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4 @settitle Semi-gnus 6.10.068 Manual
9 @c * Gnus: (gnus). The newsreader Gnus.
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265 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
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274 Copyright \copyright{} 1995,96,97,98,99 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
276 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
277 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
278 are preserved on all copies.
280 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
281 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the
282 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
283 permission notice identical to this one.
285 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
286 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
295 This file documents gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
297 Copyright (C) 1995,96,97,98,99 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
299 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
300 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
301 are preserved on all copies.
304 Permission is granted to process this file through Tex and print the
305 results, provided the printed document carries copying permission
306 notice identical to this one except for the removal of this paragraph
307 (this paragraph not being relevant to the printed manual).
310 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
311 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided also that the
312 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
313 permission notice identical to this one.
315 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
316 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
322 @title Semi-gnus 6.10.068 Manual
324 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
327 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
328 Copyright @copyright{} 1995,96,97,98,99 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
330 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
331 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
332 are preserved on all copies.
334 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
335 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the
336 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
337 permission notice identical to this one.
339 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
340 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
349 @top The gnus Newsreader
353 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using gnus. The news
354 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
355 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
358 Semi-gnus provides MIME features based on SEMI API. So Semi-gnus
359 supports your right to read strange messages including big images or
360 other various kinds of formats. Semi-gnus also supports
361 internationalization/localization and multiscript features based on MULE
362 API. So Semi-gnus does not discriminate various language communities.
363 Oh, if you are a Klingon, please wait Unicode Next Generation.
365 This manual corresponds to Semi-gnus 6.10.068.
376 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
377 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
379 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
380 being accused of plagiarism:
382 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
383 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
384 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you can
385 even read news with it!
387 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
388 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
389 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend gnus to make it behave
390 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
391 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
398 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
399 * The Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
400 * The Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
401 * The Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
402 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
403 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
404 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
405 * Various:: General purpose settings.
406 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
407 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
408 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
409 * Key Index:: Key Index.
413 @chapter Starting gnus
418 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting gnus
419 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
422 @findex gnus-other-frame
423 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
424 If you want to start gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
425 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
427 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
428 variables in your @file{~/.gnus} file. This file is similar to
429 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
431 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
432 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
435 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
436 * The First Time:: What does gnus do the first time you start it?
437 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
438 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one gnus active at a time.
439 * Fetching a Group:: Starting gnus just to read a group.
440 * New Groups:: What is gnus supposed to do with new groups?
441 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
442 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
443 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
444 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
445 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
449 @node Finding the News
450 @section Finding the News
453 @vindex gnus-select-method
455 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where gnus should look for
456 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
457 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
458 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
461 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
462 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
465 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
468 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
471 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
474 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
475 certainly be much faster.
477 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
479 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
480 If this variable is not set, gnus will take a look at the
481 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
482 gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
483 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
484 that fails as well, gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
486 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
487 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
488 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
489 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
491 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
492 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
493 You can also make gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
494 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
495 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), gnus will let you choose between the servers
496 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
497 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting. (Note that this
498 will set @code{gnus-nntp-server}, which means that if you then @kbd{M-x
499 gnus} later in the same Emacs session, Gnus will contact the same
502 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
504 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
505 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
506 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
507 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
508 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
509 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
511 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
513 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
514 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
515 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
516 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
517 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
518 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
521 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} backend to read your mail, you
522 would typically set this variable to
525 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
530 @section The First Time
531 @cindex first time usage
533 If no startup files exist, gnus will try to determine what groups should
534 be subscribed by default.
536 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
537 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, gnus
538 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
539 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
542 Since she hasn't, gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
543 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
544 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
546 You'll also be subscribed to the gnus documentation group, which should
547 help you with most common problems.
549 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, gnus will just
550 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
554 @node The Server is Down
555 @section The Server is Down
556 @cindex server errors
558 If the default server is down, gnus will understandably have some
559 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
560 the news groups, you may want to start gnus anyway.
562 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
563 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
564 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
565 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
566 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
567 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
568 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
570 @findex gnus-no-server
571 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
573 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
574 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
575 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start gnus. That might come in handy
576 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
577 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
578 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
583 @section Slave Gnusae
586 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one gnus at the
587 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
588 are using the two different gnusae to read from two different servers),
589 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
591 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
594 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the gnus
595 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
596 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
597 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
598 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
599 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
600 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
602 Anyways, you start one gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
603 however you do it). Each subsequent slave gnusae should be started with
604 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
605 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
606 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master gnus
607 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
608 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
609 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
611 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
612 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
615 @node Fetching a Group
616 @section Fetching a Group
617 @cindex fetching a group
619 @findex gnus-fetch-group
620 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
621 group and I don't care whether gnus has been started or not''. This is
622 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
623 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
624 It takes the group name as a parameter.
632 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
633 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
634 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
635 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
636 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
637 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
638 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
639 @code{always}, then gnus will query the backends for new groups even
640 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
643 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
644 * Subscription Methods:: What gnus should do with new groups.
645 * Filtering New Groups:: Making gnus ignore certain new groups.
649 @node Checking New Groups
650 @subsection Checking New Groups
652 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
653 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
654 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
655 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, gnus will ask the
656 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
657 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
658 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
659 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
660 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
661 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
663 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
664 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
665 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
666 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
667 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
668 work. I could write a function to make gnus guess whether the server
669 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
670 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
671 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
672 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
673 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
675 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, gnus will
676 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
677 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
678 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
679 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
680 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
683 @node Subscription Methods
684 @subsection Subscription Methods
686 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
687 What gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
688 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
690 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
691 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
693 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
697 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
698 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
699 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
700 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
701 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
703 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
704 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
705 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
706 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
708 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
709 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
710 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
712 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
713 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
714 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
715 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
716 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
717 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into its
718 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
719 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
720 up. Or something like that.
722 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
723 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
724 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that gnus will ask
725 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
726 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
728 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
729 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
734 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
735 A closely related variable is
736 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
737 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, gnus will ask you in a
738 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
739 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
742 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
743 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
744 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
745 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
748 @node Filtering New Groups
749 @subsection Filtering New Groups
751 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
752 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
753 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
756 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
759 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
760 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
761 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
762 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
763 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
764 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
765 subscribing these groups.
766 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
767 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
769 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
770 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
771 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
772 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
773 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
774 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
775 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
776 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
778 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
779 Yet another variable that meddles here is
780 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
781 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
782 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
783 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
784 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
785 that come from mail backends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
786 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, and @code{nnmh}) subscribed. If you
787 don't like that, just set this variable to @code{nil}.
789 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
790 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
793 @node Changing Servers
794 @section Changing Servers
795 @cindex changing servers
797 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
798 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
799 very flaky and you want to use another.
801 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
802 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
806 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
807 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
808 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
809 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
812 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
813 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
814 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
815 functions more than absolutely necessary.
817 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
818 @findex gnus-change-server
819 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
820 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
821 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
822 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
823 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
825 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
826 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
827 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
828 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
829 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
831 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
832 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
833 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
834 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
835 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
836 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
838 After changing servers, you @strong{must} move the cache hierarchy away,
839 since the cached articles will have wrong article numbers, which will
840 affect which articles Gnus thinks are read.
844 @section Startup Files
845 @cindex startup files
850 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
851 information is traditionally stored in this file.
853 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{GNUS}. In addition to
854 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
855 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
856 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
857 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{GNUS} would read whichever one of these
858 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
859 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
861 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
862 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
863 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
864 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
865 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
866 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
868 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
869 @vindex gnus-read-newsrc-file
870 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
871 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
872 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from gnus faster.
873 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
874 gnus. But hey, who would want to, right? Similarly, setting
875 @code{gnus-read-newsrc-file} to @code{nil} makes gnus ignore the
876 @file{.newsrc} file and any @file{.newsrc-SERVER} files, which is
877 convenient if you have a tendency to use Netscape once in a while.
879 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
880 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
881 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
882 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
883 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
884 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
885 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
886 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
887 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
888 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
889 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
890 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
892 @vindex gnus-startup-file
893 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
894 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
895 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
897 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
898 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
899 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
900 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
901 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
902 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
903 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
904 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
905 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
906 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
909 (defun turn-off-backup ()
910 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
912 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
913 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
916 @vindex gnus-init-file
917 When gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
918 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
919 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
920 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
921 @file{site-init} files with gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
922 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
923 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
924 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
925 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
934 Whenever you do something that changes the gnus data (reading articles,
935 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
936 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
937 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
938 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
941 If gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
942 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
945 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
946 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, gnus won't create and
947 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
949 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
950 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
951 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, gnus will dribble
952 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
953 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
954 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
956 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
957 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
958 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
961 @node The Active File
962 @section The Active File
964 @cindex ignored groups
966 When gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
967 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
968 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
970 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
971 Before examining the active file, gnus deletes all lines that match the
972 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
973 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make gnus
974 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
975 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
976 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
979 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
980 @c if you set it to anything else.
982 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
984 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
985 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent gnus from
986 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
988 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
989 you actually subscribe to.
991 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
992 variable to @code{nil} will probably make gnus slower, not faster. At
993 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow gnus down
994 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
996 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
997 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
998 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
999 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
1000 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
1001 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
1003 Some news servers (Leafnode and old versions of INN, for instance) do
1004 not support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group}. For these servers, @code{nil}
1005 is probably the most effficient value for this variable.
1007 If this variable is @code{nil}, gnus will ask for group info in total
1008 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
1009 @sc{nntp} server, gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
1010 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
1011 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
1012 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
1014 If you think that starting up Gnus takes too long, try all the three
1015 different values for this variable and see what works best for you.
1017 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
1018 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1020 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1021 secondary select methods.
1024 @node Startup Variables
1025 @section Startup Variables
1029 @item gnus-load-hook
1030 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1031 A hook run while gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1032 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1033 times you start gnus.
1035 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1036 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1037 A hook run after starting up gnus successfully.
1039 @item gnus-startup-hook
1040 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1041 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up gnus
1043 @item gnus-started-hook
1044 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1045 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up gnus
1048 @item gnus-setup-news-hook
1049 @vindex gnus-setup-news-hook
1050 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1051 generating the group buffer.
1053 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1054 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1055 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1056 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1057 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1058 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1059 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1060 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1062 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1063 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1064 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1065 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1066 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1067 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
1069 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1070 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1071 Message displayed by gnus when no groups are available.
1073 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1074 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1075 If non-@code{nil}, play the gnus jingle at startup.
1077 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1078 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1079 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1080 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1085 @node The Group Buffer
1086 @chapter The Group Buffer
1087 @cindex group buffer
1089 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1090 is the first buffer shown when gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1091 long as gnus is active.
1095 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1096 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group.ps,height=9cm}}
1097 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1098 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1099 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1100 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1101 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1102 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1108 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1109 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1110 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1111 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1112 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1113 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1114 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1115 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1116 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1117 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1118 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1119 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1120 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1121 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1122 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1123 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1124 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1128 @node Group Buffer Format
1129 @section Group Buffer Format
1132 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1133 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1134 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1138 @node Group Line Specification
1139 @subsection Group Line Specification
1140 @cindex group buffer format
1142 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1143 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1145 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1148 25: news.announce.newusers
1149 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1154 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1155 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1156 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1157 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1159 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1160 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1161 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1162 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1163 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1164 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1166 @samp{%M%S%5y: %(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1168 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1169 the colon after performing an operation. Nothing else is required---not
1170 even the group name. All displayed text is just window dressing, and is
1171 never examined by gnus. Gnus stores all real information it needs using
1174 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1175 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1176 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1178 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1183 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1186 Whether the group is subscribed.
1189 Level of subscribedness.
1192 Number of unread articles.
1195 Number of dormant articles.
1198 Number of ticked articles.
1201 Number of read articles.
1204 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1205 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1208 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1211 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1220 Newsgroup description.
1223 @samp{m} if moderated.
1226 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1235 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1239 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1242 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1243 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1244 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1245 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1246 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.emacs.gnus}.
1249 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1251 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1255 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1259 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1260 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1261 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1262 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1263 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1264 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1269 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1270 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1271 group, or a bogus native group.
1274 @node Group Modeline Specification
1275 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1276 @cindex group modeline
1278 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1279 The mode line can be changed by setting
1280 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1281 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1285 The native news server.
1287 The native select method.
1291 @node Group Highlighting
1292 @subsection Group Highlighting
1293 @cindex highlighting
1294 @cindex group highlighting
1296 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1297 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1298 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1299 that look like @var{(form . face)}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1300 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1302 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1306 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-1
1307 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))))
1308 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-2
1309 '((t (:foreground "SeaGreen" :bold t))))
1310 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-3
1311 '((t (:foreground "SpringGreen" :bold t))))
1312 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-4
1313 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))))
1314 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-5
1315 '((t (:foreground "SkyBlue" :bold t))))
1317 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1318 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1319 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1320 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1321 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1322 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1325 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1327 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1334 The number of unread articles in the group.
1338 Whether the group is a mail group.
1340 The level of the group.
1342 The score of the group.
1344 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1346 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1347 MIN-NUMBER plus one.
1349 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1350 topic being inserted.
1353 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1354 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal gnus
1355 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1357 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1358 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1359 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1360 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1361 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1364 @node Group Maneuvering
1365 @section Group Maneuvering
1366 @cindex group movement
1368 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1369 expected, hopefully.
1375 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1376 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1377 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1383 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1384 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1385 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1389 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1390 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
1394 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
1395 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
1399 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
1400 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
1401 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
1405 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
1406 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
1407 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
1410 Three commands for jumping to groups:
1416 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
1417 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
1418 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
1423 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
1424 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
1425 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
1429 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
1430 Jump to the first group with unread articles
1431 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
1434 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
1435 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
1436 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
1437 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
1441 @node Selecting a Group
1442 @section Selecting a Group
1443 @cindex group selection
1448 @kindex SPACE (Group)
1449 @findex gnus-group-read-group
1450 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
1451 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
1452 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
1453 this command, gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
1454 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
1455 determines the number of articles gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
1456 positive, gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
1457 negative, gnus fetches the @var{abs(N)} oldest articles.
1461 @findex gnus-group-select-group
1462 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
1463 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
1464 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
1465 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
1469 @kindex M-RET (Group)
1470 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
1471 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
1472 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
1473 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
1474 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
1475 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
1476 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
1477 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
1478 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
1481 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
1482 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
1483 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
1484 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
1485 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
1488 @kindex M-C-RET (Group)
1489 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
1490 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
1491 doing any processing of its contents
1492 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
1493 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
1494 manner will have no permanent effects.
1498 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
1499 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what gnus should consider
1500 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
1501 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, gnus will query the user
1502 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
1503 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
1504 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
1505 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
1508 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
1509 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
1510 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} control whether any articles are selected
1511 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
1516 Don't select any articles when entering the group. Just display the
1517 full summary buffer.
1520 Select the first unread article when entering the group.
1523 Select the highest scored article in the group when entering the
1528 This variable can also be a function. In that case, that function will
1529 be called to place point on a subject line, and/or select some article.
1530 Useful functions include:
1533 @item gnus-summary-first-unread-subject
1534 Place point on the subject line of the first unread article, but
1535 don't select the article.
1537 @item gnus-summary-first-unread-article
1538 Select the first unread article.
1540 @item gnus-summary-best-unread-article
1541 Select the highest-scored unread article.
1545 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
1546 binary group with Huge articles) you can set this variable to @code{nil}
1547 in @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
1551 @node Subscription Commands
1552 @section Subscription Commands
1553 @cindex subscription
1561 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
1562 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
1563 Toggle subscription to the current group
1564 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
1570 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
1571 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
1572 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
1573 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
1579 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
1580 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
1581 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
1587 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
1588 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
1591 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
1592 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
1593 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
1594 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
1595 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
1601 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
1602 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
1606 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
1607 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
1610 @kindex S C-k (Group)
1611 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
1612 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
1613 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
1614 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
1615 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
1616 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
1617 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
1618 @file{.newsrc} file.
1622 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1632 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
1633 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
1634 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
1635 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
1636 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
1637 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
1642 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
1643 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
1644 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
1648 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
1649 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
1650 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
1652 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1653 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1654 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1655 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
1656 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
1657 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
1664 @section Group Levels
1668 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
1669 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
1670 can ask gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
1671 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
1672 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1674 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
1680 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
1681 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
1682 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
1683 prompted for a level.
1686 @vindex gnus-level-killed
1687 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
1688 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
1689 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
1690 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
1691 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
1692 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
1693 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
1694 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
1695 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
1696 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
1697 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
1698 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
1699 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
1700 reasons of efficiency.
1702 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
1703 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
1705 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
1706 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
1707 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
1709 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
1710 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
1711 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
1712 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
1713 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
1714 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
1715 relevant valid ranges.
1717 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
1718 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
1719 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
1720 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
1721 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
1722 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
1725 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
1726 All groups with a level less than or equal to
1727 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
1730 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
1731 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
1732 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
1733 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
1736 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
1737 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
1738 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
1739 use this level as the ``work'' level.
1741 @vindex gnus-activate-level
1742 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
1743 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
1744 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
1745 to 5. The default is 6.
1749 @section Group Score
1754 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
1755 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
1756 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
1759 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can have Gnus assign a score
1760 to each group through the mechanism described below. You can then sort
1761 the group buffer based on this score. Alternatively, you can sort on
1762 score and then level. (Taken together, the level and the score is
1763 called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group that is on level 4 and has
1764 a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group on level 5 that has a score
1765 of 300. (The level is the most significant part and the score is the
1766 least significant part.))
1768 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
1769 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
1770 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
1771 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
1772 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
1773 action after each summary exit, you can add
1774 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
1775 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
1776 slow things down somewhat.
1779 @node Marking Groups
1780 @section Marking Groups
1781 @cindex marking groups
1783 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
1784 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
1785 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
1786 bidding on those groups.
1788 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
1789 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
1790 with the process mark and then execute the command.
1798 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
1799 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
1805 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
1806 Remove the mark from the current group
1807 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
1811 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
1812 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
1816 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
1817 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
1821 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
1822 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
1826 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
1827 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
1828 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
1831 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
1833 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
1834 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
1835 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
1836 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
1837 the command to be executed.
1840 @node Foreign Groups
1841 @section Foreign Groups
1842 @cindex foreign groups
1844 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
1845 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
1846 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
1847 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
1854 @findex gnus-group-make-group
1855 @cindex making groups
1856 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
1857 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
1858 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
1862 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
1863 @cindex renaming groups
1864 Rename the current group to something else
1865 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
1866 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
1872 @findex gnus-group-customize
1873 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
1877 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
1878 @cindex renaming groups
1879 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
1880 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
1884 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
1885 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
1886 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
1890 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
1891 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
1892 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
1896 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
1898 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
1899 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
1904 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
1905 Make the gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
1909 @cindex (ding) archive
1910 @cindex archive group
1911 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
1912 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
1913 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
1914 Make a gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
1915 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
1916 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
1917 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
1921 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
1923 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
1924 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
1925 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
1926 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
1930 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
1932 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
1933 @code{nneething} backend (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
1934 @xref{Anything Groups}.
1938 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
1939 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
1941 Make a group based on some file or other
1942 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
1943 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
1944 Currently supported types are @code{babyl}, @code{mbox}, @code{digest},
1945 @code{mmdf}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{clari-briefs},
1946 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{nsmail} and @code{forward}.
1947 If you run this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file
1948 type. @xref{Document Groups}.
1952 @vindex gnus-useful-groups
1953 @findex gnus-group-make-useful-group
1954 Create one of the groups mentioned in @code{gnus-useful-groups}
1955 (@code{gnus-group-make-useful-group}).
1959 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
1964 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
1965 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
1966 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
1967 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
1968 include @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
1969 @xref{Web Searches}.
1971 If you use the @code{dejanews} search engine, you can limit the search
1972 to a particular group by using a match string like
1973 @samp{~g alt.sysadmin.recovery shaving}.
1976 @kindex G DEL (Group)
1977 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
1978 This function will delete the current group
1979 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
1980 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
1981 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
1982 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
1983 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
1987 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
1988 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
1989 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
1993 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
1994 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
1995 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
1998 @xref{Select Methods}, for more information on the various select
2001 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
2002 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
2003 gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
2004 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
2005 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
2006 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
2010 @node Group Parameters
2011 @section Group Parameters
2012 @cindex group parameters
2014 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
2015 Here's an example group parameter list:
2018 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2022 We see that each element consists of a "dotted pair"---the thing before
2023 the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value. All the
2024 parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs, which are
2025 not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
2027 The following group parameters can be used:
2032 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
2035 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
2038 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
2039 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
2040 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
2041 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
2042 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
2044 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
2045 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
2046 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
2047 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
2048 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
2049 list address instead.
2053 Address used when doing a @kbd{a} in that group.
2056 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
2059 It is totally ignored
2060 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2061 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2063 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2064 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2065 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2066 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2067 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2069 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2070 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2071 sending the message.
2075 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2076 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2077 of whether it has any unread articles.
2079 @item broken-reply-to
2080 @cindex broken-reply-to
2081 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2082 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
2083 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
2084 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
2085 broken behavior. So there!
2089 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2090 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2094 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, gnus
2095 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2096 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2101 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2102 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group. If
2103 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2104 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2105 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2106 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2107 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
2111 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2112 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2113 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2116 @cindex total-expire
2117 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2118 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2119 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2120 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2125 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2126 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(expiry-wait
2127 . 10)}, this value will override any @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and
2128 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} when expiring expirable messages.
2129 The value can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or
2130 the symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2133 @cindex score file group parameter
2134 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2135 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2136 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2139 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2140 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2141 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2142 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2145 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2146 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2147 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2148 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2151 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2152 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2156 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2159 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2164 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")}
2165 are arbitrary comments on the group. They are currently ignored by
2166 gnus, but provide a place for you to store information on particular
2170 Elements that look like @code{(charset . iso-8859-1)} will make
2171 @code{iso-8859-1} the default charset; that is, the charset that will be
2172 used for all articles that do not specify a charset.
2174 @item @var{(variable form)}
2175 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2176 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2177 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2178 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2179 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2180 @code{eval}ed there.
