend} and some @dfn{backend variables}. As examples
18292 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
18293 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
18294 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
18296 When Gnus asks for information from a backend---say @code{nntp}---on
18297 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
18298 function parameters. (If not, the backend should use the ``current''
18299 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
18300 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
18301 been opened, the function should fail.
18303 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
18304 name. Take this example:
18308 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
18309 (nntp-port-number 4324))
18312 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
18313 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
18315 The backends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
18316 The standard backends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
18317 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
18319 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
18320 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
18321 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
18323 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
18324 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
18325 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
18326 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
18327 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
18328 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
18331 Some backends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} backends, and
18332 some might be said not to be. The latter are backends that generally
18333 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
18334 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
18337 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary backend
18340 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
18343 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
18344 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
18345 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
18346 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
18347 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
18348 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
18352 @node Required Backend Functions
18353 @subsubsection Required Backend Functions
18357 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
18359 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
18360 @code{Message-ID}s. Current backends do not fully support either---only
18361 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most backends do not support
18362 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
18364 The result data should either be HEADs or NOV lines, and the result
18365 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
18366 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
18367 of HEADs and NOV lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
18369 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching "extra
18370 headers", in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
18371 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
18372 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
18373 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the backend finds it
18374 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
18375 number, do maximum fetches.
18377 Here's an example HEAD:
18380 221 1056 Article retrieved.
18381 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
18382 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
18383 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
18384 Subject: Re: Something very droll
18385 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
18386 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
18388 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
18389 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
18390 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
18394 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
18395 these in the data buffer.
18397 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
18401 head = error / valid-head
18402 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
18403 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
18404 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
18405 header = <text> eol
18408 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
18409 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
18413 nov-buffer = *nov-line
18414 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
18415 field = <text except TAB>
18418 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
18422 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
18424 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
18425 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
18427 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The backend
18428 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
18429 server. In fact, it should do so.
18431 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
18432 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
18435 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
18437 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
18438 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
18441 There should be no data returned.
18444 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
18446 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the backend
18447 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that backend
18448 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
18449 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
18451 There should be no data returned.
18454 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
18456 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
18457 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
18458 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
18459 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
18461 There should be no data returned.
18464 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
18466 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
18468 There should be no data returned.
18471 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
18473 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
18474 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
18475 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
18476 it would be nice if that were possible.
18478 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
18479 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
18480 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
18481 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
18482 into its article buffer.
18484 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
18485 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
18486 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
18487 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
18488 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
18489 on successful article retrieval.
18492 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
18494 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
18495 making @var{group} the current group.
18497 If @var{FAST}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
18500 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
18503 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
18506 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
18507 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
18508 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
18509 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
18510 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
18511 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
18512 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
18513 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader.
18516 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
18517 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
18518 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
18522 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
18524 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
18525 a no-op on most backends.
18527 There should be no data returned.
18530 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
18532 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
18535 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
18538 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
18539 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
18542 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
18543 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag.
18546 active-file = *active-line
18547 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
18549 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
18552 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
18553 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
18554 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
18557 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
18559 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
18560 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
18561 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
18562 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
18563 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
18564 clear if the posting could not be completed.
18566 There should be no result data from this function.
18571 @node Optional Backend Functions
18572 @subsubsection Optional Backend Functions
18576 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
18578 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
18579 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
18580 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
18582 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
18583 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
18584 former is in the same format as the data from
18585 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
18586 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
18589 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
18593 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
18595 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the backend for
18596 alterations. This comes in handy if the backend really carries all the
18597 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
18598 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
18599 should return the (altered) group info.
18601 There should be no result data from this function.
18604 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
18606 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
18607 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
18608 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
18609 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
18610 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
18611 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
18612 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
18613 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
18615 There should be no result data from this function.
18618 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
18620 If the user tries to set a mark that the backend doesn't like, this
18621 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
18622 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
18623 @var{mark}. If the backend doesn't care, it must return the original
18624 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
18626 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
18627 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
18628 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
18631 There should be no result data from this function.
18634 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
18636 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
18637 request that the backend check for incoming articles, in one way or
18638 another. A mail backend will typically read the spool file or query the
18639 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
18640 to be heeded---if the backend decides that it is too much work just
18641 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
18642 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
18644 There should be no result data from this function.
18647 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
18649 The result data from this function should be a description of
18653 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
18655 description = <text>
18658 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
18660 The result data from this function should be the description of all
18661 groups available on the server.
18664 description-buffer = *description-line
18668 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
18670 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
18671 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date
18672 format. The data should be in the active buffer format.
18675 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
18677 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
18679 There should be no return data.
18682 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
18684 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
18685 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
18686 numbers.) It is left up to the backend to decide how old articles
18687 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
18688 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
18691 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
18694 There should be no result data returned.
18697 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
18700 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
18701 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
18703 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
18704 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
18705 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
18706 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
18707 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
18708 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
18710 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
18711 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
18714 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
18715 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
18717 There should be no data returned.
18720 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
18722 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
18723 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
18724 this function in short order.
18726 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
18727 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
18729 There should be no data returned.
18732 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
18734 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
18735 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
18737 There should be no data returned.
18740 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
18742 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
18743 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
18744 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
18746 There should be no data returned.
18749 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
18751 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
18752 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
18754 There should be no data returned.
18759 @node Error Messaging
18760 @subsubsection Error Messaging
18762 @findex nnheader-report
18763 @findex nnheader-get-report
18764 The backends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
18765 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
18766 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the backend
18767 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
18768 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
18769 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
18772 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
18774 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
18777 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
18778 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
18779 recently reported message for the backend in question. This function
18780 takes one argument---the server symbol.
18782 Internally, these functions access @var{backend}@code{-status-string},
18783 so the @code{nnchoke} backend will have its error message stored in
18784 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
18787 @node Writing New Backends
18788 @subsubsection Writing New Backends
18790 Many backends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
18791 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
18792 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
18793 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
18794 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
18797 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
18798 backends when writing new backends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
18799 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
18801 All the backends declare their public variables and functions by using a
18802 package called @code{nnoo}.
18804 To inherit functions from other backends (and allow other backends to
18805 inherit functions from the current backend), you should use the
18811 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
18812 parameters. For instance:
18815 (nnoo-declare nndir
18819 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
18820 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
18823 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
18824 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
18825 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
18827 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
18828 variables in the parent backends to map the variable to when executing
18829 a function in those backends.
18832 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
18833 "Where nndir will look for groups."
18834 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
18837 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
18838 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
18839 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
18841 @item nnoo-define-basics
18842 This macro defines some common functions that almost all backends should
18846 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
18850 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
18851 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
18852 function as being public so that other backends can inherit it.
18854 @item nnoo-map-functions
18855 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current backend to
18856 functions from the parent backends.
18859 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
18860 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
18861 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
18864 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
18865 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
18866 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
18867 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
18870 This macro allows importing functions from backends. It should be the
18871 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
18872 haven't already been defined.
18878 nnmh-request-newgroups)
18882 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
18883 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
18884 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
18889 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} backend.
18892 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
18893 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
18897 (require 'nnheader)
18901 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
18903 (nnoo-declare nndir
18906 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
18907 "Where nndir will look for groups."
18908 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
18910 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
18911 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
18914 (defvoo nndir-current-group "" nil nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
18915 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
18916 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
18918 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
18919 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
18921 ;;; Interface functions.