2182 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2183 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2184 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2185 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2186 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2189 You can store additional posting style information for this group only
2190 here (@pxref{Posting Styles}). The format is that of an entry in the
2191 @code{gnus-posting-styles} alist, except that there's no regexp matching
2192 the group name (of course). Style elements in this group parameter will
2193 take precedence over the ones found in @code{gnus-posting-styles}.
2195 For instance, if you want a funky name and signature in this group only,
2196 instead of hacking @code{gnus-posting-styles}, you could put something
2197 like this in the group parameters:
2202 (signature "Funky Signature"))
2207 Use the @kbd{G p} command to edit group parameters of a group. You
2208 might also be interested in reading about topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
2212 @node Listing Groups
2213 @section Listing Groups
2214 @cindex group listing
2216 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
2224 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
2225 List all groups that have unread articles
2226 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
2227 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
2228 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
2229 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
2236 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
2237 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
2238 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
2239 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
2240 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
2241 unsubscribed groups).
2245 @findex gnus-group-list-level
2246 List all unread groups on a specific level
2247 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
2248 with no unread articles.
2252 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
2253 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
2254 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
2255 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
2260 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
2261 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
2265 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
2266 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
2267 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
2271 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
2272 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
2276 @findex gnus-group-list-active
2277 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
2278 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
2279 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
2280 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
2281 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
2282 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
2283 Take the output with some grains of salt.
2287 @findex gnus-group-apropos
2288 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
2289 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
2293 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
2294 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
2295 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
2299 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2300 @cindex visible group parameter
2301 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
2302 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
2303 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
2304 get the same effect.
2306 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
2307 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
2308 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
2309 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
2310 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
2313 @node Sorting Groups
2314 @section Sorting Groups
2315 @cindex sorting groups
2317 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
2318 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
2319 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
2320 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
2321 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
2322 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
2327 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2328 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2329 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
2331 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2332 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2333 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
2335 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
2336 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
2337 Sort by group level.
2339 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
2340 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
2341 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
2343 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2344 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2345 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
2346 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
2348 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2349 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2350 Sort by number of unread articles.
2352 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
2353 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
2354 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
2359 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
2360 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
2364 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
2365 some sorting criteria:
2369 @kindex G S a (Group)
2370 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2371 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
2372 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2375 @kindex G S u (Group)
2376 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
2377 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
2378 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2381 @kindex G S l (Group)
2382 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
2383 Sort the group buffer by group level
2384 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
2387 @kindex G S v (Group)
2388 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
2389 Sort the group buffer by group score
2390 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2393 @kindex G S r (Group)
2394 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
2395 Sort the group buffer by group rank
2396 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2399 @kindex G S m (Group)
2400 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
2401 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by backend name
2402 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
2406 All the commands below obeys the process/prefix convention
2407 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2409 When given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), all these
2410 commands will sort in reverse order.
2412 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
2416 @kindex G P a (Group)
2417 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
2418 Sort the groups alphabetically by group name
2419 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
2422 @kindex G P u (Group)
2423 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
2424 Sort the groups by the number of unread articles
2425 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
2428 @kindex G P l (Group)
2429 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
2430 Sort the groups by group level
2431 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
2434 @kindex G P v (Group)
2435 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
2436 Sort the groups by group score
2437 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2440 @kindex G P r (Group)
2441 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
2442 Sort the groups by group rank
2443 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2446 @kindex G P m (Group)
2447 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
2448 Sort the groups alphabetically by backend name
2449 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
2455 @node Group Maintenance
2456 @section Group Maintenance
2457 @cindex bogus groups
2462 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
2463 Find bogus groups and delete them
2464 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
2468 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
2469 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
2470 With 1 @kbd{C-u}, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
2471 for new groups. With 2 @kbd{C-u}'s, use most complete method possible
2472 to query the server for new groups, and subscribe the new groups as
2476 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
2477 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
2478 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
2479 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}).
2482 @kindex C-c M-C-x (Group)
2483 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
2484 Run all articles in all groups through the expiry process
2485 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
2490 @node Browse Foreign Server
2491 @section Browse Foreign Server
2492 @cindex foreign servers
2493 @cindex browsing servers
2498 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
2499 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
2500 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
2501 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
2504 @findex gnus-browse-mode
2505 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
2506 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
2507 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
2509 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
2514 @findex gnus-group-next-group
2515 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
2519 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
2520 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
2523 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
2524 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
2525 Enter the current group and display the first article
2526 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
2529 @kindex RET (Browse)
2530 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
2531 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
2535 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
2536 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
2537 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2543 @findex gnus-browse-exit
2544 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
2548 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
2549 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
2550 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
2555 @section Exiting gnus
2556 @cindex exiting gnus
2558 Yes, gnus is ex(c)iting.
2563 @findex gnus-group-suspend
2564 Suspend gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit gnus,
2565 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
2566 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
2570 @findex gnus-group-exit
2571 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
2572 Quit gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
2576 @findex gnus-group-quit
2577 Quit gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
2578 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
2581 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
2582 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
2583 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend gnus and
2584 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit gnus, while
2585 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
2590 If you wish to completely unload gnus and all its adherents, you can use
2591 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
2592 trying to customize meta-variables.
2597 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
2598 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
2599 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
2605 @section Group Topics
2608 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
2609 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
2610 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
2611 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
2612 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
2613 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
2617 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
2618 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group-topic.ps,height=9cm}}
2629 2: alt.religion.emacs
2632 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2634 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2635 13: comp.sources.unix
2638 @findex gnus-topic-mode
2640 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
2641 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
2642 is a toggling command.)
2644 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
2645 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and now
2646 press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
2647 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
2650 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
2651 the hook for the group mode:
2654 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
2658 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
2659 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
2660 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
2661 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
2662 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
2666 @node Topic Variables
2667 @subsection Topic Variables
2668 @cindex topic variables
2670 Now, if you select a topic, it will fold/unfold that topic, which is
2671 really neat, I think.
2673 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
2674 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
2675 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
2688 Number of groups in the topic.
2690 Number of unread articles in the topic.
2692 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
2695 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
2696 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
2697 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
2700 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
2701 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
2703 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
2704 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
2705 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
2708 @node Topic Commands
2709 @subsection Topic Commands
2710 @cindex topic commands
2712 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
2713 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
2714 definitions slightly.
2720 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
2721 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
2722 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
2726 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
2727 Move the current group to some other topic
2728 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
2729 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2733 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
2734 Copy the current group to some other topic
2735 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
2736 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2740 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
2741 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
2742 This command is mainly useful if you have the same group in several
2743 topics and wish to remove it from one of the topics. You may also
2744 remove a group from all topics, but in that case, Gnus will add it to
2745 the root topic the next time you start Gnus. In fact, all new groups
2746 (which, naturally, don't belong to any topic) will show up in the root
2749 This command uses the process/prefix convention
2750 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2754 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
2755 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
2756 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
2760 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
2761 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
2762 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
2766 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
2767 Toggle hiding empty topics
2768 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
2772 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
2773 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
2774 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
2777 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
2778 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
2779 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
2780 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
2784 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
2786 @findex gnus-topic-indent
2787 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
2788 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
2789 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
2792 @kindex M-TAB (Topic)
2793 @findex gnus-topic-unindent
2794 ``Un-indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
2795 parent of its current parent (@code{gnus-topic-unindent}).
2799 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
2801 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
2802 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
2803 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
2804 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
2805 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
2806 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
2809 @kindex C-c C-x (Topic)
2810 @findex gnus-topic-expire-articles
2811 Run all expirable articles in the current group or topic through the expiry
2812 process (if any) (@code{gnus-topic-expire-articles}).
2816 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
2817 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
2818 topic will be removed along with the topic.
2822 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
2823 Yank the previously killed group or topic
2824 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
2829 @findex gnus-topic-rename
2830 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
2833 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
2834 @findex gnus-topic-delete
2835 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
2839 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
2840 List all groups that gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
2841 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
2845 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
2846 @cindex group parameters
2847 @cindex topic parameters
2849 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
2850 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
2856 @subsection Topic Sorting
2857 @cindex topic sorting
2859 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
2865 @kindex T S a (Topic)
2866 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2867 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
2868 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2871 @kindex T S u (Topic)
2872 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
2873 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
2874 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2877 @kindex T S l (Topic)
2878 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
2879 Sort the current topic by group level
2880 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
2883 @kindex T S v (Topic)
2884 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
2885 Sort the current topic by group score
2886 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2889 @kindex T S r (Topic)
2890 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
2891 Sort the current topic by group rank
2892 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2895 @kindex T S m (Topic)
2896 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
2897 Sort the current topic alphabetically by backend name
2898 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
2902 @xref{Sorting Groups}, for more information about group sorting.
2905 @node Topic Topology
2906 @subsection Topic Topology
2907 @cindex topic topology
2910 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
2916 2: alt.religion.emacs
2919 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2921 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2922 13: comp.sources.unix
2925 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
2926 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
2927 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
2932 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
2933 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
2937 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
2938 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
2939 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
2940 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
2941 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
2942 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
2944 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
2945 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
2946 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
2949 @node Topic Parameters
2950 @subsection Topic Parameters
2951 @cindex topic parameters
2953 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
2954 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
2955 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
2957 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
2958 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
2959 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
2960 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
2966 2: alt.religion.emacs
2970 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2972 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2973 13: comp.sources.unix
2977 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
2978 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
2979 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
2980 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
2981 @* @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
2982 . "religion.SCORE")}.
2984 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
2985 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
2986 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
2987 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
2988 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
2990 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
2991 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
2992 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
2993 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
2994 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
2995 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
2996 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
2997 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
3000 @node Misc Group Stuff
3001 @section Misc Group Stuff
3004 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
3005 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and gnus.
3006 * Group Timestamp:: Making gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
3007 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the gnus files.
3014 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
3015 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
3016 @xref{The Server Buffer}.
3020 @findex gnus-group-post-news
3021 Post an article to a group (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a
3022 prefix, the current group name will be used as the default.
3026 @findex gnus-group-mail
3027 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}).
3031 Variables for the group buffer:
3035 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
3036 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
3037 is called after the group buffer has been
3040 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
3041 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3042 is called after the group buffer is
3043 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
3046 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
3047 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3048 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
3049 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
3051 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3052 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3053 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
3054 whether they are empty or not.
3059 @node Scanning New Messages
3060 @subsection Scanning New Messages
3061 @cindex new messages
3062 @cindex scanning new news
3068 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
3069 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
3070 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
3071 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
3072 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
3073 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
3078 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
3079 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
3080 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
3081 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
3082 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
3083 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
3084 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
3086 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
3087 @cindex activating groups
3089 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
3090 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
3095 @findex gnus-group-restart
3096 Restart gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
3097 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
3098 gnus variables, and then starts gnus all over again.
3102 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
3103 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
3105 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
3106 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
3110 @node Group Information
3111 @subsection Group Information
3112 @cindex group information
3113 @cindex information on groups
3120 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
3121 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
3124 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
3125 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
3126 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
3127 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
3128 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
3129 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
3130 for fetching the file.
3132 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, gnus will attempt to go
3133 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
3137 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
3139 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
3140 @cindex describing groups
3141 @cindex group description
3142 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
3143 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
3144 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
3148 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
3149 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
3150 prefix, force gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
3157 @findex gnus-version
3158 Display current gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
3162 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
3163 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
3166 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
3169 @findex gnus-info-find-node
3170 Go to the gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
3174 @node Group Timestamp
3175 @subsection Group Timestamp
3177 @cindex group timestamps
3179 It can be convenient to let gnus keep track of when you last read a
3180 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
3181 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
3184 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
3187 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
3189 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
3190 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
3193 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3194 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
3197 This will result in lines looking like:
3200 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
3201 0: custom 19961002T012713
3204 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
3205 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
3209 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3210 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
3215 @subsection File Commands
3216 @cindex file commands
3222 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
3223 @vindex gnus-init-file
3224 @cindex reading init file
3225 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
3226 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
3230 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
3231 @cindex saving .newsrc
3232 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
3233 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
3234 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
3237 @c @kindex Z (Group)
3238 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
3239 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
3244 @node The Summary Buffer
3245 @chapter The Summary Buffer
3246 @cindex summary buffer
3248 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
3249 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
3251 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
3252 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
3254 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
3257 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
3258 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
3259 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
3260 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
3261 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
3262 * Canceling and Superseding:: ``Whoops, I shouldn't have called him that.''
3263 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
3264 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
3265 * Threading:: How threads are made.
3266 * Sorting:: How articles and threads are sorted.
3267 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
3268 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
3269 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
3270 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
3271 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
3272 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
3273 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
3274 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
3275 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
3276 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
3277 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
3278 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
3279 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
3280 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
3281 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
3282 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
3283 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer.
3284 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
3285 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
3289 @node Summary Buffer Format
3290 @section Summary Buffer Format
3291 @cindex summary buffer format
3295 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
3296 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary.ps,width=7.5cm}}
3297 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-article.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
3303 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
3304 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
3305 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
3306 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
3309 @findex mail-extract-address-components
3310 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
3311 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
3312 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
3313 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
3314 @code{From} header. Three pre-defined functions exist:
3315 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
3316 fast, and too simplistic solution;
3317 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works nicely, but is
3318 slower; and @code{std11-extract-address-components}, which works very
3319 nicely, but is slower. The default function will return the wrong
3320 answer in 5% of the cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the
3321 other function instead:
3324 (setq gnus-extract-address-components
3325 'mail-extract-address-components)
3328 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
3329 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
3330 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
3331 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
3334 @node Summary Buffer Lines
3335 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
3337 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
3338 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
3339 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
3340 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
3341 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3343 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%) %s\n}.
3345 The following format specification characters are understood:
3353 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
3354 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
3355 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
3357 Full @code{From} header.
3359 The name (from the @code{From} header).
3361 The name, code @code{To} header or the @code{Newsgroups} header
3362 (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
3364 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
3365 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
3366 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
3367 may be more thorough.
3369 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
3372 Number of lines in the article.
3374 Number of characters in the article.
3376 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3378 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
3379 pushes everything after it off the screen).
3381 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
3382 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3384 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
3385 for adopted articles.
3387 One space for each thread level.
3389 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
3394 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
3395 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
3399 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
3401 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
3402 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
3403 default level. If the difference between
3404 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
3405 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
3413 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
3415 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
3421 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
3422 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
3424 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
3425 article has any children.
3431 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
3432 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
3433 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
3434 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
3435 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
3436 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
3439 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
3440 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, gnus will
3441 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
3442 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
3443 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
3444 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
3446 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
3447 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
3449 This restriction may disappear in later versions of gnus.
3452 @node To From Newsgroups
3453 @subsection To From Newsgroups
3457 In some groups (particularly in archive groups), the @code{From} header
3458 isn't very interesting, since all the articles there are written by
3459 you. To display the information in the @code{To} or @code{Newsgroups}
3460 headers instead, you need to decide three things: What information to
3461 gather; where to display it; and when to display it.
3465 @vindex gnus-extra-headers
3466 The reading of extra header information is controlled by the
3467 @code{gnus-extra-headers}. This is a list of header symbols. For
3471 (setq gnus-extra-headers
3472 '(To Newsgroups X-Newsreader))
3475 This will result in Gnus trying to obtain these three headers, and
3476 storing it in header structures for later easy retrieval.
3479 @findex gnus-extra-header
3480 The value of these extra headers can be accessed via the
3481 @code{gnus-extra-header} function. Here's a format line spec that will
3482 access the @code{X-Newsreader} header:
3485 "%~(form (gnus-extra-header 'X-Newsreader))@@"
3489 @vindex gnus-ignored-from-addresses
3490 The @code{gnus-ignored-from-addresses} variable says when the @samp{%f}
3491 summary line spec returns the @code{To}, @code{Newsreader} or
3492 @code{From} header. If this regexp matches the contents of the
3493 @code{From} header, the value of the @code{To} or @code{Newsreader}
3494 headers are used instead.
3498 @vindex nnmail-extra-headers
3499 A related variable is @code{nnmail-extra-headers}, which controls when
3500 to include extra headers when generating overview (@sc{nov}) files. If
3501 you have old overview files, you should regenerate them after changing
3504 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
3505 You also have to instruct Gnus to display the data by changing the
3506 @code{%n} spec to the @code{%f} spec in the
3507 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable.
3509 In summary, you'd typically do something like the following:
3512 (setq gnus-extra-headers
3514 (setq nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
3515 (setq gnus-summary-line-format
3516 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20f%]%) %s\n")
3517 (setq gnus-ignored-from-addresses
3521 Now, this is mostly useful for mail groups, where you have control over
3522 the @sc{nov} files that are created. However, if you can persuade your
3529 to the end of her @file{overview.fmt} file, then you can use that just
3530 as you would the extra headers from the mail groups.
3533 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
3534 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
3536 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
3537 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
3538 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
3539 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
3541 Here are the elements you can play with:
3547 Unprefixed group name.
3549 Current article number.
3551 Current article score.
3555 Number of unread articles in this group.
3557 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
3560 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
3561 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
3562 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
3563 and no unselected ones.
3565 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
3566 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
3568 Subject of the current article.
3570 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
3572 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
3574 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
3576 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
3578 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
3580 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
3584 @node Summary Highlighting
3585 @subsection Summary Highlighting
3589 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
3590 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
3591 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
3592 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
3593 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
3595 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
3596 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
3597 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
3598 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
3600 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
3601 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
3602 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
3603 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
3605 @item gnus-summary-highlight
3606 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
3607 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
3608 list where the elements are of the format @var{(FORM . FACE)}. If you
3609 would, for instance, like ticked articles to be italic and high-scored
3610 articles to be bold, you could set this variable to something like
3612 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
3613 ((> score default) . bold))
3615 As you may have guessed, if @var{FORM} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
3616 @var{FACE} will be applied to the line.
3620 @node Summary Maneuvering
3621 @section Summary Maneuvering
3622 @cindex summary movement
3624 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
3625 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
3627 None of these commands select articles.
3632 @kindex M-n (Summary)
3633 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
3634 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
3635 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
3636 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
3640 @kindex M-p (Summary)
3641 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
3642 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
3643 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
3644 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
3649 @kindex G j (Summary)
3650 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
3651 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
3652 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
3655 @kindex G g (Summary)
3656 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
3657 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
3658 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
3661 If gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
3662 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
3663 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
3664 to the group buffer.
3666 Variables related to summary movement:
3670 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
3671 @item gnus-auto-select-next
3672 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
3673 no more unread articles after the current one, gnus will offer to go to
3674 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
3675 empty, gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
3676 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, gnus will select the
3677 next group, no matter whether it has any unread articles or not. As a
3678 special case, if this variable is @code{quietly}, gnus will select the
3679 next group without asking for confirmation. If this variable is
3680 @code{almost-quietly}, the same will happen only if you are located on
3681 the last article in the group. Finally, if this variable is
3682 @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n} command will go to the next group
3683 without confirmation. Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
3685 @item gnus-auto-select-same
3686 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
3687 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
3688 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
3689 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
3690 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) If there are no more
3691 articles with the same subject, go to the first unread article.
3693 This variable is not particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
3695 @item gnus-summary-check-current
3696 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
3697 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
3698 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
3699 Instead, they will choose the current article.
3701 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
3702 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
3703 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
3704 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
3705 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
3706 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
3707 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
3708 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
3711 This variable can also be a number. In that case, center the window at
3712 the given number of lines from the top.
3717 @node Choosing Articles
3718 @section Choosing Articles
3719 @cindex selecting articles
3722 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
3723 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
3727 @node Choosing Commands
3728 @subsection Choosing Commands
3730 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
3731 and they all select and display an article.
3735 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
3736 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
3737 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
3738 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
3743 @kindex G n (Summary)
3744 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
3745 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
3746 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
3751 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
3752 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
3753 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
3758 @kindex G N (Summary)
3759 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
3760 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
3765 @kindex G P (Summary)
3766 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
3767 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
3770 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
3771 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
3772 Go to the next article with the same subject
3773 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
3776 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
3777 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
3778 Go to the previous article with the same subject
3779 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
3783 @kindex G f (Summary)
3785 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
3786 Go to the first unread article
3787 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
3791 @kindex G b (Summary)
3793 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
3794 Go to the article with the highest score
3795 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}).
3800 @kindex G l (Summary)
3801 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
3802 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
3805 @kindex G o (Summary)
3806 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
3808 @cindex article history
3809 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
3810 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
3811 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
3812 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
3813 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
3814 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
3818 @node Choosing Variables
3819 @subsection Choosing Variables
3821 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
3824 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
3825 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
3826 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
3827 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
3828 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
3829 the server and display it in the article buffer.
3831 @item gnus-select-article-hook
3832 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
3833 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
3834 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
3836 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
3837 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
3838 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
3839 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
3840 @findex gnus-unread-mark
3841 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
3842 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
3843 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
3844 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
3845 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
3846 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
3847 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
3848 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
3849 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
3854 @node Paging the Article
3855 @section Scrolling the Article
3856 @cindex article scrolling
3861 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
3862 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
3863 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
3864 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
3865 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
3868 @kindex DEL (Summary)
3869 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
3870 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
3873 @kindex RET (Summary)
3874 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
3875 Scroll the current article one line forward
3876 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
3879 @kindex M-RET (Summary)
3880 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-down
3881 Scroll the current article one line backward
3882 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-down}).
3886 @kindex A g (Summary)
3888 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
3889 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
3890 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
3891 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
3892 the way it came from the server.
3897 @kindex A < (Summary)
3898 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
3899 Scroll to the beginning of the article
3900 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
3905 @kindex A > (Summary)
3906 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
3907 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
3911 @kindex A s (Summary)
3913 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
3914 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
3915 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
3919 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
3920 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
3925 @node Reply Followup and Post
3926 @section Reply, Followup and Post
3929 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
3930 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
3934 @node Summary Mail Commands
3935 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
3937 @cindex composing mail
3939 Commands for composing a mail message:
3945 @kindex S r (Summary)
3947 @findex gnus-summary-reply
3948 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
3949 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
3950 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
3951 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
3956 @kindex S R (Summary)
3957 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
3958 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
3959 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
3960 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
3961 command uses the process/prefix convention.
3964 @kindex S w (Summary)
3965 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
3966 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
3967 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
3968 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
3969 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
3972 @kindex S W (Summary)
3973 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
3974 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
3975 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
3976 the process/prefix convention.