18923 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
18925 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
18926 (setq nndir-directory
18927 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
18929 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
18930 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
18931 (push `(nndir-current-group
18932 ,(file-name-nondirectory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
18934 (push `(nndir-top-directory
18935 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
18937 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
18939 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
18940 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
18941 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
18942 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
18943 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
18947 nnmh-status-message
18949 nnmh-request-newgroups))
18955 @node Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
18956 @subsubsection Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
18958 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
18959 Having Gnus start using your new backend is rather easy---you just
18960 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
18961 enter the backend into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
18963 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the backend name and
18964 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
18969 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
18972 The abilities can be:
18976 This is a mailish backend---followups should (probably) go via mail.
18978 This is a newsish backend---followups should (probably) go via news.
18980 This backend supports both mail and news.
18982 This is neither a post nor mail backend---it's something completely
18985 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
18986 articles and groups.
18988 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
18989 true for almost all backends.
18990 @item prompt-address
18991 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
18992 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for backends like
18993 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
18997 @node Mail-like Backends
18998 @subsubsection Mail-like Backends
19000 One of the things that separate the mail backends from the rest of the
19001 backends is the heavy dependence by the mail backends on common
19002 functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the definition of
19003 @code{nnml-request-scan}:
19006 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
19007 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
19008 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
19011 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
19012 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
19015 This function takes four parameters.
19019 This should be a symbol to designate which backend is responsible for
19022 @item exit-function
19023 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
19025 @item temp-directory
19026 Where the temporary files should be stored.
19029 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
19030 performed for one group only.
19033 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{backend}@code{-save-mail} to
19034 save each article. @var{backend}@code{-active-number} will be called to
19035 find the article number assigned to this article.
19037 The function also uses the following variables:
19038 @var{backend}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
19039 this backend); and @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} and
19040 @var{backend}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
19041 @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
19045 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
19046 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
19050 @node Score File Syntax
19051 @subsection Score File Syntax
19053 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
19054 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
19055 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
19057 Here's a typical score file:
19061 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
19068 BNF definition of a score file:
19071 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
19072 element = rule / atom
19073 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
19074 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
19075 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
19076 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
19078 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
19079 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
19080 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
19081 date-header = "date"
19082 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
19083 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
19084 score = "nil" / <integer>
19085 date = "nil" / <natural number>
19086 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
19087 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
19088 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
19089 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
19090 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
19091 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
19092 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
19093 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
19094 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
19095 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
19096 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
19097 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
19098 exclude-files / read-only / touched
19099 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
19100 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
19101 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
19102 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
19103 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
19104 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
19105 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
19106 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
19107 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
19108 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
19109 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
19110 eval = "eval" space <form>
19111 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
19114 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
19117 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
19118 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
19119 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
19120 one looong line, then that's ok.
19122 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
19123 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
19127 @subsection Headers
19129 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
19130 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
19131 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
19132 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
19134 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
19135 RFC1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
19136 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
19137 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
19138 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
19139 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
19140 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
19142 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
19143 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
19144 @code{xref}. There are macros for accessing and setting these
19145 slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
19146 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
19148 The @code{xref} slot is really a @code{misc} slot. Any extra info will
19155 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
19156 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
19158 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
19159 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
19160 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
19161 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
19163 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
19167 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
19170 is transformed into
19173 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
19176 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
19177 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
19180 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
19183 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
19184 is slightly tricky:
19187 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
19193 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
19196 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
19202 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
19209 and is equal to the previous range.
19211 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
19212 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
19213 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
19217 range = simple-range / normal-range
19218 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
19219 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
19220 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
19221 number *[ " " contents ]
19224 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
19225 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
19226 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
19227 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
19228 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
19233 @subsection Group Info
19235 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
19236 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
19237 describes the group.
19239 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
19240 second is a more complex one:
19243 ("no.group" 5 (1 . 54324))
19245 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
19246 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
19248 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
19251 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
19252 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
19253 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
19254 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
19255 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
19256 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
19257 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
19258 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
19259 this section is about.