3979 @kindex S o m (Summary)
3980 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
3981 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
3982 Forward the current article to some other person
3983 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
3984 headers of the forwarded article.
3989 @kindex S m (Summary)
3990 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
3991 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
3992 Send a mail to some other person
3993 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}).
3996 @kindex S D b (Summary)
3997 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
3998 @cindex bouncing mail
3999 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
4000 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
4001 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
4002 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
4003 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
4004 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, gnus will try to fetch
4005 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
4006 very well fail, though.
4009 @kindex S D r (Summary)
4010 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
4011 Not to be confused with the previous command,
4012 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
4013 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
4014 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
4015 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
4016 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
4017 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
4018 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
4020 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
4021 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
4022 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
4023 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
4024 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muß sein!
4026 This command understands the process/prefix convention
4027 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4030 @kindex S O m (Summary)
4031 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
4032 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
4033 result using mail (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command
4034 uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4037 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
4038 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
4039 @cindex crossposting
4040 @cindex excessive crossposting
4041 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
4042 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
4044 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
4045 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
4046 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
4047 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
4048 command understands the process/prefix convention
4049 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
4053 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
4056 @node Summary Post Commands
4057 @subsection Summary Post Commands
4059 @cindex composing news
4061 Commands for posting a news article:
4067 @kindex S p (Summary)
4068 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
4069 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
4070 Post an article to the current group
4071 (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}).
4076 @kindex S f (Summary)
4077 @findex gnus-summary-followup
4078 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
4079 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
4083 @kindex S F (Summary)
4085 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
4086 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
4087 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
4088 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
4089 process/prefix convention.
4092 @kindex S n (Summary)
4093 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
4094 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
4095 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
4098 @kindex S N (Summary)
4099 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
4100 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
4101 message through mail and include the original message
4102 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
4103 the process/prefix convention.
4106 @kindex S o p (Summary)
4107 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
4108 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
4109 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
4110 headers of the forwarded article.
4113 @kindex S O p (Summary)
4114 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
4116 @cindex making digests
4117 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
4118 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
4119 process/prefix convention.
4122 @kindex S u (Summary)
4123 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
4124 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
4125 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
4126 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
4129 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
4132 @node Canceling and Superseding
4133 @section Canceling Articles
4134 @cindex canceling articles
4135 @cindex superseding articles
4137 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
4138 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
4140 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
4142 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
4144 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
4145 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
4146 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
4147 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
4148 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
4149 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4151 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
4152 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
4155 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
4156 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
4157 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
4159 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
4160 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
4161 your original article.
4163 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
4165 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
4166 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
4167 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
4170 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
4171 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
4172 have posted almost the same article twice.
4174 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
4175 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
4176 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
4177 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
4178 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
4179 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
4180 header by substituting one of those words for the word
4181 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
4182 you would do normally. The previous article will be
4183 canceled/superseded.
4185 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
4188 @node Marking Articles
4189 @section Marking Articles
4190 @cindex article marking
4191 @cindex article ticking
4194 There are several marks you can set on an article.
4196 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
4197 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
4198 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
4200 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
4203 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
4204 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
4205 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
4209 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
4213 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
4214 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
4215 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
4219 @node Unread Articles
4220 @subsection Unread Articles
4222 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
4227 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
4228 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
4230 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
4231 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
4232 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
4233 tick it. However, articles can be expired, so if you want to keep an
4234 article forever, you'll have to make it persistent (@pxref{Persistent
4238 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
4239 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
4241 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
4242 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
4243 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
4246 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
4247 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
4249 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
4254 @subsection Read Articles
4255 @cindex expirable mark
4257 All the following marks mark articles as read.
4262 @vindex gnus-del-mark
4263 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
4264 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
4267 @vindex gnus-read-mark
4268 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
4271 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
4272 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
4273 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
4276 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
4277 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
4280 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
4281 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
4284 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
4285 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
4288 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
4289 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
4292 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
4293 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
4296 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
4297 @sc{SOUP}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
4300 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
4301 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
4305 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
4306 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
4307 (@code{gnus-duplicated-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
4311 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
4312 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
4314 One more special mark, though:
4318 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
4319 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
4321 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
4322 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
4323 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
4324 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by gnus at
4330 @subsection Other Marks
4331 @cindex process mark
4334 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
4340 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
4341 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
4342 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
4343 in the article, and gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
4344 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}.
4347 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
4348 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
4349 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
4350 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
4353 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
4354 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
4355 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}.
4358 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
4359 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
4360 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
4361 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
4364 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
4365 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
4366 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
4367 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
4368 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
4371 @vindex gnus-process-mark
4372 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
4373 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
4374 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
4375 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
4376 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
4380 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
4381 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
4382 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
4384 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
4385 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
4386 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
4390 @subsection Setting Marks
4391 @cindex setting marks
4393 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
4398 @kindex M c (Summary)
4399 @kindex M-u (Summary)
4400 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
4401 @cindex mark as unread
4402 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
4403 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
4409 @kindex M t (Summary)
4410 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
4411 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
4412 @xref{Article Caching}.
4417 @kindex M ? (Summary)
4418 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
4419 Mark the current article as dormant
4420 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}.
4424 @kindex M d (Summary)
4426 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
4427 Mark the current article as read
4428 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
4432 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
4433 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
4434 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
4439 @kindex M k (Summary)
4440 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
4441 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
4442 and then select the next unread article
4443 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
4447 @kindex M K (Summary)
4448 @kindex C-k (Summary)
4449 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
4450 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
4451 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
4454 @kindex M C (Summary)
4455 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
4456 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
4457 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
4460 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
4461 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
4462 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
4463 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
4466 @kindex M H (Summary)
4467 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
4468 Catchup the current group to point
4469 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
4472 @kindex C-w (Summary)
4473 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
4474 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
4475 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
4478 @kindex M V k (Summary)
4479 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
4480 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
4481 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
4485 @kindex M e (Summary)
4487 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
4488 Mark the current article as expirable
4489 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
4492 @kindex M b (Summary)
4493 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
4494 Set a bookmark in the current article
4495 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
4498 @kindex M B (Summary)
4499 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
4500 Remove the bookmark from the current article
4501 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
4504 @kindex M V c (Summary)
4505 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
4506 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
4507 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
4510 @kindex M V u (Summary)
4511 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
4512 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
4513 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
4516 @kindex M V m (Summary)
4517 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
4518 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
4519 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
4520 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
4523 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
4524 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
4525 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
4526 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
4527 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
4528 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
4529 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
4530 The default is @code{t}.
4533 @node Generic Marking Commands
4534 @subsection Generic Marking Commands
4536 Some people would like the command that ticks an article (@kbd{!}) go to
4537 the next article. Others would like it to go to the next unread
4538 article. Yet others would like it to stay on the current article. And
4539 even though I haven't heard of anybody wanting it to go the the
4540 previous (unread) article, I'm sure there are people that want that as
4543 Multiply these five behaviours with five different marking commands, and
4544 you get a potentially complex set of variable to control what each
4547 To sidestep that mess, Gnus provides commands that do all these
4548 different things. They can be found on the @kbd{M M} map in the summary
4549 buffer. Type @kbd{M M C-h} to see them all---there are too many of them
4550 to list in this manual.
4552 While you can use these commands directly, most users would prefer
4553 altering the summary mode keymap. For instance, if you would like the
4554 @kbd{!} command to go the the next article instead of the next unread
4555 article, you could say something like:
4558 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'my-alter-summary-map)
4559 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
4560 (local-set-key "!" 'gnus-summary-put-mark-as-ticked-next))
4566 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
4567 (local-set-key "!" "MM!n"))
4571 @node Setting Process Marks
4572 @subsection Setting Process Marks
4573 @cindex setting process marks
4580 @kindex M P p (Summary)
4581 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
4582 Mark the current article with the process mark
4583 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
4584 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
4588 @kindex M P u (Summary)
4589 @kindex M-# (Summary)
4590 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
4591 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
4594 @kindex M P U (Summary)
4595 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
4596 Remove the process mark from all articles
4597 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
4600 @kindex M P i (Summary)
4601 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
4602 Invert the list of process marked articles
4603 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
4606 @kindex M P R (Summary)
4607 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
4608 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
4609 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
4612 @kindex M P r (Summary)
4613 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
4614 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
4617 @kindex M P t (Summary)
4618 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
4619 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
4620 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
4623 @kindex M P T (Summary)
4624 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
4625 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
4626 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
4629 @kindex M P v (Summary)
4630 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
4631 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
4632 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
4635 @kindex M P s (Summary)
4636 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
4637 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
4640 @kindex M P S (Summary)
4641 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
4642 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
4643 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
4646 @kindex M P a (Summary)
4647 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
4648 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
4651 @kindex M P b (Summary)
4652 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
4653 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
4654 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
4657 @kindex M P k (Summary)
4658 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
4659 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
4660 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
4663 @kindex M P y (Summary)
4664 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
4665 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
4666 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
4669 @kindex M P w (Summary)
4670 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
4671 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
4672 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
4681 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
4682 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
4683 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
4686 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
4687 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
4688 additional articles.
4694 @kindex / / (Summary)
4695 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
4696 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
4697 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}).
4700 @kindex / a (Summary)
4701 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
4702 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
4703 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}).
4706 @kindex / x (Summary)
4707 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-extra
4708 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match one of the ``extra''
4709 headers (@pxref{To From Newsgroups})
4710 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}).
4714 @kindex / u (Summary)
4716 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
4717 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
4718 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
4719 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
4720 dormant articles will also be excluded.
4723 @kindex / m (Summary)
4724 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
4725 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
4726 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
4729 @kindex / t (Summary)
4730 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
4731 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
4732 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}). If given a prefix, limit to
4733 articles younger than that number of days.
4736 @kindex / n (Summary)
4737 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
4738 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
4739 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
4740 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4743 @kindex / w (Summary)
4744 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
4745 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
4746 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
4750 @kindex / v (Summary)
4751 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
4752 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
4753 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
4757 @kindex M S (Summary)
4758 @kindex / E (Summary)
4759 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
4760 Include all expunged articles in the limit
4761 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
4764 @kindex / D (Summary)
4765 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
4766 Include all dormant articles in the limit
4767 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
4770 @kindex / * (Summary)
4771 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
4772 Include all cached articles in the limit
4773 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
4776 @kindex / d (Summary)
4777 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
4778 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
4779 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
4782 @kindex / M (Summary)
4783 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks
4784 Exclude all marked articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks}).
4787 @kindex / T (Summary)
4788 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
4789 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
4792 @kindex / c (Summary)
4793 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
4794 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
4795 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
4798 @kindex / C (Summary)
4799 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
4800 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
4801 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
4802 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
4810 @cindex article threading
4812 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
4813 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
4814 hierarchical fashion.
4816 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
4817 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
4818 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
4819 or simply missing. Weird news propagation excarcerbates the problem,
4820 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
4821 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
4822 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
4824 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
4828 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
4831 A tree-like article structure.
4834 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
4837 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
4838 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
4839 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
4840 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
4841 called loose threads.
4843 @item thread gathering
4844 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
4846 @item sparse threads
4847 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
4848 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
4854 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
4855 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
4859 @node Customizing Threading
4860 @subsection Customizing Threading
4861 @cindex customizing threading
4864 * Loose Threads:: How gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
4865 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
4866 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
4867 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
4872 @subsubsection Loose Threads
4875 @cindex loose threads
4878 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
4879 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
4880 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
4881 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
4882 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
4883 read or killed the root in a previous session.
4885 When there is no real root of a thread, gnus will have to fudge
4886 something. This variable says what fudging method gnus should use.
4887 There are four possible values:
4891 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
4892 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-adopt.ps,width=7.5cm}}
4893 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-empty.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4894 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-none.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4895 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-dummy.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4900 @cindex adopting articles
4905 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
4906 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
4907 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
4908 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
4911 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
4912 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
4913 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
4914 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
4915 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
4916 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
4917 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
4920 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
4921 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
4922 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
4926 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
4927 display them after one another.
4930 Don't gather loose threads.
4933 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
4934 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
4935 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
4936 variable is @code{nil}, gnus requires an exact match between the
4937 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
4938 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
4939 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
4940 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
4941 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
4942 variable to a really low number, you'll find that gnus will gather
4943 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
4945 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
4946 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, gnus will
4947 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
4950 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
4951 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
4952 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
4953 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
4954 simplification is used.
4956 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4957 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4958 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
4959 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
4961 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
4963 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4969 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
4970 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
4971 "answer" "reference" "announce"
4972 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
4977 (mapconcat 'identity
4978 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
4980 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
4983 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
4986 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
4987 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
4988 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
4989 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
4990 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
4991 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
4993 Useful functions to put in this list include:
4996 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
4997 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
4998 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
5000 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
5001 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
5004 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
5005 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
5006 Remove excessive whitespace.
5009 You may also write your own functions, of course.
5012 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
5013 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
5014 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
5015 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
5016 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
5017 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
5018 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
5019 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
5021 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5022 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5023 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
5024 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
5025 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
5026 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
5027 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
5028 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
5029 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
5033 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
5034 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
5035 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
5036 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
5038 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
5039 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
5040 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
5043 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
5047 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5048 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
5054 @node Filling In Threads
5055 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
5058 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
5059 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
5060 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
5061 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you
5062 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
5063 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
5064 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
5065 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
5066 fetching old headers only works if the backend you are using carries
5067 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and
5068 @code{nnml}. Also remember that if the root of the thread has been
5069 expired by the server, there's not much gnus can do about that.
5071 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
5072 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
5073 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
5075 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
5076 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
5077 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
5078 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
5079 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
5080 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
5081 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where gnus guesses that an article
5082 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
5083 lines. If you select a gap, gnus will try to fetch the article in
5084 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, gnus will display all these
5085 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
5086 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, gnus won't cut
5087 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
5088 @code{nil} by default.
5093 @node More Threading
5094 @subsubsection More Threading
5097 @item gnus-show-threads
5098 @vindex gnus-show-threads
5099 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
5100 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
5101 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
5102 slower and more awkward.
5104 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
5105 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
5106 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
5109 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
5110 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
5111 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
5112 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
5113 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
5114 threads are expunged.
5116 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
5117 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
5118 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
5121 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
5122 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
5123 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
5124 this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subject change is ignored. If it
5125 is @code{nil}, which is the default, a change in the subject will result
5128 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
5129 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
5130 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
5136 @node Low-Level Threading
5137 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
5141 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
5142 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
5143 Hook run before parsing any headers. The default value is
5144 @code{(gnus-set-summary-default-charset)}, which sets up local value of
5145 @code{default-mime-charset} in summary buffer based on variable
5146 @code{gnus-newsgroup-default-charset-alist}.
5148 @item gnus-alter-header-function
5149 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
5150 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
5151 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
5152 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
5153 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
5154 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
5155 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
5156 meaningful. Here's one example:
5159 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
5161 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
5162 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
5164 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
5166 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
5173 @node Thread Commands
5174 @subsection Thread Commands
5175 @cindex thread commands
5181 @kindex T k (Summary)
5182 @kindex M-C-k (Summary)
5183 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
5184 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
5185 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
5186 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
5191 @kindex T l (Summary)
5192 @kindex M-C-l (Summary)
5193 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
5194 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
5195 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
5198 @kindex T i (Summary)
5199 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
5200 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
5201 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
5204 @kindex T # (Summary)
5205 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
5206 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
5207 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
5210 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
5211 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
5212 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
5213 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
5216 @kindex T T (Summary)
5217 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
5218 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
5221 @kindex T s (Summary)
5222 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
5223 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
5224 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
5227 @kindex T h (Summary)
5228 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
5229 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
5232 @kindex T S (Summary)
5233 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
5234 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
5237 @kindex T H (Summary)
5238 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
5239 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
5242 @kindex T t (Summary)
5243 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
5244 Re-thread the current article's thread
5245 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
5246 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
5249 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
5250 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
5251 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
5252 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
5256 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
5257 understand the numeric prefix.
5262 @kindex T n (Summary)
5263 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
5264 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
5267 @kindex T p (Summary)
5268 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
5269 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
5272 @kindex T d (Summary)
5273 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
5274 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
5277 @kindex T u (Summary)
5278 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
5279 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
5282 @kindex T o (Summary)
5283 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
5284 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
5287 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
5288 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
5289 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
5290 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
5291 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
5292 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
5293 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
5294 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
5295 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
5296 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
5297 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
5298 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
5305 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
5306 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
5307 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
5308 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
5309 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
5310 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
5311 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
5312 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
5313 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which can be either a single
5314 function, a list of functions, or a list containing functions and
5315 @code{(not some-function)} elements.
5317 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
5318 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
5319 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
5320 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score}, and
5321 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
5323 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
5324 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
5325 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread.
5327 If you use more than one function, the primary sort key should be the
5328 last function in the list. You should probably always include
5329 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
5330 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
5331 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
5332 ascending article order.
5334 If you would like to sort by reverse score, then by subject, and finally
5335 by number, you could do something like:
5338 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
5339 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
5340 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
5341 (not gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score)))
5344 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
5345 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
5346 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
5347 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
5348 which the articles arrived.
5350 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
5354 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
5356 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
5357 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
5360 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
5361 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
5362 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
5363 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
5366 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
5367 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
5368 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
5369 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
5370 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
5371 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
5372 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or other,
5373 you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions} variable.
5374 It is very similar to the @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that
5375 it uses slightly different functions for article comparison. Available
5376 sorting predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
5377 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject},
5378 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date}, and @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
5380 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
5384 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
5385 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
5386 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
5391 @node Asynchronous Fetching
5392 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
5393 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
5394 @cindex article pre-fetch
5397 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
5398 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
5399 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
5400 article appears. Why can't gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
5401 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
5403 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
5404 article fetching, especially the way gnus does it.
5406 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
5407 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
5408 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
5409 article 3, but since gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
5410 connection is blocked.
5412 To avoid these situations, gnus will open two (count 'em two)
5413 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
5414 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
5415 extra connection takes some time, so gnus startup will be slower.
5417 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
5418 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
5419 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
5420 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
5423 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
5426 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
5427 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
5428 happen automatically.
5430 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
5431 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
5432 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
5433 that when you read an article in the group, the backend will pre-fetch
5434 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the backend will
5435 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
5436 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
5438 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
5439 @findex gnus-async-read-p
5440 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
5441 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This function should
5442 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
5443 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
5444 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
5445 data structure as the only parameter.
5447 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter than 100 lines, you could say something like:
5450 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
5451 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
5452 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
5453 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
5456 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
5459 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
5460 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down gnus too much.
5461 It's probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
5463 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
5464 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
5465 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
5466 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
5470 Remove articles when they are read.
5473 Remove articles when exiting the group.
5476 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
5478 @c @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
5479 @c If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
5480 @c from the next group.
5483 @node Article Caching
5484 @section Article Caching
5485 @cindex article caching
5488 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
5489 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
5490 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
5491 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
5492 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
5494 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
5496 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
5497 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
5498 @vindex gnus-use-cache
5499 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
5500 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
5501 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
5502 cache is flat or hierarchal is controlled by the
5503 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
5505 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
5506 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
5507 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
5508 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
5509 as dormant, and don't worry.
5511 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
5513 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
5514 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
5515 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
5516 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
5517 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
5518 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
5519 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
5520 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
5521 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
5522 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
5524 @findex gnus-jog-cache
5525 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
5526 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
5527 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
5528 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
5529 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
5530 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
5531 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
5532 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
5533 not then be downloaded by this command.
5535 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
5536 @vindex gnus-cacheable-groups
5537 It is likely that you do not want caching on all groups. For instance,
5538 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
5539 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
5540 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space.
5542 To limit the caching, you could set @code{gnus-cacheable-groups} to a
5543 regexp of groups to cache, @samp{^nntp} for instance, or set the
5544 @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to @samp{^nnml}, for instance.
5545 Both variables are @code{nil} by default. If a group matches both
5546 variables, the group is not cached.
5548 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
5549 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
5550 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
5551 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
5552 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
5553 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, gnus
5554 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
5555 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
5556 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
5560 @node Persistent Articles
5561 @section Persistent Articles
5562 @cindex persistent articles
5564 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
5565 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
5566 useful in my opinion.
5568 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
5569 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
5570 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
5571 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
5572 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
5573 the expiry going on at the news server.
5575 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
5576 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
5577 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
5583 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
5584 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
5587 @kindex M-* (Summary)
5588 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
5589 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
5590 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
5594 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
5596 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
5597 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
5598 interested in persistent articles:
5601 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
5605 @node Article Backlog
5606 @section Article Backlog
5608 @cindex article backlog
5610 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
5611 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
5612 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where gnus will buffer
5613 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
5614 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
5615 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
5616 that, turning the backlog on will slow gnus down a little bit, and
5617 increase memory usage some.
5619 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
5620 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, gnus will store
5621 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
5622 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, gnus will store
5623 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
5624 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
5625 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
5627 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
5630 @node Saving Articles
5631 @section Saving Articles
5632 @cindex saving articles
5634 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
5635 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
5636 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
5637 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
5638 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
5640 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
5641 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, gnus will not delete
5642 unwanted headers before saving the article.
5644 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
5645 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
5646 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
5647 deleted before saving.
5653 @kindex O o (Summary)
5655 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
5656 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
5657 Save the current article using the default article saver
5658 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
5661 @kindex O m (Summary)
5662 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
5663 Save the current article in mail format
5664 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
5667 @kindex O r (Summary)
5668 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
5669 Save the current article in rmail format
5670 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
5673 @kindex O f (Summary)
5674 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
5675 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
5676 Save the current article in plain file format
5677 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
5680 @kindex O F (Summary)
5681 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
5682 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
5683 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
5686 @kindex O b (Summary)
5687 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
5688 Save the current article body in plain file format
5689 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
5692 @kindex O h (Summary)
5693 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
5694 Save the current article in mh folder format
5695 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
5698 @kindex O v (Summary)
5699 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
5700 Save the current article in a VM folder
5701 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
5704 @kindex O p (Summary)
5705 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
5706 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
5707 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
5710 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
5711 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
5712 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
5713 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
5714 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
5715 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
5716 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
5717 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
5718 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
5719 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
5720 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
5721 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
5725 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
5726 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
5727 gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the four ready-made
5728 functions below, or you can create your own.
5732 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
5733 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
5734 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
5735 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
5736 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
5737 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5738 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
5740 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
5741 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
5742 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
5743 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
5744 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5745 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
5747 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
5748 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
5749 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
5750 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
5751 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
5752 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5753 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
5755 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
5756 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
5757 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
5758 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5759 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
5761 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
5762 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
5763 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
5764 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
5765 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
5768 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
5769 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
5770 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
5771 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
5772 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
5774 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
5775 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
5776 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
5777 reader to use this setting.
5780 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
5781 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
5782 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
5783 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
5786 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
5787 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
5788 available functions that generate names:
5792 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
5793 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
5794 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
5796 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
5797 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
5798 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
5800 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
5801 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
5802 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
5804 @item gnus-plain-save-name
5805 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
5806 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
5809 @vindex gnus-split-methods
5810 You can have gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
5811 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
5812 save articles related to gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
5813 related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
5817 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
5818 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
5819 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
5820 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
5823 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
5824 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
5825 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
5826 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
5827 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
5828 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
5829 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
5830 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
5831 called returns a string or a list of strings.
5833 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
5834 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
5835 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
5836 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
5838 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
5839 means that gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
5840 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
5843 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
5844 lots of mail groups called things like
5845 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
5846 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
5847 following will do just that:
5850 (defun my-save-name (group)
5851 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
5852 (substring group (match-end 0))))
5854 (setq gnus-split-methods
5855 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
5860 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
5861 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
5862 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
5863 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
5864 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
5865 all the files in the top level directory
5866 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
5867 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
5868 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
5869 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
5871 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
5872 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
5873 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
5874 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
5875 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
5878 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
5882 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
5883 (setq gnus-default-article-saver 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
5886 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
5887 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
5888 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
5889 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
5892 @node Decoding Articles
5893 @section Decoding Articles
5894 @cindex decoding articles
5896 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
5897 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
5900 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
5901 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
5902 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
5903 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
5904 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
5905 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
5909 @cindex article series
5910 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
5911 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
5912 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
5913 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
5914 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
5916 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
5917 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
5918 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
5920 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, gnus
5921 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
5922 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
5924 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
5925 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
5926 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
5929 @node Uuencoded Articles
5930 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
5932 @cindex uuencoded articles
5937 @kindex X u (Summary)
5938 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
5939 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
5940 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
5943 @kindex X U (Summary)
5944 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
5945 Uudecodes and saves the current series
5946 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
5949 @kindex X v u (Summary)
5950 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
5951 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
5954 @kindex X v U (Summary)
5955 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
5956 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
5957 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
5961 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
5962 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
5963 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
5964 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
5965 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
5967 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
5968 @sc{GNUS 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
5969 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
5970 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
5973 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
5974 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
5975 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
5976 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
5977 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
5978 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
5982 @node Shell Archives
5983 @subsection Shell Archives
5985 @cindex shell archives
5986 @cindex shared articles
5988 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
5989 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
5990 some commands to deal with these:
5995 @kindex X s (Summary)
5996 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
5997 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
6000 @kindex X S (Summary)
6001 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
6002 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
6005 @kindex X v s (Summary)
6006 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
6007 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
6010 @kindex X v S (Summary)
6011 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
6012 Unshars, views and saves the current series
6013 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
6017 @node PostScript Files
6018 @subsection PostScript Files
6024 @kindex X p (Summary)
6025 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
6026 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
6029 @kindex X P (Summary)
6030 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
6031 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
6032 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
6035 @kindex X v p (Summary)
6036 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
6037 View the current PostScript series
6038 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
6041 @kindex X v P (Summary)
6042 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
6043 View and save the current PostScript series
6044 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
6049 @subsection Other Files
6053 @kindex X o (Summary)
6054 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
6055 Save the current series
6056 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
6059 @kindex X b (Summary)
6060 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
6061 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
6062 doesn't really work yet.
6066 @node Decoding Variables
6067 @subsection Decoding Variables
6069 Adjective, not verb.
6072 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
6073 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
6074 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
6078 @node Rule Variables
6079 @subsubsection Rule Variables
6080 @cindex rule variables
6082 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
6083 variables are of the form
6086 (list '(regexp1 command2)
6093 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6094 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6096 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
6097 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
6100 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6101 (list '("\\\\.au$" "sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio")))
6104 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
6105 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
6106 This variable is consulted if gnus couldn't make any matches from the
6107 user and default view rules.
6109 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
6110 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
6111 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
6116 @node Other Decode Variables
6117 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
6120 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
6122 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
6123 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
6124 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
6125 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
6126 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
6130 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
6131 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
6134 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
6135 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
6136 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
6139 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
6140 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
6141 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
6142 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
6143 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
6146 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
6147 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
6148 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
6150 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
6151 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
6152 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
6153 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
6154 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
6157 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
6158 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
6159 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
6161 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
6162 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
6163 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
6164 looking for files to display.
6166 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
6167 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
6168 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
6171 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
6172 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
6173 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
6176 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
6177 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
6178 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
6181 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
6182 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
6183 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
6186 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
6187 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
6188 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
6189 decoded articles as unread.
6191 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
6192 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
6193 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
6194 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
6196 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
6197 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
6198 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
6200 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
6201 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
6203 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
6204 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
6205 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
6206 @code{metamail} for viewing.
6208 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
6209 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
6210 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
6211 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
6212 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
6213 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC1153---no easy way
6214 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
6215 simply dropped them.
6220 @node Uuencoding and Posting
6221 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
6225 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
6226 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
6227 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
6228 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
6229 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
6230 for you when you post the article.
6232 @item gnus-uu-post-length
6233 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
6234 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
6235 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
6237 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
6238 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
6239 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
6240 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
6241 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
6242 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
6243 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
6245 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
6246 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
6247 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
6248 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
6249 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
6250 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
6251 Default is @code{t}.
6257 @subsection Viewing Files
6258 @cindex viewing files
6259 @cindex pseudo-articles
6261 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, gnus will attempt
6262 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
6263 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
6264 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, gnus will
6265 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
6266 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
6267 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
6269 Finally, gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
6270 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
6271 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
6272 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
6274 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
6275 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
6276 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
6278 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
6279 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
6280 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
6281 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
6282 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
6284 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
6285 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
6286 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
6287 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
6288 a list of parameters to that command.
6290 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
6291 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
6292 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
6294 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
6295 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
6296 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
6299 @node Article Treatment
6300 @section Article Treatment
6302 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
6303 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
6304 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
6305 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
6306 these articles easier.
6309 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
6310 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
6311 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
6312 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
6313 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
6314 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
6315 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
6316 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
6320 @node Article Highlighting
6321 @subsection Article Highlighting
6322 @cindex highlighting
6324 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
6325 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
6330 @kindex W H a (Summary)
6331 @findex gnus-article-highlight
6332 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
6333 Do much highlighting of the current article
6334 (@code{gnus-article-highlight}). This function highlights header, cited
6335 text, the signature, and adds buttons to the body and the head.
6338 @kindex W H h (Summary)
6339 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
6340 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
6341 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
6342 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
6343 variable, which is a list where each element has the form @var{(regexp
6344 name content)}. @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
6345 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
6346 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
6347 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
6348 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
6351 @kindex W H c (Summary)
6352 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
6353 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
6355 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
6358 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
6360 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
6361 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
6362 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
6364 @item gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
6365 @vindex gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
6366 Regexp matching the longest possible citation prefix on a line.
6368 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
6369 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
6370 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
6372 @item gnus-cite-face-list
6373 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
6374 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
6375 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
6376 gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
6377 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
6379 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
6380 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
6381 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
6383 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
6384 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
6385 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
6387 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
6388 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
6389 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
6390 that it's a citation.
6392 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
6393 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
6394 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
6396 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
6397 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
6398 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
6400 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
6401 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
6402 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
6403 cited text belonging to the attribution.
6409 @kindex W H s (Summary)
6410 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
6411 @vindex gnus-signature-face
6412 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
6413 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
6414 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
6415 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
6416 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
6421 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to highlight articles automatically.
6424 @node Article Fontisizing
6425 @subsection Article Fontisizing
6427 @cindex article emphasis
6429 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
6430 @kindex W e (Summary)
6431 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
6432 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*}. Gnus can make this look nicer by
6433 running the article through the @kbd{W e}
6434 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
6436 @vindex gnus-emphasis-alist
6437 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
6438 @code{gnus-emphasis-alist} variable. This is an alist where the first
6439 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
6440 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
6441 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
6442 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
6443 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
6447 (setq gnus-article-emphasis
6448 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
6449 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
6452 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
6453 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
6454 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
6455 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
6456 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
6457 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
6458 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
6459 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
6460 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
6461 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
6462 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
6463 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
6464 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
6466 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
6467 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
6468 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
6472 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
6475 @vindex gnus-group-highlight-words-alist
6477 If you want to highlight arbitrary words, you can use the
6478 @code{gnus-group-highlight-words-alist} variable, which uses the same
6479 syntax as @code{gnus-emphasis-alist}. The @code{highlight-words} group
6480 parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) can also be used.
6482 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to fontize articles automatically.
6485 @node Article Hiding
6486 @subsection Article Hiding
6487 @cindex article hiding
6489 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
6490 too much cruft in most articles.
6495 @kindex W W a (Summary)
6496 @findex gnus-article-hide
6497 Do quite a lot of hiding on the article buffer
6498 (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}). In particular, this function will hide
6499 headers, PGP, cited text and the signature.
6502 @kindex W W h (Summary)
6503 @findex gnus-article-toggle-headers
6504 Toggle hiding of headers (@code{gnus-article-toggle-headers}). @xref{Hiding
6508 @kindex W W b (Summary)
6509 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
6510 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
6511 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
6514 @kindex W W s (Summary)
6515 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
6516 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
6520 @kindex W W p (Summary)
6521 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
6522 @vindex gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
6523 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}). The
6524 @code{gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook} hook will be run after a @sc{pgp}
6525 signature has been hidden. For example, to automatically verify
6526 articles that have signatures in them do:
6528 ;;; Hide pgp cruft if any.
6530 (setq gnus-treat-strip-pgp t)
6532 ;;; After hiding pgp, verify the message;
6533 ;;; only happens if pgp signature is found.
6535 (add-hook 'gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
6538 (set-buffer gnus-original-article-buffer)
6543 @kindex W W P (Summary)
6544 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
6545 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
6546 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
6549 @kindex W W B (Summary)
6550 @findex gnus-article-strip-banner
6551 Strip the banner specified by the @code{banner} group parameter
6552 (@code{gnus-article-strip-banner}). This is mainly used to hide those
6553 annoying banners and/or signatures that some mailing lists and moderated
6554 groups adds to all the messages. The way to use this function is to add
6555 the @code{banner} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to the
6556 group you want banners stripped from. The parameter either be a string,
6557 which will be interpreted as a regular expression matching text to be
6558 removed, or the symbol @code{signature}, meaning that the (last)
6559 signature should be removed.
6562 @kindex W W c (Summary)
6563 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
6564 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
6565 customizing the hiding:
6569 @item gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
6570 @itemx gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
6571 @vindex gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
6572 @vindex gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
6573 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
6574 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
6575 by these format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
6580 Starting point of the hidden text.
6582 Ending point of the hidden text.
6584 Number of characters in the hidden region.
6586 Number of lines of hidden text.
6589 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
6590 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
6591 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave shown.
6596 @kindex W W C-c (Summary)
6597 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe
6599 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe}) depending on the
6600 following two variables:
6603 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
6604 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
6605 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
6606 50), hide the cited text.
6608 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
6609 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
6610 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
6615 @kindex W W C (Summary)
6616 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
6617 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
6618 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
6619 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
6620 have happen automatically (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
6624 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
6625 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
6626 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
6628 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
6629 citation customization.
6631 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to hide article elements
6635 @node Article Washing
6636 @subsection Article Washing
6638 @cindex article washing
6640 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
6641 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
6643 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
6644 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
6650 @kindex W l (Summary)
6651 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
6652 Remove page breaks from the current article
6653 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article}, for page
6657 @kindex W r (Summary)
6658 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
6659 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
6660 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
6661 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
6662 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
6663 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
6665 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
6666 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
6667 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
6668 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
6671 @kindex W t (Summary)
6672 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
6673 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
6674 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
6677 @kindex W v (Summary)
6678 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-header
6679 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
6680 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-header}).
6683 @kindex W m (Summary)
6684 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-mime
6685 Toggle whether to run the article through @sc{mime} before displaying
6686 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-mime}).
6689 @kindex W o (Summary)
6690 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
6691 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
6694 @kindex W d (Summary)
6695 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
6696 @vindex gnus-article-dumbquotes-map
6698 @cindex M******** sm*rtq**t*s
6700 Treat M******** sm*rtq**t*s according to
6701 @code{gnus-article-dumbquotes-map}
6702 (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}). Note that this function guesses
6703 whether a character is a sm*rtq**t* or not, so it should only be used
6707 @kindex W w (Summary)
6708 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
6709 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}).
6711 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
6715 @kindex W q (Summary)
6716 @findex gnus-article-fill-long-lines
6717 Fill long lines (@code{gnus-article-fill-long-lines}).
6720 @kindex W C (Summary)
6721 @findex gnus-article-capitalize-sentencse
6722 Capitalize the first word in each sentence
6723 (@code{gnus-article-capitalize-sentences}).
6726 @kindex W c (Summary)
6727 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
6728 Translate CRLF pairs (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines) into LF
6729 (this takes care of DOS line endings), and then translate any remaining
6730 CRs into LF (this takes care of Mac line endings)
6731 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
6734 @kindex W f (Summary)
6736 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
6737 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
6738 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
6739 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
6745 Look for and display any X-Face headers
6746 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}). The command executed by this
6747 function is given by the @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable.
6748 If this variable is a string, this string will be executed in a
6749 sub-shell. If it is a function, this function will be called with the
6750 face as the argument. If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which
6751 is a regexp) matches the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
6752 The default action under Emacs is to fork off an @code{xv} to view the
6753 face; under XEmacs the default action is to display the face before the
6754 @code{From} header. (It's nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with X-Face
6755 support---that will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native
6756 X-Face support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
6757 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and friends.) If you
6758 want to have this function in the display hook, it should probably come
6762 @kindex W b (Summary)
6763 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
6764 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
6765 @xref{Article Buttons}.
6768 @kindex W B (Summary)
6769 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
6770 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
6771 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
6774 @kindex W W H (Summary)
6775 @findex gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body
6776 Strip headers like the @code{X-No-Archive} header from the beginning of
6777 article bodies (@code{gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body}).
6780 @kindex W E l (Summary)
6781 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
6782 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
6783 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
6786 @kindex W E m (Summary)
6787 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
6788 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
6789 lines with a single empty line.
6790 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
6793 @kindex W E t (Summary)
6794 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
6795 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
6796 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
6799 @kindex W E a (Summary)
6800 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
6801 Do all the three commands above
6802 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
6805 @kindex W E A (Summary)
6806 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
6807 Remove all blank lines
6808 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
6811 @kindex W E s (Summary)
6812 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
6813 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
6814 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
6817 @kindex W E e (Summary)
6818 @findex gnus-article-strip-trailing-space
6819 Remove all white space from the end of all lines of the article
6820 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-trailing-space}).
6824 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to wash articles automatically.
6827 @node Article Buttons
6828 @subsection Article Buttons
6831 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
6832 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
6833 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
6834 button on these references.
6836 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
6837 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses and Message-IDs. This is controlled by
6838 two variables, one that handles article bodies and one that handles
6843 @item gnus-button-alist
6844 @vindex gnus-button-alist
6845 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
6848 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
6854 All text that match this regular expression will be considered an
6855 external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches embedded URLs:
6856 @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}.
6859 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
6860 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
6861 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
6864 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
6865 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
6866 avoid false matches.
6869 This function will be called when you click on this button.
6872 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
6873 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
6877 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
6880 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
6883 @item gnus-header-button-alist
6884 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
6885 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
6886 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
6887 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
6890 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
6893 @var{HEADER} is a regular expression.
6895 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
6896 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
6897 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
6898 default values of the variables above.
6900 @item gnus-article-button-face
6901 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
6902 Face used on buttons.
6904 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
6905 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
6906 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
6910 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to buttonize articles automatically.
6914 @subsection Article Date
6916 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
6917 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
6918 when the article was sent.
6923 @kindex W T u (Summary)
6924 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
6925 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
6926 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
6929 @kindex W T i (Summary)
6930 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
6932 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
6933 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
6936 @kindex W T l (Summary)
6937 @findex gnus-article-date-local
6938 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
6941 @kindex W T s (Summary)
6942 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
6943 @findex gnus-article-date-user
6944 @findex format-time-string
6945 Display the date using a user-defined format
6946 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
6947 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
6948 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
6949 for a list of possible format specs.
6952 @kindex W T e (Summary)
6953 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
6954 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
6955 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
6956 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
6957 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). It looks something like:
6960 X-Sent: 9 years, 6 weeks, 4 days, 9 hours, 3 minutes, 28 seconds ago
6963 The value of @code{gnus-article-date-lapsed-new-header} determines
6964 whether this header will just be added below the old Date one, or will
6967 An advantage of using Gnus to read mail is that it converts simple bugs
6968 into wonderful absurdities.
6970 If you want to have this line updated continually, you can put
6973 (gnus-start-date-timer)
6976 in your @file{.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
6977 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
6981 @kindex W T o (Summary)
6982 @findex gnus-article-date-original
6983 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
6984 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
6985 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
6986 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
6987 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
6991 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to display the date in your
6992 preferred format automatically.
6995 @node Article Signature
6996 @subsection Article Signature
6998 @cindex article signature
7000 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
7001 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
7002 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
7003 that says what is to be considered a signature is
7004 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
7005 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
7006 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
7007 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
7008 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
7011 (setq gnus-signature-separator
7012 '("^-- $" ; The standard
7013 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
7014 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
7015 ; line of dashes. Shame!
7016 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
7017 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
7018 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
7021 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
7024 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
7025 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
7030 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
7033 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
7036 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
7037 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
7039 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
7040 in question is not a signature.
7043 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
7044 listed above. Here's an example:
7047 (setq gnus-signature-limit
7048 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
7051 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
7052 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
7053 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
7054 signature after all.
7057 @node Article Miscellania
7058 @subsection Article Miscellania
7062 @kindex A t (Summary)
7063 @findex gnus-article-babel
7064 Translate the article from one language to another
7065 (@code{gnus-article-babel}).
7071 @section @sc{mime} Commands
7072 @cindex MIME decoding
7076 @kindex X m (Summary)
7077 @findex gnus-summary-save-parts
7078 Save all parts matching a @sc{mime} type to a directory
7079 (@code{gnus-summary-save-parts}). Understands the process/prefix
7080 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7083 @kindex M-t (Summary)
7084 @findex gnus-summary-display-buttonized
7085 Toggle the buttonized display of the article buffer
7086 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized}).
7089 @kindex W M w (Summary)
7090 Decode RFC2047-encoded words in the article headers
7091 (@code{gnus-article-decode-mime-words}).
7094 @kindex W M c (Summary)
7095 Decode encoded article bodies as well as charsets
7096 (@code{gnus-article-decode-charset}).
7098 This command looks in the @code{Content-Type} header to determine the
7099 charset. If there is no such header in the article, you can give it a
7100 prefix, which will prompt for the charset to decode as. In regional
7101 groups where people post using some common encoding (but do not include
7102 MIME headers), you can set the @code{charset} group/topic parameter to
7103 the required charset (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
7106 @kindex W M v (Summary)
7107 View all the @sc{mime} parts in the current article
7108 (@code{gnus-mime-view-all-parts}).
7115 @item gnus-ignored-mime-types
7116 @vindex gnus-ignored-mime-types
7117 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
7118 this list will be completely ignored by Gnus. The default value is
7121 To have all Vcards be ignored, you'd say something like this:
7124 (setq gnus-ignored-mime-types
7128 @item gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
7129 @vindex gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
7130 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
7131 this list won't have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
7132 displayed. The default value is @code{(".*/.*")}.
7134 @item gnus-article-mime-part-function
7135 @vindex gnus-article-mime-part-function
7136 For each @sc{mime} part, this function will be called with the @sc{mime}
7137 handle as the parameter. The function is meant to be used to allow
7138 users to gather information from the article (e. g., add Vcard info to
7139 the bbdb database) or to do actions based on parts (e. g., automatically
7140 save all jpegs into some directory).
7142 Here's an example function the does the latter:
7145 (defun my-save-all-jpeg-parts (handle)
7146 (when (equal (car (mm-handle-type handle)) "image/jpeg")
7148 (insert (mm-get-part handle))
7149 (write-region (point-min) (point-max)
7150 (read-file-name "Save jpeg to: ")))))
7151 (setq gnus-article-mime-part-function
7152 'my-save-all-jpeg-parts)
7155 @vindex gnus-mime-multipart-functions
7156 @item gnus-mime-multipart-functions
7157 Alist of @sc{mime} multipart types and functions to handle them.
7166 People use different charsets, and we have @sc{mime} to let us know what
7167 charsets they use. Or rather, we wish we had. Many people use
7168 newsreaders and mailers that do not understand or use @sc{mime}, and
7169 just send out messages without saying what character sets they use. To
7170 help a bit with this, some local news hierarchies have policies that say
7171 what character set is the default. For instance, the @samp{fj}
7172 hierarchy uses @code{iso-2022-jp-2}.
7174 @vindex gnus-group-charset-alist
7175 This knowledge is encoded in the @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}
7176 variable, which is an alist of regexps (to match group names) and
7177 default charsets to be used when reading these groups.
7179 In addition, some people do use soi-disant @sc{mime}-aware agents that
7180 aren't. These blitely mark messages as being in @code{iso-8859-1} even
7181 if they really are in @code{koi-8}. To help here, the
7182 @code{gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets} variable can be used. The
7183 charsets that are listed here will be ignored. The variable can be set
7184 on a group-by-group basis using the group parameters (@pxref{Group
7185 Parameters}). The default value is @code{(unknown-8bit)}, which is
7186 something some agents insist on having in there.
7189 @node Article Commands
7190 @section Article Commands
7197 @kindex A P (Summary)
7198 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
7199 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
7200 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
7201 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will be
7202 run just before printing the buffer.