19261 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
19262 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
19263 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
19265 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
19268 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
19269 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
19270 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
19271 group = quote <string> quote
19272 ralevel = rank / level
19273 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
19274 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
19275 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
19277 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
19278 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
19279 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
19280 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
19283 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
19284 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
19287 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
19288 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
19291 @item gnus-info-group
19292 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
19293 @findex gnus-info-group
19294 @findex gnus-info-set-group
19295 Get/set the group name.
19297 @item gnus-info-rank
19298 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
19299 @findex gnus-info-rank
19300 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
19301 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
19303 @item gnus-info-level
19304 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
19305 @findex gnus-info-level
19306 @findex gnus-info-set-level
19307 Get/set the group level.
19309 @item gnus-info-score
19310 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
19311 @findex gnus-info-score
19312 @findex gnus-info-set-score
19313 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
19315 @item gnus-info-read
19316 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
19317 @findex gnus-info-read
19318 @findex gnus-info-set-read
19319 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
19321 @item gnus-info-marks
19322 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
19323 @findex gnus-info-marks
19324 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
19325 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
19327 @item gnus-info-method
19328 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
19329 @findex gnus-info-method
19330 @findex gnus-info-set-method
19331 Get/set the group select method.
19333 @item gnus-info-params
19334 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
19335 @findex gnus-info-params
19336 @findex gnus-info-set-params
19337 Get/set the group parameters.
19340 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
19341 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
19343 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
19344 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
19345 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
19346 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
19349 @node Extended Interactive
19350 @subsection Extended Interactive
19351 @cindex interactive
19352 @findex gnus-interactive
19354 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
19355 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
19356 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
19359 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
19360 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
19365 The best thing to do would have been to implement
19366 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
19367 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
19368 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
19369 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
19370 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
19371 @code{interactive}.
19373 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
19378 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
19379 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
19383 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
19384 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
19385 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
19388 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
19392 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
19396 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
19402 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
19403 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
19407 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
19408 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
19409 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
19411 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
19412 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
19413 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
19414 Gnus, that's very useful.
19416 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
19417 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
19418 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
19419 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
19420 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
19421 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
19422 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
19423 following function:
19426 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
19430 (,function ,@@args))
19434 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
19435 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
19436 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
19439 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
19440 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
19441 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
19443 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
19444 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
19445 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
19448 @node Various File Formats
19449 @subsection Various File Formats
19452 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
19453 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
19457 @node Active File Format
19458 @subsubsection Active File Format
19460 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
19461 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
19464 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
19467 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
19468 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
19469 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
19470 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
19471 no.general 1000 900 y
19474 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
19477 active = *group-line
19478 group-line = group space high-number space low-number space flag <NEWLINE>
19479 group = <non-white-space string>
19481 high-number = <non-negative integer>
19482 low-number = <positive integer>
19483 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
19486 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
19487 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
19490 @node Newsgroups File Format
19491 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
19493 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
19494 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
19495 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
19498 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
19499 Here's the definition:
19503 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
19504 group = <non-white-space string>
19506 description = <string>
19511 @node Emacs for Heathens
19512 @section Emacs for Heathens
19514 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
19515 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
19516 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{M-C-a}'', ``kill the
19517 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
19518 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
19519 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
19520 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
19524 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
19525 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
19530 @subsection Keystrokes
19534 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
19537 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
19540 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
19541 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
19542 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
19543 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
19544 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
19545 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
19547 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
19548 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
19549 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
19550 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
19551 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
19552 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
19553 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
19555 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
19556 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{M-C-m}
19557 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
19558 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
19559 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
19560 ``Press @kbd{M-C-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
19561 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
19563 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
19564 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
19565 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
19566 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
19567 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
19573 @subsection Emacs Lisp
19575 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
19576 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
19577 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
19578 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
19580 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
19581 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
19582 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
19583 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
19584 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
19585 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
19586 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
19589 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
19590 write the following:
19593 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
19596 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
19597 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
19598 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
19601 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
19602 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
19603 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
19604 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
19605 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
19607 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
19608 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
19609 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
19613 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
19617 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
19620 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
19621 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
19624 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
19627 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
19628 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
19631 @include gnus-faq.texi