7207 @node Summary Sorting
7208 @section Summary Sorting
7209 @cindex summary sorting
7211 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
7212 can't really see why you'd want that.
7217 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
7218 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
7219 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
7222 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
7223 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
7224 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
7227 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
7228 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
7229 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
7232 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
7233 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
7234 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
7237 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
7238 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
7239 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
7242 @kindex C-c C-s C-c (Summary)
7243 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-chars
7244 Sort by article length (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-chars}).
7247 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
7248 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
7249 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
7252 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
7253 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
7254 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
7255 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
7256 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
7260 @node Finding the Parent
7261 @section Finding the Parent
7262 @cindex parent articles
7263 @cindex referring articles
7268 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
7269 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
7270 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
7271 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
7272 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
7273 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
7274 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
7275 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
7276 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
7278 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
7279 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
7280 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, gnus will fetch the parent, the
7281 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
7282 @kbd{-3 ^}, gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
7286 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
7287 @kindex A R (Summary)
7288 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
7289 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
7292 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
7293 @kindex A T (Summary)
7294 Display the full thread where the current article appears
7295 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
7296 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
7297 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
7298 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
7299 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
7300 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
7302 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
7303 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
7304 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
7305 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
7306 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
7307 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
7310 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
7311 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
7313 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
7314 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
7315 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
7316 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
7317 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
7318 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
7319 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
7322 The current select method will be used when fetching by
7323 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
7324 by giving this command a prefix.
7326 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
7327 If the group you are reading is located on a backend that does not
7328 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
7329 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
7330 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
7331 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
7334 Most of the mail backends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but do
7335 not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox} and
7336 @code{nnbabyl} are able to locate articles from any groups, while
7337 @code{nnml} and @code{nnfolder} are only able to locate articles that
7338 have been posted to the current group. (Anything else would be too time
7339 consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not support this at all.
7342 @node Alternative Approaches
7343 @section Alternative Approaches
7345 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
7346 gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
7349 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
7350 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
7355 @subsection Pick and Read
7356 @cindex pick and read
7358 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
7359 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
7360 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
7361 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
7363 @findex gnus-pick-mode
7364 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
7365 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
7366 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
7367 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
7368 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
7370 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
7375 @findex gnus-pick-article-or-thread
7376 Pick the article or thread on the current line
7377 (@code{gnus-pick-article-or-thread}). If the variable
7378 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key selects the
7379 entire thread when used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise,
7380 it selects just the article. If given a numerical prefix, go to that
7381 thread or article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
7382 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
7385 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
7386 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
7387 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
7388 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
7392 @findex gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread.
7393 Unpick the thread or article
7394 (@code{gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread}). If the variable
7395 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key unpicks the
7396 thread if used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise it unpicks
7397 just the article. You can give this key a numerical prefix to unpick
7398 the thread or article at that line.
7402 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
7403 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
7404 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
7405 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
7406 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
7407 will still be visible when you are reading.
7411 All the normal summary mode commands are still available in the
7412 pick-mode, with the exception of @kbd{u}. However @kbd{!} is available
7413 which is mapped to the same function
7414 @code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}.
7416 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
7419 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
7422 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
7423 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
7425 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
7426 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
7427 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
7429 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
7430 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
7431 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
7432 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
7433 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
7434 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
7435 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
7439 @subsection Binary Groups
7440 @cindex binary groups
7442 @findex gnus-binary-mode
7443 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
7444 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
7445 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
7446 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
7447 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
7448 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
7451 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
7452 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
7453 command, when you have turned on this mode
7454 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
7456 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
7457 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
7461 @section Tree Display
7464 @vindex gnus-use-trees
7465 If you don't like the normal gnus summary display, you might try setting
7466 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
7467 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
7470 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
7473 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
7474 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
7475 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
7477 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
7478 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
7479 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
7480 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
7481 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
7483 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
7484 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
7485 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
7486 default is @code{modeline}.
7488 @item gnus-tree-line-format
7489 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
7490 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
7491 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
7492 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
7493 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
7494 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
7500 The name of the poster.
7502 The @code{From} header.
7504 The number of the article.
7506 The opening bracket.
7508 The closing bracket.
7513 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
7515 Variables related to the display are:
7518 @item gnus-tree-brackets
7519 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
7520 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
7521 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @var{((real-open . real-close)
7522 (sparse-open . sparse-close) (dummy-open . dummy-close))}, and the
7523 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
7525 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
7526 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
7527 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
7528 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
7532 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
7533 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
7534 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, gnus will try to keep the tree
7535 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other gnus
7536 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
7537 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
7538 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
7539 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
7540 other windows displayed next to it.
7542 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
7543 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
7544 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
7545 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
7546 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
7547 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
7548 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
7552 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
7555 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
7565 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
7569 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
7570 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
7572 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
7574 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
7579 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
7580 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
7581 following to your @file{.gnus.el} file:
7584 (setq gnus-use-trees t
7585 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
7586 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
7587 (gnus-add-configuration
7591 (summary 0.75 point)
7596 @xref{Windows Configuration}.
7599 @node Mail Group Commands
7600 @section Mail Group Commands
7601 @cindex mail group commands
7603 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
7604 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
7606 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
7607 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7612 @kindex B e (Summary)
7613 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
7614 Expire all expirable articles in the group
7615 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}).
7618 @kindex B M-C-e (Summary)
7619 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
7620 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
7621 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
7622 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
7623 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
7626 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
7627 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
7628 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
7629 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
7630 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
7631 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
7634 @kindex B m (Summary)
7636 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
7637 Move the article from one mail group to another
7638 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}).
7641 @kindex B c (Summary)
7643 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
7644 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
7645 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
7646 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}).
7649 @kindex B B (Summary)
7650 @cindex crosspost mail
7651 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
7652 Crosspost the current article to some other group
7653 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
7654 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
7655 be properly updated.
7658 @kindex B i (Summary)
7659 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
7660 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
7661 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
7662 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
7665 @kindex B r (Summary)
7666 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
7667 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-respool-article}).
7668 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
7669 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
7670 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
7674 @kindex B w (Summary)
7676 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
7677 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
7678 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
7679 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
7680 (@kbd{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
7681 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, gnus won't re-highlight the article.
7684 @kindex B q (Summary)
7685 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
7686 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
7687 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
7688 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
7691 @kindex B t (Summary)
7692 @findex gnus-summary-respool-trace
7693 Similarly, this command will display all fancy splitting patterns used
7694 when repooling, if any (@code{gnus-summary-respool-trace}).
7697 @kindex B p (Summary)
7698 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
7699 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
7700 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
7701 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
7702 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
7703 article from your news server (or rather, from
7704 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
7705 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
7706 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
7707 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
7708 just not have arrived yet.
7712 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
7713 @cindex moving articles
7714 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have gnus
7715 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
7716 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
7717 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
7718 suggestions you find reasonable.
7721 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
7722 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
7723 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
7724 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
7728 @node Various Summary Stuff
7729 @section Various Summary Stuff
7732 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
7733 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
7734 * Summary Generation Commands:: (Re)generating the summary buffer.
7735 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
7739 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
7740 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
7741 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
7743 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
7744 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
7745 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
7746 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
7747 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
7748 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
7751 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
7752 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
7753 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
7754 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
7755 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
7757 @vindex gnus-summary-prepared-hook
7758 @item gnus-summary-prepared-hook
7759 A hook called as the very last thing after the summary buffer has been
7762 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
7763 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
7764 When gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
7765 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
7766 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
7767 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
7768 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), gnus will rename the
7769 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
7770 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
7771 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
7776 @node Summary Group Information
7777 @subsection Summary Group Information
7782 @kindex H f (Summary)
7783 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
7784 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
7785 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
7786 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
7787 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
7788 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
7789 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
7790 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
7791 be used for fetching the file.
7794 @kindex H d (Summary)
7795 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
7796 Give a brief description of the current group
7797 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
7798 rereading the description from the server.
7801 @kindex H h (Summary)
7802 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
7803 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
7804 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
7807 @kindex H i (Summary)
7808 @findex gnus-info-find-node
7809 Go to the gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
7813 @node Searching for Articles
7814 @subsection Searching for Articles
7819 @kindex M-s (Summary)
7820 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
7821 Search through all subsequent articles for a regexp
7822 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
7825 @kindex M-r (Summary)
7826 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
7827 Search through all previous articles for a regexp
7828 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
7832 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
7833 This command will prompt you for a header field, a regular expression to
7834 match on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
7835 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If given a prefix, search
7839 @kindex M-& (Summary)
7840 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
7841 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
7842 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
7845 @node Summary Generation Commands
7846 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
7851 @kindex Y g (Summary)
7852 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
7853 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
7856 @kindex Y c (Summary)
7857 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
7858 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
7859 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
7864 @node Really Various Summary Commands
7865 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
7871 @kindex C-d (Summary)
7872 @kindex A D (Summary)
7873 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
7874 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
7875 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
7876 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
7877 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
7878 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
7879 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
7880 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
7884 @kindex M-C-d (Summary)
7885 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
7886 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
7887 several documents into one biiig group
7888 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
7889 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
7890 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
7891 command understands the process/prefix convention
7892 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7895 @kindex C-t (Summary)
7896 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
7897 Toggle truncation of summary lines
7898 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
7899 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
7900 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
7904 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
7905 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
7906 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
7909 @kindex M-C-e (Summary)
7910 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
7911 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
7912 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
7915 @kindex M-C-g (Summary)
7916 @findex gnus-summary-customize-parameters
7917 Customize the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
7918 group (@code{gnus-summary-customize-parameters}).
7923 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
7924 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
7925 @cindex summary exit
7926 @cindex exiting groups
7928 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
7929 group and return you to the group buffer.
7935 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
7937 @findex gnus-summary-exit
7938 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
7939 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
7940 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
7941 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
7942 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
7943 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
7944 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
7945 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
7946 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
7947 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
7951 @kindex Z E (Summary)
7953 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
7954 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
7955 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
7959 @kindex Z c (Summary)
7961 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
7962 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
7963 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
7964 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
7967 @kindex Z C (Summary)
7968 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
7969 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
7970 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
7973 @kindex Z n (Summary)
7974 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
7975 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
7976 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
7979 @kindex Z R (Summary)
7980 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
7981 Exit this group, and then enter it again
7982 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
7983 all articles, both read and unread.
7987 @kindex Z G (Summary)
7988 @kindex M-g (Summary)
7989 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
7990 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
7991 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
7992 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
7993 articles, both read and unread.
7996 @kindex Z N (Summary)
7997 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
7998 Exit the group and go to the next group
7999 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
8002 @kindex Z P (Summary)
8003 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
8004 Exit the group and go to the previous group
8005 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
8008 @kindex Z s (Summary)
8009 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
8010 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
8011 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
8012 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
8013 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
8016 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
8017 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current
8020 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
8021 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
8022 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
8023 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
8024 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
8025 If you do that, gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
8026 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
8027 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
8028 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
8029 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
8030 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
8031 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
8033 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
8035 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
8036 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
8037 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
8038 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
8039 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
8040 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
8041 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
8042 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
8043 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
8046 @node Crosspost Handling
8047 @section Crosspost Handling
8051 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
8052 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
8053 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
8054 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
8055 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
8056 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
8059 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
8060 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
8061 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
8062 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
8063 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
8065 @cindex cross-posting
8068 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
8069 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
8070 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
8071 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
8072 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
8073 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
8074 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
8075 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
8076 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
8077 the cross reference mechanism.
8079 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
8080 @cindex overview.fmt
8081 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
8082 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
8083 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
8084 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
8085 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
8086 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
8089 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
8090 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
8091 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
8096 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
8099 @node Duplicate Suppression
8100 @section Duplicate Suppression
8102 By default, gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
8103 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
8104 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
8105 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various
8110 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
8111 is evil and not very common.
8114 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
8115 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
8118 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
8119 different @sc{nntp} servers.
8122 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
8125 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
8126 well, but these four are the most common situations.
8128 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
8129 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
8130 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
8131 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
8132 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
8133 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
8134 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
8137 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
8138 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
8139 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
8140 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
8141 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
8145 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
8146 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
8147 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
8149 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
8150 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
8151 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
8152 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
8153 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single gnus
8154 session are suppressed.
8156 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
8157 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
8158 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
8159 suppression list. The default is 10000.
8161 @item gnus-duplicate-file
8162 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
8163 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
8164 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
8167 If you have a tendency to stop and start gnus often, setting
8168 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
8169 you leave gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
8170 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
8171 so that means that if you stop and start gnus often, you should set
8172 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
8173 to you to figure out, I think.
8176 @node The Article Buffer
8177 @chapter The Article Buffer
8178 @cindex article buffer
8180 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
8181 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
8182 tell gnus otherwise.
8185 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
8186 * Using MIME:: Pushing to mime articles as @sc{mime} messages.
8187 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
8188 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
8189 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
8193 @node Hiding Headers
8194 @section Hiding Headers
8195 @cindex hiding headers
8196 @cindex deleting headers
8198 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
8199 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
8201 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
8202 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
8203 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
8204 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
8205 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
8206 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
8207 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
8208 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
8209 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
8211 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
8215 @item gnus-visible-headers
8216 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
8217 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
8218 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
8219 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
8221 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
8222 the article and the subject, you'd say:
8225 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
8228 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
8231 @item gnus-ignored-headers
8232 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
8233 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
8234 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
8235 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
8236 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
8238 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} field
8239 and the @code{Xref} field, you might say:
8242 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
8245 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
8248 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
8249 variable will have no effect.
8253 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
8254 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
8255 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
8256 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
8257 the headers are to be displayed.
8259 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
8260 and then the subject, you might say something like:
8263 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
8266 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
8267 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed in this variable.
8269 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
8270 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
8271 You can hide further boring headers by setting
8272 @code{gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers} to @code{head}. What this function
8273 does depends on the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a
8274 list, but this list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is
8275 lists various @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove
8278 These conditions are:
8281 Remove all empty headers.
8283 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
8284 @code{Newsgroups} header.
8286 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
8289 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
8292 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
8295 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
8297 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
8300 To include the four three elements, you could say something like;
8303 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
8304 '(empty followup-to reply-to))
8307 This is also the default value for this variable.
8311 @section Using @sc{mime}
8314 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
8315 while people stand around yawning.
8317 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
8318 while all newsreaders die of fear.
8320 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
8321 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
8322 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
8324 @vindex gnus-show-mime
8325 @vindex gnus-article-display-method-for-mime
8326 @vindex gnus-strict-mime
8327 @findex gnus-article-display-mime-message
8328 Gnus handles @sc{mime} by pushing the articles through
8329 @code{gnus-article-display-method-for-mime}, which is
8330 @code{gnus-article-display-mime-message} by default. This function
8331 calls the SEMI MIME-View program to actually do the work. For more
8332 information on SEMI MIME-View, see its manual page (however it is not
8333 existed yet, sorry).
8335 Set @code{gnus-show-mime} to @code{t} if you want to use
8336 @sc{mime} all the time. However, if @code{gnus-strict-mime} is
8337 non-@code{nil}, the @sc{mime} method will only be used if there are
8338 @sc{mime} headers in the article. If you have @code{gnus-show-mime}
8339 set, then you'll see some unfortunate display glitches in the article
8340 buffer. These can't be avoided.
8342 In GNUS or Gnus, it might be best to just use the toggling functions
8343 from the summary buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance,
8344 you enter the group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it,
8345 @sc{mime} has decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible
8346 sing-a-long song comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find
8347 the volume button, because there isn't one, and people are starting to
8348 look at you, and you try to stop the program, but you can't, and you
8349 can't find the program to control the volume, and everybody else in the
8350 room suddenly decides to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel
8353 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
8355 To avoid such kind of situation, gnus stops to use
8356 @code{metamail-buffer}. So now, you can set @code{gnus-show-mime} to
8357 non-@code{nil} every-time, then you can push button in the article
8358 buffer when there are nobody else.
8360 Also see @pxref{MIME Commands}.
8363 @node Customizing Articles
8364 @section Customizing Articles
8365 @cindex article customization
8367 A slew of functions for customizing how the articles are to look like
8368 exist. You can call these functions interactively, or you can have them
8369 called automatically when you select the articles.
8371 To have them called automatically, you should set the corresponding
8372 ``treatment'' variable. For instance, to have headers hidden, you'd set
8373 @code{gnus-treat-hide-headers}. Below is a list of variables that can
8374 be set, but first we discuss the values these variables can have.
8378 @code{nil}: Don't do this treatment.
8381 @code{t}: Do this treatment on all body parts.
8384 @code{head}: Do the treatment on the headers.
8387 @code{last}: Do this treatment on the last part.
8390 An integer: Do this treatment on all body parts that have a length less
8394 A list of strings: Do this treatment on all body parts that are in
8395 articles that are read in groups that have names that match one of the
8396 regexps in the list.
8399 A list where the first element is not a string:
8401 The list is evaluated recursively. The first element of the list is a
8402 predicate. The following predicates are recognized: @code{or},
8403 @code{and}, @code{not} and @code{typep}. Here's an example:
8407 (typep "text/x-vcard"))
8411 @code{mime}: Do this treatment if the value of @code{gnus-show-mime}' is
8416 You may have noticed that the word @dfn{part} is used here. This refers
8417 to the fact that some messages are @sc{mime} multipart articles that may
8418 be divided into several parts. Articles that are not multiparts are
8419 considered to contain just a single part.
8421 @vindex gnus-article-treat-types
8422 Are the treatments applied to all sorts of multipart parts? Yes, if you
8423 want to, but by default, only @samp{text/plain} parts are given the
8424 treatment. This is controlled by the @code{gnus-article-treat-types}
8425 variable, which is a list of regular expressions that are matched to the
8426 type of the part. This variable is ignored if the value of the
8427 controlling variable is a predicate list, as described above.
8429 The following treatment options are available. The easiest way to
8430 customize this is to examine the @code{gnus-article-treat} customization
8434 @item gnus-treat-buttonize
8435 @item gnus-treat-buttonize-head
8436 @item gnus-treat-emphasize
8437 @item gnus-treat-fill-article
8438 @item gnus-treat-strip-cr
8439 @item gnus-treat-hide-headers
8440 @item gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers
8441 @item gnus-treat-hide-signature
8442 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation
8443 @item gnus-treat-strip-pgp
8444 @item gnus-treat-strip-pem
8445 @item gnus-treat-highlight-headers
8446 @item gnus-treat-highlight-citation
8447 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature
8448 @item gnus-treat-date-ut
8449 @item gnus-treat-date-local
8450 @item gnus-treat-date-lapsed
8451 @item gnus-treat-date-original
8452 @item gnus-treat-strip-headers-in-body
8453 @item gnus-treat-strip-trailing-blank-lines
8454 @item gnus-treat-strip-leading-blank-lines
8455 @item gnus-treat-strip-multiple-blank-lines
8456 @item gnus-treat-strip-blank-lines
8457 @item gnus-treat-overstrike
8458 @item gnus-treat-display-xface
8459 @item gnus-treat-display-smileys
8460 @item gnus-treat-display-picons
8461 @item gnus-treat-capitalize-sentences
8462 @item gnus-treat-fill-long-lines
8463 @item gnus-treat-play-sounds
8464 @item gnus-treat-translate
8465 @item gnus-treat-decode-article-as-default-mime-charset
8468 @vindex gnus-part-display-hook
8469 You can, of course, write your own functions to be called from
8470 @code{gnus-part-display-hook}. The functions are called narrowed to the
8471 part, and you can do anything you like, pretty much. There is no
8472 information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can change
8473 everything. However, you shouldn't delete any headers. Instead make
8474 them invisible if you want to make them go away.
8477 @node Article Keymap
8478 @section Article Keymap
8480 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
8481 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
8482 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
8483 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
8486 A few additional keystrokes are available:
8491 @kindex SPACE (Article)
8492 @findex gnus-article-next-page
8493 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
8496 @kindex DEL (Article)
8497 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
8498 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
8501 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
8502 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
8503 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
8504 @kbd{C-c ^}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
8505 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
8508 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
8509 @findex gnus-article-mail
8510 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
8511 given a prefix, include the mail.
8515 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
8516 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
8517 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
8521 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
8522 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
8523 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
8526 @kindex TAB (Article)
8527 @findex gnus-article-next-button
8528 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
8529 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
8532 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
8533 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
8534 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
8540 @section Misc Article
8544 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
8545 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
8546 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
8547 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
8550 @vindex gnus-article-decode-hook
8551 @item gnus-article-decode-hook
8553 Hook used to decode @sc{mime} articles. The default value is
8554 @code{(article-decode-charset article-decode-encoded-words)}
8556 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
8557 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
8558 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
8559 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
8560 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
8561 the contents of the article buffer.
8563 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
8564 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
8565 Hook called in article mode buffers.
8567 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
8568 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
8569 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
8570 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
8572 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
8573 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
8574 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
8575 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
8576 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with one
8581 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
8582 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
8585 The number of @sc{mime} parts in the article.
8588 @vindex gnus-break-pages
8590 @item gnus-break-pages
8591 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
8592 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
8593 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
8594 paging will not be done.
8596 @item gnus-page-delimiter
8597 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
8598 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
8603 @node Composing Messages
8604 @chapter Composing Messages
8605 @cindex composing messages
8608 @cindex sending mail
8613 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
8614 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
8615 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the article
8616 by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Top, message, The Message
8617 Manual}. If you are in a foreign news group, and you wish to post the
8618 article using the foreign server, you can give a prefix to @kbd{C-c C-c}
8619 to make gnus try to post using the foreign server.
8622 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
8623 * Post:: Posting and following up.
8624 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
8625 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
8626 * Archived Messages:: Where gnus stores the messages you've sent.
8627 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
8628 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
8629 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
8632 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
8633 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
8639 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
8642 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
8643 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
8644 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
8645 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched.
8647 @item gnus-add-to-list
8648 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
8649 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
8650 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
8658 Variables for composing news articles:
8661 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-file
8662 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-file
8663 Gnus will keep a @code{Message-ID} history file of all the mails it has
8664 sent. If it discovers that it has already sent a mail, it will ask the
8665 user whether to re-send the mail. (This is primarily useful when
8666 dealing with @sc{soup} packets and the like where one is apt to send the
8667 same packet multiple times.) This variable says what the name of this
8668 history file is. It is @file{~/News/Sent-Message-IDs} by default. Set
8669 this variable to @code{nil} if you don't want gnus to keep a history
8672 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-length
8673 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-length
8674 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the history
8675 file. It is 1000 by default.
8680 @node Posting Server
8681 @section Posting Server
8683 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
8684 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
8686 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
8688 @vindex gnus-post-method
8690 It can be quite complicated. Normally, gnus will use the same native
8691 server. However. If your native server doesn't allow posting, just
8692 reading, you probably want to use some other server to post your
8693 (extremely intelligent and fabulously interesting) articles. You can
8694 then set the @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
8697 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
8700 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
8701 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
8702 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
8703 the ``current'' server for posting.
8705 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
8706 gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
8708 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
8709 If that's the case, gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
8712 Finally, if you want to always post using the same select method as
8713 you're reading from (which might be convenient if you're reading lots of
8714 groups from different private servers), you can set this variable to
8719 @section Mail and Post
8721 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
8725 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
8726 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
8727 @cindex mailing lists
8729 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
8730 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
8731 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
8732 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
8733 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
8734 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
8735 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
8736 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
8737 still a pain, though.
8741 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
8742 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
8743 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
8746 @findex ispell-message
8748 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
8752 @node Archived Messages
8753 @section Archived Messages
8754 @cindex archived messages
8755 @cindex sent messages
8757 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
8758 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
8759 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
8760 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
8763 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
8764 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server gnus is to
8765 use to store sent messages. The default is:
8769 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
8770 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
8771 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
8772 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
8775 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
8776 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likeable select method
8777 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
8778 directory chosen, you could say something like:
8781 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
8782 '(nnfolder "archive"
8783 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
8784 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
8785 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
8788 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
8790 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
8791 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
8792 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
8794 This variable can be used to do the following:
8798 Messages will be saved in that group.
8799 @item a list of strings
8800 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
8801 @item an alist of regexps, functions and forms
8802 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
8804 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
8809 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
8811 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
8814 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
8816 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
8819 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
8821 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
8822 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
8823 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
8824 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
8829 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
8830 '((if (message-news-p)
8835 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
8836 messages in one file per month:
8839 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
8840 '((if (message-news-p)
8842 (concat "mail." (format-time-string
8843 "%Y-%m" (current-time))))))
8846 (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
8847 use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
8849 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
8850 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
8851 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
8852 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
8853 gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
8854 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
8855 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
8856 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
8857 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
8858 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
8860 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
8861 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
8862 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
8863 this will disable archiving.
8866 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
8867 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
8868 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
8869 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
8870 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
8873 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
8874 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
8875 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
8878 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
8879 but the latter is the preferred method.
8883 @node Posting Styles
8884 @section Posting Styles
8885 @cindex posting styles
8888 All them variables, they make my head swim.
8890 So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
8891 on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
8892 and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
8895 @vindex gnus-posting-styles
8896 One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
8897 variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
8898 came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
8899 a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
8904 (signature "Peace and happiness")
8905 (organization "What me?"))
8907 (signature "Death to everybody"))
8908 ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
8909 (organization "Emacs is it")))
8912 As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
8913 @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
8914 ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
8915 over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
8916 applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
8917 the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
8918 @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
8919 signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
8921 The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
8922 string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
8923 If it's a function symbol, that function will be called with no
8924 arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the variable will be
8925 referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be @code{eval}ed. In
8926 any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value, then the style is said
8929 Each style may contain a arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
8930 attribute consists of a @var{(name value)} pair. The attribute name
8931 can be one of @code{signature}, @code{signature-file},
8932 @code{organization}, @code{address}, @code{name} or @code{body}. The
8933 attribute name can also be a string. In that case, this will be used as
8934 a header name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the
8937 The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function (the
8938 return value will be used), a variable (its value will be used) or a
8939 list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value will be used).
8941 If you wish to check whether the message you are about to compose is
8942 meant to be a news article or a mail message, you can check the values
8943 of the two dynamically bound variables @code{message-this-is-news} and
8944 @code{message-this-is-mail}.
8946 @vindex message-this-is-mail
8947 @vindex message-this-is-news
8949 So here's a new example:
8952 (setq gnus-posting-styles
8954 (signature-file "~/.signature")
8956 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
8957 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
8959 (signature my-funny-signature-randomizer))
8960 ((equal (system-name) "gnarly")
8961 (signature my-quote-randomizer))
8962 (message-this-is-news
8963 (signature my-news-signature))
8964 (posting-from-work-p
8965 (signature-file "~/.work-signature")
8966 (address "user@@bar.foo")
8967 (body "You are fired.\n\nSincerely, your boss.")
8968 (organization "Important Work, Inc"))
8970 (signature-file "~/.mail-signature"))))
8978 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
8979 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
8980 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
8981 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
8982 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
8984 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
8985 some sort using the gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
8986 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
8987 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
8988 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
8992 @vindex nndraft-directory
8993 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
8994 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
8995 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
8996 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
8997 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
8998 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
9000 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
9001 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
9004 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
9005 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
9006 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
9007 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
9008 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
9009 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
9010 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
9011 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
9012 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
9013 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
9014 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
9015 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
9016 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
9017 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
9019 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
9020 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
9021 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
9023 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
9025 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
9026 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
9027 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
9029 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
9032 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
9033 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
9034 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
9035 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
9036 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
9037 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
9038 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
9041 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
9042 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
9043 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
9046 @node Rejected Articles
9047 @section Rejected Articles
9048 @cindex rejected articles
9050 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
9051 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
9052 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
9053 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
9055 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of gnus.
9056 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
9057 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
9058 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So gnus saves these
9059 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
9061 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
9062 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
9063 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
9066 @node Select Methods
9067 @chapter Select Methods
9068 @cindex foreign groups
9069 @cindex select methods
9071 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
9072 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
9073 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
9074 personal mail group.
9076 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
9077 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
9078 list where the first element says what backend to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
9079 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
9080 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
9081 value may have special meaning for the backend in question.
9083 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
9084 we do just that (@pxref{The Server Buffer}).
9086 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the backend will recognize the
9089 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
9090 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
9091 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
9092 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
9093 backend just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
9095 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
9098 * The Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
9099 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
9100 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
9101 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
9102 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
9103 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
9107 @node The Server Buffer
9108 @section The Server Buffer
9110 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
9111 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
9112 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
9113 one backend or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
9114 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
9115 backend represents a virtual server.
9117 For instance, the @code{nntp} backend may be used to connect to several
9118 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
9119 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which backend to
9120 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
9122 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
9123 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
9124 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
9125 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
9126 Anyways, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
9127 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
9128 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
9130 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
9131 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
9134 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
9135 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
9136 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
9137 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
9138 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
9139 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
9140 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
9143 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
9144 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
9147 @node Server Buffer Format
9148 @subsection Server Buffer Format
9149 @cindex server buffer format
9151 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
9152 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
9153 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
9154 variable, with some simple extensions:
9159 How the news is fetched---the backend name.
9162 The name of this server.
9165 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
9168 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
9171 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
9172 The mode line can also be customized by using the
9173 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
9174 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
9184 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
9187 @node Server Commands
9188 @subsection Server Commands
9189 @cindex server commands
9195 @findex gnus-server-add-server
9196 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
9200 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
9201 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
9204 @kindex SPACE (Server)
9205 @findex gnus-server-read-server
9206 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
9210 @findex gnus-server-exit
9211 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
9215 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
9216 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
9220 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
9221 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
9225 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
9226 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
9230 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
9231 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
9235 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
9236 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
9237 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
9242 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
9243 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
9244 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
9245 a mail backend that has gotten out of synch.
9250 @node Example Methods
9251 @subsection Example Methods
9253 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
9256 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
9259 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
9265 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
9266 backend, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
9269 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
9270 @var{(variable form)} pairs.
9272 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
9273 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
9277 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
9280 You should read the documentation to each backend to find out what
9281 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
9283 @code{nnmh} is a mail backend that reads a spool-like structure. Say
9284 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
9285 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
9289 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
9292 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
9295 Here's the method for a public spool:
9299 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
9300 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
9303 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
9304 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
9305 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
9306 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
9307 should probably look something like this:
9311 (nntp-address "the.firewall.machine")
9312 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
9313 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
9314 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
9315 ("telnet" "the.real.nntp.host" "nntp")))
9318 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
9319 compressed connection over the modem line, you could create a virtual
9320 server that would look something like this:
9324 (nntp-address "copper.uio.no")
9325 (nntp-rlogin-program "ssh")
9326 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
9327 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
9328 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
9329 ("telnet" "news.uio.no" "nntp")))
9332 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
9333 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
9334 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
9335 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
9338 @node Creating a Virtual Server
9339 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
9341 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
9342 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
9344 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
9345 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
9346 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
9348 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
9350 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
9351 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
9352 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
9353 will contain the following:
9363 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
9364 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
9365 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
9368 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
9369 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
9370 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
9373 @node Server Variables
9374 @subsection Server Variables
9376 One sticky point when defining variables (both on backends and in Emacs
9377 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
9378 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
9379 change the "base" variable after the variables have been loaded, you
9380 won't change the "derived" variables.
9382 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
9383 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
9384 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
9385 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
9386 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
9387 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
9388 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
9389 variables for each backend, see each backend's section later in this
9390 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
9394 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
9395 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
9396 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
9400 @node Servers and Methods
9401 @subsection Servers and Methods
9403 Wherever you would normally use a select method
9404 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
9405 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
9406 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
9410 @node Unavailable Servers
9411 @subsection Unavailable Servers
9413 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
9414 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
9415 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
9416 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
9417 actually the case or not.
9419 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
9420 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
9421 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
9422 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
9423 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
9424 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
9425 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
9426 it will regard that server as ``down''.
9428 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
9429 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
9431 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{The Server Buffer}) and poke it
9432 with the following commands:
9438 @findex gnus-server-open-server
9439 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
9440 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
9444 @findex gnus-server-close-server
9445 Close the connection (if any) to the server
9446 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
9450 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
9451 Mark the current server as unreachable
9452 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
9455 @kindex M-o (Server)
9456 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
9457 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
9458 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
9461 @kindex M-c (Server)
9462 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
9463 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
9464 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
9468 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
9469 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
9470 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
9476 @section Getting News
9477 @cindex reading news
9478 @cindex news backends
9480 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
9481 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
9482 or it can read from a local spool.
9485 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
9486 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
9491 @subsection @sc{nntp}
9494 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
9495 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
9496 server as the, uhm, address.
9498 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
9499 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
9500 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
9501 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
9503 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
9504 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
9505 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
9507 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
9512 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
9513 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
9514 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
9516 @cindex authentification
9517 @cindex nntp authentification
9518 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
9519 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
9520 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
9521 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
9522 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
9523 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
9524 present in this hook.
9526 @item nntp-authinfo-function
9527 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
9528 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
9529 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
9530 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
9531 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
9532 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
9533 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
9534 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
9535 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
9536 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
9537 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
9541 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
9544 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs. The
9545 valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password},
9546 @samp{default} and @samp{force}. (The latter is not a valid
9547 @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp} token, which is the only way the
9548 @file{.authinfo} file format deviates from the @file{.netrc} file
9553 Here's an example file:
9556 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
9557 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
9560 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
9561 have to be first, for instance.
9563 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
9564 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
9565 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
9566 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
9567 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
9568 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
9569 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
9571 You can also add @samp{default} lines that will apply to all servers
9572 that don't have matching @samp{machine} lines.
9578 This will force sending @samp{AUTHINFO} commands to all servers not
9579 previously mentioned.
9581 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
9583 @item nntp-server-action-alist
9584 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
9585 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
9586 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
9587 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
9590 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
9594 You probably don't want to do that, though.
9596 The default value is
9599 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
9600 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
9603 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
9604 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
9606 @item nntp-maximum-request
9607 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
9608 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this backend
9609 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
9610 speed things up, the backend sends lots of these commands without
9611 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
9612 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
9613 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
9615 @item nntp-connection-timeout
9616 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
9617 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
9618 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
9619 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
9620 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
9621 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
9622 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} backend should wait for a
9623 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
9624 no timeouts are done.
9626 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
9627 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
9628 @c @cindex PPP connections
9629 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
9630 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
9631 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
9632 @c changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
9633 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
9634 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
9635 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
9636 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
9637 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
9638 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
9640 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
9641 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
9642 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
9643 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
9646 @item nntp-server-hook
9647 @vindex nntp-server-hook
9648 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
9651 @findex nntp-open-rlogin
9652 @findex nntp-open-telnet
9653 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
9654 @item nntp-open-connection-function
9655 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
9656 This function is used to connect to the remote system. Four pre-made
9657 functions are supplied:
9660 @item nntp-open-network-stream
9661 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
9664 @item nntp-open-rlogin
9665 Does an @samp{rlogin} on the
9666 remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet} to the @sc{nntp} server
9669 @code{nntp-open-rlogin}-related variables:
9673 @item nntp-rlogin-program
9674 @vindex nntp-rlogin-program
9675 Program used to log in on remote machines. The default is @samp{rsh},
9676 but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
9678 @item nntp-rlogin-parameters
9679 @vindex nntp-rlogin-parameters
9680 This list will be used as the parameter list given to @code{rsh}.
9682 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
9683 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
9684 User name on the remote system.
9688 @item nntp-open-telnet
9689 Does a @samp{telnet} to the remote system and then another @samp{telnet}
9690 to get to the @sc{nntp} server.
9692 @code{nntp-open-telnet}-related variables:
9695 @item nntp-telnet-command
9696 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
9697 Command used to start @code{telnet}.
9699 @item nntp-telnet-switches
9700 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
9701 List of strings to be used as the switches to the @code{telnet} command.
9703 @item nntp-telnet-user-name
9704 @vindex nntp-telnet-user-name
9705 User name for log in on the remote system.
9707 @item nntp-telnet-passwd
9708 @vindex nntp-telnet-passwd
9709 Password to use when logging in.
9711 @item nntp-telnet-parameters
9712 @vindex nntp-telnet-parameters
9713 A list of strings executed as a command after logging in
9716 @item nntp-telnet-shell-prompt
9717 @vindex nntp-telnet-shell-prompt
9718 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the remote machine. The default is
9719 @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
9721 @item nntp-open-telnet-envuser
9722 @vindex nntp-open-telnet-envuser
9723 If non-@code{nil}, the @code{telnet} session (client and server both)
9724 will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for login name.
9725 This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
9729 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
9730 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
9731 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use this
9732 you must have SSLay installed
9733 (@file{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}, and you also need
9734 @file{ssl.el} (from the W3 distributeion, for instance). You then
9735 define a server as follows:
9738 ;; Type `C-c C-c' after you've finished editing.
9740 ;; "snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
9742 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
9743 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
9744 (nntp-port-number "snews")
9745 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
9750 @item nntp-end-of-line
9751 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
9752 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
9753 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
9754 using @code{rlogin} to talk to the server.
9756 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
9757 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
9758 User name on the remote system when using the @code{rlogin} connect
9762 @vindex nntp-address
9763 The address of the remote system running the @sc{nntp} server.
9765 @item nntp-port-number
9766 @vindex nntp-port-number
9767 Port number to connect to when using the @code{nntp-open-network-stream}
9770 @item nntp-buggy-select
9771 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
9772 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
9774 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
9775 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
9776 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
9777 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
9780 @item nntp-xover-commands
9781 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
9784 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
9785 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
9789 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
9790 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
9791 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
9792 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
9793 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
9794 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
9795 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
9796 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
9797 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
9798 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
9799 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
9801 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
9802 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
9803 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
9805 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
9806 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
9807 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
9808 server closes connection.
9810 @item nntp-record-commands
9811 @vindex nntp-record-commands
9812 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
9813 @sc{nntp} server (along with a timestep) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
9814 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@sc{nntp} connection
9815 that doesn't seem to work.
9821 @subsection News Spool
9825 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
9826 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
9827 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
9830 Anyways, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
9831 anything else) as the address.
9833 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
9834 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
9835 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
9836 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
9840 @item nnspool-inews-program
9841 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
9842 Program used to post an article.
9844 @item nnspool-inews-switches
9845 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
9846 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
9848 @item nnspool-spool-directory
9849 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
9850 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
9851 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
9853 @item nnspool-nov-directory
9854 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
9855 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
9856 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
9858 @item nnspool-lib-dir
9859 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
9860 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
9862 @item nnspool-active-file
9863 @vindex nnspool-active-file
9864 The path to the active file.
9866 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
9867 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
9868 The path to the group descriptions file.
9870 @item nnspool-history-file
9871 @vindex nnspool-history-file
9872 The path to the news history file.
9874 @item nnspool-active-times-file
9875 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
9876 The path to the active date file.
9878 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
9879 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
9880 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
9883 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
9884 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
9886 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
9887 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
9888 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
9894 @section Getting Mail
9895 @cindex reading mail
9898 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
9902 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
9903 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
9904 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
9905 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
9906 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
9907 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
9908 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
9909 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
9910 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
9911 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
9912 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
9916 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
9917 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
9919 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
9920 mail backend of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
9921 and things will happen automatically.
9923 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a "one file per
9924 mail" backend), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
9927 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
9928 '((nnml "private")))
9931 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this backend will be queried for new
9932 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
9933 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
9934 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
9935 like any other group.
9937 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
9940 (setq nnmail-split-methods
9941 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
9942 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
9946 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
9947 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
9948 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
9951 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
9952 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
9953 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Backend} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
9956 @node Splitting Mail
9957 @subsection Splitting Mail
9958 @cindex splitting mail
9959 @cindex mail splitting
9961 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
9962 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
9963 to be split into groups.
9966 (setq nnmail-split-methods
9967 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
9968 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
9972 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
9973 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
9974 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
9975 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
9976 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
9977 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
9978 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
9981 ("list.\\1" "From:.* \\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
9984 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
9985 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
9986 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
9987 mail belongs in that group.
9989 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
9990 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any mails
9991 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
9992 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
9993 rule to make a match will "win", unless you have crossposting enabled.
9994 In that case, all matching rules will "win".)
9996 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
9997 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
9998 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
9999 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
10000 thinks should carry this mail message.
10002 Note that the mail backends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
10003 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
10004 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
10005 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
10007 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
10008 The mail backends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
10009 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
10010 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
10011 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
10013 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
10016 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
10017 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
10018 links. If that's the case for you, set
10019 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
10020 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
10022 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
10023 @kindex nnmail-split-history
10024 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
10025 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command.
10027 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
10028 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
10029 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
10030 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
10031 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
10032 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
10033 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
10034 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
10035 month's rent money.
10039 @subsection Mail Sources
10041 Mail can be gotten from many different sources---the mail spool, from a
10042 POP mail server, or from a procmail directory, for instance.
10045 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
10046 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
10047 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
10051 @node Mail Source Specifiers
10052 @subsubsection Mail Source Specifiers
10054 @cindex mail server
10057 @cindex mail source
10059 You tell Gnus how to fetch mail by creating a @dfn{mail source
10065 (pop :server "pop3.mailserver.com" :user "myname")
10068 As can be observed, a mail source specifier is a list where the first
10069 element is a @dfn{mail source type}, followed by an arbitrary number of
10070 @dfn{keywords}. Keywords that are not explicitly specified are given
10073 The following mail source types are available:
10077 Get mail from a single file; typically from the mail spool.
10083 The path of the file. Defaults to the value of the @code{MAIL}
10084 environment variable or @file{/usr/mail/spool/user-name}.
10087 An example file mail source:
10090 (file :path "/usr/spool/mail/user-name")
10093 Or using the default path:
10100 Get mail from several files in a directory. This is typically used when
10101 you have procmail split the incoming mail into several files.
10107 The path of the directory where the files are. There is no default
10111 Only files ending with this suffix are used. The default is
10115 Only files that have this predicate return non-@code{nil} are returned.
10116 The default is @code{identity}. This is used as an additional
10117 filter---only files that have the right suffix @emph{and} satisfy this
10118 predicate are considered.
10122 Script run before/after fetching mail.
10126 An example directory mail source:
10129 (directory :path "/home/user-name/procmail-dir/"
10134 Get mail from a POP server.
10140 The name of the POP server. The default is taken from the
10141 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
10144 The port number of the POP server. The default is @samp{pop3}.
10147 The user name to give to the POP server. The default is the login
10151 The password to give to the POP server. If not specified, the user is
10155 The program to use to fetch mail from the POP server. This is should be
10156 a @code{format}-like string. Here's an example:
10159 fetchmail %u@@%s -P %p %t
10162 The valid format specifier characters are:
10166 The name of the file the mail is to be moved to. This must always be
10167 included in this string.
10170 The name of the server.
10173 The port number of the server.
10176 The user name to use.
10179 The password to use.
10182 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
10183 corresponding keywords.
10186 A script to be run before fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
10187 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
10190 A script to be run after fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
10191 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
10194 The function to use to fetch mail from the POP server. The function is
10195 called with one parameter---the name of the file where the mail should
10198 @item :authentication
10199 This can be either the symbol @code{password} or the symbol @code{apop}
10200 and says what authentication scheme to use. The default is
10205 If the @code{:program} and @code{:function} keywords aren't specified,
10206 @code{pop3-movemail} will be used.
10208 Here are some examples. Fetch from the default POP server, using the
10209 default user name, and default fetcher:
10215 Fetch from a named server with a named user and password:
10218 (pop :server "my.pop.server"
10219 :user "user-name" :password "secret")
10222 Use @samp{movemail} to move the mail:
10225 (pop :program "movemail po:%u %t %p")
10229 Get mail from a maildir. This is a type of mailbox currently only
10230 supported by qmail, where each file in a special directory contains
10237 The path of the directory where the mails are stored. The default is
10238 @samp{~/Maildir/new}.
10240 If you sometimes look at your mail through a pop3 daemon before fetching
10241 them with Gnus, you may also have to fetch your mails from the
10242 @code{cur} directory inside the maildir, like in the following example.
10246 An example maildir mail source:
10249 (maildir :path "/home/user-name/Maildir/cur")
10255 @node Mail Source Customization
10256 @subsubsection Mail Source Customization
10258 The following is a list of variables that influence how the mail is
10259 fetched. You would normally not need to set or change any of these
10263 @item mail-source-movemail-program
10264 @vindex mail-source-movemail-program
10265 A command to be executed to move mail from the inbox. The default is
10268 This can also be a function. In that case, the function will be
10269 called with two parameters -- the name of the INBOX file, and the file
10272 @item mail-source-movemail-args
10273 @vindex mail-source-movemail-args
10274 Extra arguments to give to the command described above.
10276 @item mail-source-crash-box
10277 @vindex mail-source-crash-box
10278 File where mail will be stored while processing it. The default is
10279 @file{~/.emacs-mail-crash-box}.
10281 @item mail-source-delete-incoming
10282 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
10283 If non-@code{nil}, delete incoming files after handling them.
10285 @item mail-source-directory
10286 @vindex mail-source-directory
10287 Directory where files (if any) will be stored. The default is
10288 @file{~/Mail/}. At present, the only thing this is used for is to say
10289 where the incoming files will be stored if the previous variable is
10292 @item mail-source-default-file-modes
10293 @vindex mail-source-default-file-modes
10294 All new mail files will get this file mode. The default is 384.
10299 @node Fetching Mail
10300 @subsubsection Fetching Mail
10302 @vindex mail-sources
10303 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
10304 The way to actually tell Gnus where to get new mail from is to set
10305 @code{mail-sources} to a list of mail source specifiers
10306 (@pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}).
10308 If this variable (and the obsolescent @code{nnmail-spool-file}) is
10309 @code{nil}, the mail backends will never attempt to fetch mail by
10312 If you want to fetch mail both from your local spool as well as a POP
10313 mail server, you'd say something like:
10318 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
10319 :password "secret")))
10322 Or, if you don't want to use any of the keyword defaults:
10326 '((file :path "/var/spool/mail/user-name")
10327 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
10330 :password "secret")))
10334 When you use a mail backend, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
10335 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
10336 mail if you're not using a mail backend---you have to do a lot of magic
10337 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
10338 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
10339 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
10343 @node Mail Backend Variables
10344 @subsection Mail Backend Variables
10346 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
10350 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
10351 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
10352 The mail backends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
10353 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
10355 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
10356 @item nnmail-split-hook
10357 @findex article-decode-encoded-words
10358 @findex RFC1522 decoding
10359 @findex RFC2047 decoding
10360 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
10361 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
10362 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
10363 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
10364 in the buffer will show up in any files.
10365 @code{gnus-article-decode-encoded-words} is one likely function to add
10368 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
10369 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
10370 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
10371 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
10372 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
10373 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
10374 starting to handle the new mail) and
10375 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
10376 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
10377 default file modes the new mail files get:
10380 (add-hook 'gnus-pre-get-new-mail-hook
10381 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
10383 (add-hook 'gnus-post-get-new-mail-hook
10384 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
10387 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
10388 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
10389 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will use long file and directory
10390 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
10391 (assuming use of @code{nnml} backend) or files (assuming use of
10392 @code{nnfolder} backend) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
10393 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
10395 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
10396 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
10397 @findex delete-file
10398 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
10400 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
10401 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
10402 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
10403 the backend (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
10404 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
10409 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
10410 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
10411 @cindex mail splitting
10412 @cindex fancy mail splitting
10414 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
10415 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
10416 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
10417 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
10418 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
10419 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
10421 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
10424 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
10425 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
10426 ;; from real errors.
10427 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
10429 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
10430 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
10431 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
10432 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
10433 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
10434 ;; Other mailing lists...
10435 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
10436 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
10438 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
10439 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
10443 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
10444 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
10445 the five possible split syntaxes:
10450 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group
10451 name. Normal regexp match expansion will be done. See below for
10455 @var{(FIELD VALUE SPLIT)}: If the split is a list, the first element of
10456 which is a string, then store the message as specified by SPLIT, if
10457 header FIELD (a regexp) contains VALUE (also a regexp).
10460 @var{(| SPLIT...)}: If the split is a list, and the first element is
10461 @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each SPLIT until one of them
10462 matches. A SPLIT is said to match if it will cause the mail message to
10463 be stored in one or more groups.
10466 @var{(& SPLIT...)}: If the split is a list, and the first element is
10467 @code{&}, then process all SPLITs in the list.
10470 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
10471 this message. Use with extreme caution.
10474 @var{(: function arg1 arg2 ...)}: If the split is a list, and the first
10475 element is @code{:}, then the second element will be called as a
10476 function with @var{args} given as arguments. The function should return
10480 @var{(! FUNC SPLIT)}: If the split is a list, and the first element
10481 is @code{!}, then SPLIT will be processed, and FUNC will be called as a
10482 function with the result of SPLIT as argument. FUNC should return a split.
10485 @code{nil}: If the split is @code{nil}, it is ignored.
10489 In these splits, @var{FIELD} must match a complete field name.
10490 @var{VALUE} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
10491 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
10492 field names or words. In other words, all @var{VALUE}'s are wrapped in
10493 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
10495 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
10496 @var{FIELD} and @var{VALUE} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
10497 are expanded as specified by the variable
10498 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
10499 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
10502 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
10503 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
10504 when all this splitting is performed.
10506 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
10507 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
10508 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
10511 (any "debian-\\b\\(\\w+\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
10514 In this example, messages sent to @samp{debian-foo@@lists.debian.org}
10515 will be filed in @samp{mail.debian.foo}.
10517 If the string contains the element @samp{\&}, then the previously
10518 matched string will be substituted. Similarly, the elements @samp{\\1}
10519 up to @samp{\\9} will be substituted with the text matched by the
10520 groupings 1 through 9.
10523 @node Incorporating Old Mail
10524 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
10526 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
10527 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
10528 backends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
10531 Doing so can be quite easy.
10533 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
10534 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
10535 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
10536 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
10537 your @code{nnml} groups.
10543 Go to the group buffer.
10546 Type `G f' and give the path to the mbox file when prompted to create an
10547 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
10550 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
10553 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
10554 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
10557 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
10558 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
10561 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
10562 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
10563 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
10564 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
10565 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
10567 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
10568 backend to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
10569 using the new mail backend.
10572 @node Expiring Mail
10573 @subsection Expiring Mail
10574 @cindex article expiry
10576 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
10577 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
10578 different approach to mail reading.
10580 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
10581 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
10582 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
10583 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
10584 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
10585 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
10588 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
10589 articles as @dfn{expirable}. This does not mean that the articles will
10590 disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
10591 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
10592 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
10593 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
10594 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
10595 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
10597 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
10598 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Groups that
10599 match the regular expression @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will
10600 have all articles that you read marked as expirable automatically. All
10601 articles marked as expirable have an @samp{E} in the first
10602 column in the summary buffer.
10604 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
10605 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
10606 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
10607 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
10610 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
10612 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
10613 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
10614 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
10617 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
10618 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
10619 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
10620 groups expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
10621 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
10623 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
10624 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
10627 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
10628 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
10631 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
10632 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
10634 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
10635 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
10636 don't really mix very well.
10638 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
10639 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
10640 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
10641 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
10644 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
10645 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
10646 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
10647 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
10650 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
10652 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
10654 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
10656 ((string= group "mail.junk")
10658 ((string= group "important")
10664 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
10665 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
10667 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
10668 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
10669 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
10672 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
10673 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
10675 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
10676 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
10677 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
10678 easier for procmail users.
10680 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
10681 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
10682 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
10683 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
10684 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
10685 caution. Even more dangerous is the
10686 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
10687 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
10688 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
10689 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
10690 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
10691 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
10692 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
10695 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
10697 @vindex gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire
10698 If @code{gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire} is non-@code{nil}, user marking
10699 commands will not mark an article as expirable, even if the group has
10700 auto-expire turned on.
10704 @subsection Washing Mail
10705 @cindex mail washing
10706 @cindex list server brain damage
10707 @cindex incoming mail treatment
10709 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
10710 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC822 doesn't explicitly
10711 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
10712 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
10713 Yes, but RFC822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
10714 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
10716 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
10717 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
10718 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
10721 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
10722 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
10723 storing the mail to disc. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
10724 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
10727 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
10728 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
10729 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
10730 grand, sweeping gestures. It is called in a buffer that contains all
10731 the new, incoming mail. Functions to be used include:
10734 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
10735 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
10736 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
10737 Emacs running on MS machines.
10741 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
10742 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
10743 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
10744 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
10747 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
10748 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
10749 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
10750 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
10752 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
10753 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
10754 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
10755 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
10756 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
10757 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
10758 also be a list of regexp.
10760 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
10761 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
10764 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
10765 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
10768 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
10769 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
10770 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
10772 @item nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
10773 @findex nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
10775 Eudora produces broken @code{References} headers, but OK
10776 @code{In-Reply-To} headers. This function will get rid of the
10777 @code{References} headers.
10781 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
10782 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
10783 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
10787 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
10788 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
10789 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
10796 @subsection Duplicates
10798 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
10799 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
10800 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
10801 @cindex duplicate mails
10802 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
10803 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
10804 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
10805 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
10806 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
10807 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
10808 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
10809 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
10810 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
10811 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
10812 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
10813 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
10814 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
10816 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
10817 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
10818 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
10819 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
10821 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
10824 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
10825 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
10829 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
10830 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
10831 ("gnus-warning" "duplication of message" "duplicate")
10832 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
10833 (any mail "mail.misc")
10840 (setq nnmail-split-methods
10841 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:")
10846 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
10847 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
10848 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
10849 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
10850 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
10853 @node Not Reading Mail
10854 @subsection Not Reading Mail
10856 If you start using any of the mail backends, they have the annoying
10857 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
10858 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
10860 If you set @code{mail-sources} and @code{nnmail-spool-file} to
10861 @code{nil}, none of the backends will ever attempt to read incoming
10862 mail, which should help.
10864 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
10865 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
10866 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
10867 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
10868 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
10869 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
10870 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
10871 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All backends have
10872 variables called backend-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
10873 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
10874 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
10876 All the mail backends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
10877 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
10881 @node Choosing a Mail Backend
10882 @subsection Choosing a Mail Backend
10884 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
10885 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
10886 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
10888 There are five different mail backends in the standard Gnus, and more
10889 backends are available separately. The mail backend most people use
10890 (because it is the fastest and most flexible) is @code{nnml}
10891 (@pxref{Mail Spool}).
10894 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
10895 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
10896 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
10897 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
10898 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
10899 * Comparing Mail Backends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
10903 @node Unix Mail Box
10904 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
10906 @cindex unix mail box
10908 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
10909 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
10910 The @dfn{nnmbox} backend will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
10911 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
10912 which group it belongs in.
10914 Virtual server settings:
10917 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
10918 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
10919 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory.
10921 @item nnmbox-active-file
10922 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
10923 The name of the active file for the mail box.
10925 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
10926 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
10927 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
10933 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
10937 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
10938 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
10939 The @dfn{nnbabyl} backend will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
10940 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each mail
10941 article to say which group it belongs in.
10943 Virtual server settings:
10946 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
10947 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
10948 The name of the rmail mbox file.
10950 @item nnbabyl-active-file
10951 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
10952 The name of the active file for the rmail box.
10954 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
10955 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
10956 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail.
10961 @subsubsection Mail Spool
10963 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
10965 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
10966 format. It should be used with some caution.
10968 @vindex nnml-directory
10969 If you use this backend, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
10970 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
10971 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
10972 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
10974 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
10977 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
10978 in your account, you should not use this backend. As each mail gets its
10979 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
10980 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
10981 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
10982 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
10983 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
10984 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
10986 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest backend when it comes to article
10987 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
10988 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it the fastest
10989 backend when it comes to reading mail.
10991 Virtual server settings:
10994 @item nnml-directory
10995 @vindex nnml-directory
10996 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
10998 @item nnml-active-file
10999 @vindex nnml-active-file
11000 The active file for the @code{nnml} server.
11002 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
11003 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
11004 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
11007 @item nnml-get-new-mail
11008 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
11009 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail.
11011 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
11012 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
11013 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{nov} files.
11015 @item nnml-nov-file-name
11016 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
11017 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
11019 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
11020 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
11021 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
11025 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
11026 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
11027 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
11028 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
11029 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
11030 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
11031 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
11036 @subsubsection MH Spool
11038 @cindex mh-e mail spool
11040 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
11041 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file. This makes
11042 @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower backend than @code{nnml}, but it also
11043 makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
11045 Virtual server settings:
11048 @item nnmh-directory
11049 @vindex nnmh-directory
11050 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory.
11052 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
11053 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
11054 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail.
11057 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
11058 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
11059 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
11060 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
11061 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
11062 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
11063 to set this variable to @code{t}.
11068 @subsubsection Mail Folders
11070 @cindex mbox folders
11071 @cindex mail folders
11073 @code{nnfolder} is a backend for storing each mail group in a separate
11074 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
11075 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
11078 Virtual server settings:
11081 @item nnfolder-directory
11082 @vindex nnfolder-directory
11083 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
11085 @item nnfolder-active-file
11086 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
11087 The name of the active file.
11089 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
11090 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
11091 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File Format}.
11093 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
11094 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
11095 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail.
11097 @item nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
11098 @vindex nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
11099 @cindex backup files
11100 Hook run before saving the folders. Note that Emacs does the normal
11101 backup renaming of files even with the @code{nnfolder} buffers. If you
11102 wish to switch this off, you could say something like the following in
11103 your @file{.emacs} file:
11106 (defun turn-off-backup ()
11107 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
11109 (add-hook 'nnfolder-save-buffer-hook 'turn-off-backup)
11112 @item nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
11113 @vindex nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
11114 Hook run in a buffer narrowed to the message that is to be deleted.
11115 This function can be used to copy the message to somewhere else, or to
11116 extract some information from it before removing it.
11121 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
11122 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
11123 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
11124 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
11125 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
11126 @code{nnfolder-directory}. This only works if you use long file names,
11129 @node Comparing Mail Backends
11130 @subsubsection Comparing Mail Backends
11132 First, just for terminology, the @dfn{backend} is the common word for a
11133 low-level access method---a transport, if you will, by which something
11134 is acquired. The sense is that one's mail has to come from somewhere,
11135 and so selection of a suitable backend is required in order to get that
11136 mail within spitting distance of Gnus.
11138 The same concept exists for Usenet itself: Though access to articles is
11139 typically done by NNTP these days, once upon a midnight dreary, everyone
11140 in the world got at Usenet by running a reader on the machine where the
11141 articles lay (the machine which today we call an NNTP server), and
11142 access was by the reader stepping into the articles' directory spool
11143 area directly. One can still select between either the @code{nntp} or
11144 @code{nnspool} backends, to select between these methods, if one happens
11145 actually to live on the server (or can see its spool directly, anyway,
11148 The goal in selecting a mail backend is to pick one which
11149 simultaneously represents a suitable way of dealing with the original
11150 format plus leaving mail in a form that is convenient to use in the
11151 future. Here are some high and low points on each:
11156 UNIX systems have historically had a single, very common, and well-
11157 defined format. All messages arrive in a single @dfn{spool file}, and
11158 they are delineated by a line whose regular expression matches
11159 @samp{^From_}. (My notational use of @samp{_} is to indicate a space,
11160 to make it clear in this instance that this is not the RFC-specified
11161 @samp{From:} header.) Because Emacs and therefore Gnus emanate
11162 historically from the Unix environment, it is simplest if one does not
11163 mess a great deal with the original mailbox format, so if one chooses
11164 this backend, Gnus' primary activity in getting mail from the real spool
11165 area to Gnus' preferred directory is simply to copy it, with no
11166 (appreciable) format change in the process. It is the ``dumbest'' way
11167 to move mail into availability in the Gnus environment. This makes it
11168 fast to move into place, but slow to parse, when Gnus has to look at
11173 Once upon a time, there was the DEC-10 and DEC-20, running operating
11174 systems called TOPS and related things, and the usual (only?) mail
11175 reading environment was a thing called Babyl. I don't know what format
11176 was used for mail landing on the system, but Babyl had its own internal
11177 format to which mail was converted, primarily involving creating a
11178 spool-file-like entity with a scheme for inserting Babyl-specific
11179 headers and status bits above the top of each message in the file.
11180 RMAIL was Emacs' first mail reader, it was written by Richard Stallman,
11181 and Stallman came out of that TOPS/Babyl environment, so he wrote RMAIL
11182 to understand the mail files folks already had in existence. Gnus (and
11183 VM, for that matter) continue to support this format because it's
11184 perceived as having some good qualities in those mailer-specific
11185 headers/status bits stuff. RMAIL itself still exists as well, of
11186 course, and is still maintained by Stallman.
11188 Both of the above forms leave your mail in a single file on your
11189 filesystem, and they must parse that entire file each time you take a
11194 @code{nnml} is the backend which smells the most as though you were
11195 actually operating with an @code{nnspool}-accessed Usenet system. (In
11196 fact, I believe @code{nnml} actually derived from @code{nnspool} code,
11197 lo these years ago.) One's mail is taken from the original spool file,
11198 and is then cut up into individual message files, 1:1. It maintains a
11199 Usenet-style active file (analogous to what one finds in an INN- or
11200 CNews-based news system in (for instance) @file{/var/lib/news/active},
11201 or what is returned via the @samp{NNTP LIST} verb) and also creates
11202 @dfn{overview} files for efficient group entry, as has been defined for
11203 @sc{nntp} servers for some years now. It is slower in mail-splitting,
11204 due to the creation of lots of files, updates to the @code{nnml} active
11205 file, and additions to overview files on a per-message basis, but it is
11206 extremely fast on access because of what amounts to the indexing support
11207 provided by the active file and overviews.
11209 @code{nnml} costs @dfn{inodes} in a big way; that is, it soaks up the
11210 resource which defines available places in the filesystem to put new
11211 files. Sysadmins take a dim view of heavy inode occupation within
11212 tight, shared filesystems. But if you live on a personal machine where
11213 the filesystem is your own and space is not at a premium, @code{nnml}
11216 It is also problematic using this backend if you are living in a
11217 FAT16-based Windows world, since much space will be wasted on all these
11222 The Rand MH mail-reading system has been around UNIX systems for a very
11223 long time; it operates by splitting one's spool file of messages into
11224 individual files, but with little or no indexing support -- @code{nnmh}
11225 is considered to be semantically equivalent to ``@code{nnml} without
11226 active file or overviews''. This is arguably the worst choice, because
11227 one gets the slowness of individual file creation married to the
11228 slowness of access parsing when learning what's new in one's groups.
11232 Basically the effetc of @code{nnfolder} is @code{nnmbox} (the first
11233 method described above) on a per-group basis. That is, @code{nnmbox}
11234 itself puts *all* one's mail in one file; @code{nnfolder} provides a
11235 little bit of optimization to this so that each of one's mail groups has
11236 a Unix mail box file. It's faster than @code{nnmbox} because each group
11237 can be parsed separately, and still provides the simple Unix mail box
11238 format requiring minimal effort in moving the mail around. In addition,
11239 it maintains an ``active'' file making it much faster for Gnus to figure
11240 out how many messages there are in each separate group.
11242 If you have groups that are expected to have a massive amount of
11243 messages, @code{nnfolder} is not the best choice, but if you receive
11244 only a moderate amount of mail, @code{nnfolder} is probably the most
11245 friendly mail backend all over.
11251 @node Other Sources
11252 @section Other Sources
11254 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
11255 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
11259 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
11260 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
11261 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
11262 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{SOUP} packets ``offline''.
11263 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
11264 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
11268 @node Directory Groups
11269 @subsection Directory Groups
11271 @cindex directory groups
11273 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
11274 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
11277 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
11278 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
11279 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
11280 backend to read directories. Big deal.
11282 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
11283 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
11284 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
11285 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
11286 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
11288 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
11290 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' backend---you can't delete or expire
11291 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
11292 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
11293 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
11296 @node Anything Groups
11297 @subsection Anything Groups
11300 From the @code{nndir} backend (which reads a single spool-like
11301 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
11302 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
11305 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
11306 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
11307 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
11308 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're
11309 forgetting. @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it
11310 snoops each file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e.,
11311 the first few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head.
11312 If this is just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source
11313 file), @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It
11314 will use file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
11317 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
11318 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
11319 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
11320 in the article buffer, just as usual.
11322 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
11323 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
11324 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
11325 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
11327 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
11328 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
11329 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
11330 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
11331 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
11332 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
11333 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
11334 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
11339 @item nneething-map-file-directory
11340 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
11341 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
11342 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
11344 @item nneething-exclude-files
11345 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
11346 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
11347 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
11349 @item nneething-include-files
11350 @vindex nneething-include-files
11351 Regexp saying what files to include in the group. If this variable is
11352 non-@code{nil}, only files matching this regexp will be included.
11354 @item nneething-map-file
11355 @vindex nneething-map-file
11356 Name of the map files.
11360 @node Document Groups
11361 @subsection Document Groups
11363 @cindex documentation group
11366 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
11367 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
11374 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
11379 The standard Unix mbox file.
11381 @cindex MMDF mail box
11383 The MMDF mail box format.
11386 Several news articles appended into a file.
11389 @cindex rnews batch files
11390 The rnews batch transport format.
11391 @cindex forwarded messages
11394 Forwarded articles.
11397 Netscape mail boxes.
11400 MIME multipart messages.
11402 @item standard-digest
11403 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
11406 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
11409 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
11410 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
11411 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
11414 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
11415 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
11416 group. And that's it.
11418 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
11419 new & spiffy Gnus mail backend, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
11420 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
11421 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
11422 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
11423 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
11424 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
11425 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
11426 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
11427 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
11429 Virtual server variables:
11432 @item nndoc-article-type
11433 @vindex nndoc-article-type
11434 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
11435 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
11436 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts}, @code{standard-digest},
11437 @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs}, @code{nsmail} or @code{guess}.
11439 @item nndoc-post-type
11440 @vindex nndoc-post-type
11441 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
11442 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
11447 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
11451 @node Document Server Internals
11452 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
11454 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
11455 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
11456 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
11457 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
11459 First, here's an example document type definition:
11463 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
11464 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
11467 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
11468 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
11469 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
11470 types can be defined with very few settings:
11473 @item first-article
11474 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
11475 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
11478 @item article-begin
11479 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
11480 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
11482 @item head-begin-function
11483 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
11486 @item nndoc-head-begin
11487 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
11490 @item nndoc-head-end
11491 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
11492 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
11494 @item body-begin-function
11495 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
11499 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
11502 @item body-end-function
11503 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
11507 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
11510 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
11511 regexp will be totally ignored.
11515 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
11516 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
11517 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
11518 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
11519 something that's palatable for Gnus:
11522 @item prepare-body-function
11523 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
11524 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
11525 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
11527 @item article-transform-function
11528 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
11529 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
11530 body of the article.
11532 @item generate-head-function
11533 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
11534 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
11535 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
11536 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
11540 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
11545 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
11546 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
11547 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
11548 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
11549 (head-end . "^ ?$")
11550 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
11551 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
11552 (subtype digest guess))
11555 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
11556 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
11557 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
11558 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
11559 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
11561 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
11562 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
11563 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
11564 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
11565 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
11566 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
11567 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
11568 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
11569 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
11570 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
11578 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
11579 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
11580 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
11582 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
11583 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
11584 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
11587 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something a that's a bit
11588 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
11589 that interested in doing things properly.
11591 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
11592 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
11595 First some terminology:
11600 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
11601 get news and/or mail from.
11604 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
11605 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
11608 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
11612 @item message packets
11613 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
11614 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
11615 default, where @var{X} is a number.
11617 @item response packets
11618 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
11619 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
11620 default, where @var{X} is a number.
11630 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
11631 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
11632 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
11633 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
11636 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
11639 You put the packet in your home directory.
11642 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} backend as
11643 the native or secondary server.
11646 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
11647 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
11650 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
11654 You transfer this packet to the server.
11657 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
11660 You then repeat until you die.
11664 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
11665 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
11668 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
11669 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
11670 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
11674 @node SOUP Commands
11675 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
11677 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
11681 @kindex G s b (Group)
11682 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
11683 Pack all unread articles in the current group
11684 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
11685 process/prefix convention.
11688 @kindex G s w (Group)
11689 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
11690 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
11693 @kindex G s s (Group)
11694 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
11695 Send all replies from the replies packet
11696 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
11699 @kindex G s p (Group)
11700 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
11701 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
11704 @kindex G s r (Group)
11705 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
11706 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
11709 @kindex O s (Summary)
11710 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
11711 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
11712 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
11713 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
11718 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
11723 @item gnus-soup-directory
11724 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
11725 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
11726 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
11728 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
11729 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
11730 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
11731 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
11733 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
11734 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
11735 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
11736 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
11738 @item gnus-soup-packer
11739 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
11740 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
11741 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
11743 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
11744 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
11745 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
11746 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
11748 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
11749 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
11750 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
11752 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
11753 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
11754 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
11755 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
11761 @subsubsection @sc{soup} Groups
11764 @code{nnsoup} is the backend for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
11765 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
11766 you can read them at leisure.
11768 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
11772 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
11773 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
11774 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
11775 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
11777 @item nnsoup-directory
11778 @vindex nnsoup-directory
11779 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
11780 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
11782 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
11783 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
11784 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
11785 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
11787 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
11788 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
11789 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
11790 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
11791 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
11793 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
11794 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
11795 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
11796 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
11798 @item nnsoup-active-file
11799 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
11800 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
11801 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
11802 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
11803 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
11805 @item nnsoup-packer
11806 @vindex nnsoup-packer
11807 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
11808 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
11810 @item nnsoup-unpacker
11811 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
11812 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
11813 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
11815 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
11816 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
11817 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
11820 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
11821 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
11822 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
11825 @item nnsoup-always-save
11826 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
11827 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
11833 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
11835 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
11836 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
11837 more for that to happen.
11839 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
11840 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
11841 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
11844 In specific, this is what it does:
11847 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
11848 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
11851 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
11852 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
11853 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
11857 @subsection Web Searches
11861 @cindex InReference
11862 @cindex Usenet searches
11863 @cindex searching the Usenet
11865 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
11866 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
11867 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
11868 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
11869 searches without having to use a browser.
11871 The @code{nnweb} backend allows an easy interface to the mighty search
11872 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
11873 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
11874 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
11875 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
11877 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
11878 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
11879 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
11880 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
11881 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
11882 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
11883 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
11884 engines (DejaNews, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
11885 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
11886 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
11889 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
11890 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
11891 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
11892 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
11893 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
11894 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
11896 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
11897 to use @code{nnweb}.
11899 Virtual server variables:
11904 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
11905 are @code{dejanews}, @code{dejanewsold}, @code{altavista} and
11909 @vindex nnweb-search
11910 The search string to feed to the search engine.
11912 @item nnweb-max-hits
11913 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
11914 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
11917 @item nnweb-type-definition
11918 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
11919 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
11920 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
11925 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
11929 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
11932 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
11935 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
11939 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
11946 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
11947 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
11948 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
11951 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
11952 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
11953 The @code{nngateway} backend provides the interface.
11955 Note that you can't read anything from this backend---it can only be
11961 @item nngateway-address
11962 @vindex nngateway-address
11963 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
11965 @item nngateway-header-transformation
11966 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
11967 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
11968 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
11969 transformation should be called, and defaults to
11970 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
11971 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
11974 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
11975 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
11976 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
11979 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
11982 will get this @code{From} header inserted:
11985 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
11988 The following pre-defined functions exist:
11990 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
11993 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
11994 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
11995 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
11997 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
11999 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
12000 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
12001 @code{nngateway-address}.
12006 (setq gnus-post-method
12007 '(nngateway "mail2news@@replay.com"
12008 (nngateway-header-transformation
12009 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
12017 So, to use this, simply say something like:
12020 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
12024 @node Combined Groups
12025 @section Combined Groups
12027 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
12031 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
12032 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
12036 @node Virtual Groups
12037 @subsection Virtual Groups
12039 @cindex virtual groups
12040 @cindex merging groups
12042 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
12045 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
12046 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
12047 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
12049 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
12050 regexp to match component groups.
12052 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
12053 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
12054 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it came.
12055 (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be shown in
12056 the virtual group.)
12058 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
12059 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
12062 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
12065 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
12066 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
12068 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
12069 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
12070 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
12071 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
12074 "^nntp\\+server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
12077 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
12078 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
12079 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
12081 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
12082 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
12083 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
12084 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
12085 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
12087 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
12088 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
12089 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
12091 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
12092 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
12093 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
12094 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
12095 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
12096 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
12097 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
12098 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
12099 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
12100 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
12101 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
12103 @code{nnvirtual} can have both mail and news groups as component groups.
12104 When responding to articles in @code{nnvirtual} groups, @code{nnvirtual}
12105 has to ask the backend of the component group the article comes from
12106 whether it is a news or mail backend. However, when you do a @kbd{^},
12107 there is typically no sure way for the component backend to know this,
12108 and in that case @code{nnvirtual} tells Gnus that the article came from a
12109 not-news backend. (Just to be on the safe side.)
12111 @kbd{C-c C-t} in the message buffer will insert the @code{Newsgroups}
12112 line from the article you respond to in these cases.
12116 @node Kibozed Groups
12117 @subsection Kibozed Groups
12121 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
12122 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a backend that will do this for
12123 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
12124 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
12126 @kindex G k (Group)
12127 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
12130 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
12131 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
12132 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
12133 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
12135 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
12136 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
12137 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
12139 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
12140 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
12141 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
12142 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
12143 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
12144 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
12145 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
12146 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
12148 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
12149 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
12150 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
12151 Stranger things have happened.
12153 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
12154 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
12156 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
12157 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
12158 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
12159 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
12160 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
12161 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
12163 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
12164 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
12167 @node Gnus Unplugged
12168 @section Gnus Unplugged
12173 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
12175 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
12176 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
12177 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
12178 read news. Believe it or not.
12180 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
12181 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
12182 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
12183 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
12184 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
12186 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
12187 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
12188 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
12189 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
12190 reading news on a machine.
12192 Using Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple.
12196 First, set up Gnus as you would do if you were running it on a machine
12197 that has full connection to the net. Go ahead. I'll still be waiting
12201 Then, put the following magical incantation at the end of your
12202 @file{.gnus.el} file:
12209 That's it. Gnus is now an ``offline'' newsreader.
12211 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
12214 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
12215 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
12216 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
12217 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
12218 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
12219 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
12220 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
12221 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
12222 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
12227 @subsection Agent Basics
12229 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
12231 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
12232 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
12233 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
12234 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
12236 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
12237 connected to the net continuously.
12239 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
12240 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
12242 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
12247 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
12248 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
12249 already fetched while in this mode.
12252 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
12253 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
12254 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged}.
12257 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
12258 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{J
12259 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
12260 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
12263 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
12264 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
12265 then you read the news offline.
12268 And then you go to step 2.
12271 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
12277 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
12278 backend, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
12279 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
12280 @kbd{J a} the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
12281 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}). This will typically be only the
12282 primary select method, which is listed on the bottom in the buffer.
12285 Decide on download policy. @xref{Agent Categories}.
12292 @node Agent Categories
12293 @subsection Agent Categories
12295 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
12296 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
12297 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
12298 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
12299 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
12300 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
12301 you're interested in the articles anyway.
12303 The main way to control what is to be downloaded is to create a
12304 @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all) groups to this category.
12305 Groups that do not belong in any other category belong to the
12306 @code{default} category. Gnus has its own buffer for creating and
12307 managing categories.
12310 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
12311 * The Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
12312 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
12316 @node Category Syntax
12317 @subsubsection Category Syntax
12319 A category consists of two things.
12323 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
12324 are eligible for downloading; and
12327 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
12328 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
12329 score} is not necessarily related to normal scores.)
12332 A predicate in its simplest form can be a single predicate such as
12333 @code{true} or @code{false}. These two will download every available
12334 article or nothing respectively. In the case of these two special
12335 predicates an additional score rule is superfluous.
12337 Predicates of @code{high} or @code{low} download articles in respect of
12338 their scores in relationship to @code{gnus-agent-high-score} and
12339 @code{gnus-agent-low-score} as descibed below.
12341 To gain even finer control of what is to be regarded eligible for
12342 download a predicate can consist of a number of predicates with logical
12343 operators sprinkled in between.
12345 Perhaps some examples are in order.
12347 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
12348 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
12354 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
12355 short (for some value of ``short'').
12357 Here's a more complex predicate:
12366 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
12367 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
12370 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
12371 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
12372 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
12374 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
12375 you want to do, you can write your own.
12379 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
12380 lines; default 100.
12383 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
12384 lines; default 200.
12387 True iff the article has a download score less than
12388 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
12391 True iff the article has a download score greater than
12392 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
12395 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
12396 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
12397 checksum and sees whether articles match.
12406 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
12407 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
12408 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
12411 For example, you could decide that you don't want to download articles
12412 that were posted more than a certain number of days ago (e.g. posted
12413 more than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} ago) you might write a function
12414 something along the lines of the following:
12417 (defun my-article-old-p ()
12418 "Say whether an article is old."
12419 (< (time-to-days (date-to-time (mail-header-date gnus-headers)))
12420 (- (time-to-days (current-time)) gnus-agent-expire-days)))
12423 with the predicate then defined as:
12426 (not my-article-old-p)
12429 or you could append your predicate to the predefined
12430 @code{gnus-category-predicate-alist} in your @file{~/.gnus.el} or
12431 wherever. (Note: this would have to be at a point *after*
12432 @code{gnus-agent} has been loaded via @code{(gnus-agentize)})
12435 (defvar gnus-category-predicate-alist
12436 (append gnus-category-predicate-alist
12437 '((old . my-article-old-p))))
12440 and simply specify your predicate as:
12446 If/when using something like the above, be aware that there are many
12447 misconfigured systems/mailers out there and so an article's date is not
12448 always a reliable indication of when it was posted. Hell, some people
12449 just don't give a damm.
12452 The above predicates apply to *all* the groups which belong to the
12453 category. However, if you wish to have a specific predicate for an
12454 individual group within a category, or you're just too lazy to set up a
12455 new category, you can enter a group's individual predicate in it's group
12456 parameters like so:
12459 (agent-predicate . short)
12462 This is the group parameter equivalent of the agent category
12463 default. Note that when specifying a single word predicate like this,
12464 the @code{agent-predicate} specification must be in dotted pair
12467 The equivalent of the longer example from above would be:
12470 (agent-predicate or high (and (not low) (not long)))
12473 The outer parenthesis required in the category specification are not
12474 entered here as, not being in dotted pair notation, the value of the
12475 predicate is assumed to be a list.
12478 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
12479 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
12480 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
12481 following headers can be scored on: @code{Subject}, @code{From},
12482 @code{Date}, @code{Message-ID}, @code{References}, @code{Chars},
12483 @code{Lines}, and @code{Xref}.
12485 As with predicates, the specification of the @code{download score rule}
12486 to use in respect of a group can be in either the category definition if
12487 it's to be applicable to all groups in therein, or a group's parameters
12488 if it's to be specific to that group.
12490 In both of these places the @code{download score rule} can take one of
12497 This has the same syntax as a normal gnus score file except only a
12498 subset of scoring keywords are available as mentioned above.
12504 Category specification
12508 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
12514 Group Parameter specification
12517 (agent-score ("from"
12518 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
12523 Again, note the omission of the outermost parenthesis here.
12529 These score files must *only* contain the permitted scoring keywords
12536 Category specification
12539 ("~/News/agent.SCORE")
12545 ("~/News/agent.SCORE" "~/News/agent.group.SCORE")
12549 Group Parameter specification
12552 (agent-score "~/News/agent.SCORE")
12555 Additional score files can be specified as above. Need I say anything
12560 Use @code{normal} score files
12562 If you dont want to maintain two sets of scoring rules for a group, and
12563 your desired @code{downloading} criteria for a group are the same as your
12564 @code{reading} criteria then you can tell the agent to refer to your
12565 @code{normal} score files when deciding what to download.
12567 These directives in either the category definition or a group's
12568 parameters will cause the agent to read in all the applicable score
12569 files for a group, *filtering out* those those sections that do not
12570 relate to one of the permitted subset of scoring keywords.
12574 Category Specification
12581 Group Parameter specification
12584 (agent-score . file)
12589 @node The Category Buffer
12590 @subsubsection The Category Buffer
12592 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
12593 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
12594 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
12596 The following commands are available in this buffer:
12600 @kindex q (Category)
12601 @findex gnus-category-exit
12602 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
12605 @kindex k (Category)
12606 @findex gnus-category-kill
12607 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
12610 @kindex c (Category)
12611 @findex gnus-category-copy
12612 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
12615 @kindex a (Category)
12616 @findex gnus-category-add
12617 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
12620 @kindex p (Category)
12621 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
12622 Edit the predicate of the current category
12623 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
12626 @kindex g (Category)
12627 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
12628 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
12629 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
12632 @kindex s (Category)
12633 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
12634 Edit the download score rule of the current category
12635 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
12638 @kindex l (Category)
12639 @findex gnus-category-list
12640 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
12644 @node Category Variables
12645 @subsubsection Category Variables
12648 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
12649 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
12650 Hook run in category buffers.
12652 @item gnus-category-line-format
12653 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
12654 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
12655 Variables}). Valid elements are:
12659 The name of the category.
12662 The number of groups in the category.
12665 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
12666 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
12667 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
12669 @item gnus-agent-short-article
12670 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
12671 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
12673 @item gnus-agent-long-article
12674 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
12675 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
12677 @item gnus-agent-low-score
12678 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
12679 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
12682 @item gnus-agent-high-score
12683 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
12684 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
12690 @node Agent Commands
12691 @subsection Agent Commands
12693 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
12694 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged} command works in all modes, and
12695 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
12699 * Group Agent Commands::
12700 * Summary Agent Commands::
12701 * Server Agent Commands::
12704 You can run a complete batch fetch from the command line with the
12705 following incantation:
12707 @cindex gnus-agent-batch-fetch
12709 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-agent-batch-fetch
12714 @node Group Agent Commands
12715 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
12719 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
12720 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
12721 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
12722 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
12725 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
12726 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
12727 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
12730 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
12731 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
12732 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
12733 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
12736 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
12737 @findex gnus-group-send-drafts
12738 Send all sendable messages in the draft group
12739 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}). @xref{Drafts}.
12742 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
12743 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
12744 Add the current group to an Agent category
12745 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}). This command understands the
12746 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
12749 @kindex J r (Agent Group)
12750 @findex gnus-agent-remove-group
12751 Remove the current group from its category, if any
12752 (@code{gnus-agent-remove-group}). This command understands the
12753 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
12758 @node Summary Agent Commands
12759 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
12763 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
12764 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
12765 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
12768 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
12769 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
12770 Remove the downloading mark from the article
12771 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
12774 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
12775 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
12776 Toggle whether to download the article (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}).
12779 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
12780 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
12781 Mark all undownloaded articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}).
12786 @node Server Agent Commands
12787 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
12791 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
12792 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
12793 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
12794 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
12797 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
12798 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
12799 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
12800 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
12806 @subsection Agent Expiry
12808 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
12809 @findex gnus-agent-expire
12810 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire
12811 @cindex Agent expiry
12812 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
12815 @code{nnagent} doesn't handle expiry. Instead, there's a special
12816 @code{gnus-agent-expire} command that will expire all read articles that
12817 are older than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} days. It can be run
12818 whenever you feel that you're running out of space. It's not
12819 particularly fast or efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to
12820 interrupt it (with @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started it.
12822 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
12823 if @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, this command will
12824 expire all articles---unread, read, ticked and dormant. If @code{nil}
12825 (which is the default), only read articles are eligible for expiry, and
12826 unread, ticked and dormant articles will be kept indefinitely.
12829 @node Outgoing Messages
12830 @subsection Outgoing Messages
12832 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
12833 stored in the draft groups (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view them there
12834 after posting, and edit them at will.
12836 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
12837 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
12838 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
12839 messages in the draft group.
12843 @node Agent Variables
12844 @subsection Agent Variables
12847 @item gnus-agent-directory
12848 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
12849 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
12850 @file{~/News/agent/}.
12852 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
12853 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
12854 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
12855 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
12856 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
12859 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
12860 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
12861 Hook run when connecting to the network.
12863 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
12864 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
12865 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
12870 @node Example Setup
12871 @subsection Example Setup
12873 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
12874 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
12875 @file{.gnus.el} file to get started.
12878 ;;; Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over NNTP
12879 ;;; from your ISP's server.
12880 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.your-isp.com"))
12882 ;;; Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from
12883 ;;; your ISP's POP server.
12884 (setq mail-sources '((pop :server "pop.your-isp.com")))
12886 ;;; Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.
12887 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
12889 ;;; Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.
12893 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
12894 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
12897 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
12898 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
12899 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
12900 @sc{nntp} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
12901 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
12904 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
12905 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
12906 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
12907 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
12908 back all the killed groups.)
12910 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
12911 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
12912 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
12915 @node Batching Agents
12916 @subsection Batching Agents
12918 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
12919 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
12920 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
12924 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null
12928 @node Agent Caveats
12929 @subsection Agent Caveats
12931 The Gnus Agent doesn't seem to work like most other offline
12932 newsreaders. Here are some common questions that some imaginary people
12936 @item If I read an article while plugged, do they get entered into the
12941 @item If I read an article while plugged, and the article already exists
12942 in the Agent, will it get downloaded once more?
12948 In short, when Gnus is unplugged, it only looks into the locally stored
12949 articles; when it's plugged, it only talks to your ISP.
12956 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
12957 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
12958 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
12961 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
12962 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
12963 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
12964 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
12965 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
12967 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
12968 before generating the summary buffer.
12970 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
12971 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
12972 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
12974 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
12975 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
12976 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
12977 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
12980 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
12981 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
12982 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
12983 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
12984 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
12985 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
12986 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
12987 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
12988 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
12989 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
12990 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
12991 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
12992 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
12993 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
12994 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
12995 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
12999 @node Summary Score Commands
13000 @section Summary Score Commands
13001 @cindex score commands
13003 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
13004 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
13005 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
13006 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
13007 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
13009 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
13010 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
13011 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
13012 score file the current one.
13014 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
13019 @kindex V s (Summary)
13020 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
13021 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
13024 @kindex V S (Summary)
13025 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
13026 Display the score of the current article
13027 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
13030 @kindex V t (Summary)
13031 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
13032 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
13033 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
13036 @kindex V R (Summary)
13037 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
13038 Run the current summary through the scoring process
13039 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
13040 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
13041 effect you're having.
13044 @kindex V c (Summary)
13045 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
13046 Make a different score file the current
13047 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
13050 @kindex V e (Summary)
13051 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
13052 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
13053 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
13057 @kindex V f (Summary)
13058 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
13059 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
13060 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
13063 @kindex V F (Summary)
13064 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
13065 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
13066 after editing score files.
13069 @kindex V C (Summary)
13070 @findex gnus-score-customize
13071 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
13072 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
13076 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
13081 @kindex V m (Summary)
13082 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
13083 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
13084 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
13087 @kindex V x (Summary)
13088 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
13089 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
13090 expunge all articles below this score
13091 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
13094 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
13095 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
13098 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
13099 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
13103 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
13104 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
13106 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
13107 keys are available:
13111 Score on the author name.
13114 Score on the subject line.
13117 Score on the @code{Xref} line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
13120 Score on the @code{References} line.
13126 Score on the number of lines.
13129 Score on the @code{Message-ID} header.
13132 Score on followups---this matches the author name, and adds scores to
13133 the followups to this author.
13147 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
13148 what headers you are scoring on.
13160 Substring matching.
13163 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
13192 Greater than number.
13197 The fourth and final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e., expiring)
13198 score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry, or whether
13199 it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score file.
13203 Temporary score entry.
13206 Permanent score entry.
13209 Immediately scoring.
13214 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
13215 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
13216 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
13217 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
13219 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
13220 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
13221 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
13222 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
13223 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
13225 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
13226 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
13227 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
13228 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
13229 current score file.
13231 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
13232 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
13233 pretend they are keymaps or not.
13236 @node Group Score Commands
13237 @section Group Score Commands
13238 @cindex group score commands
13240 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
13245 @kindex W f (Group)
13246 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
13247 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
13248 all the time. This command will flush the cache
13249 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
13253 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
13255 @findex gnus-batch-score
13256 @cindex batch scoring
13258 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-batch-score
13262 @node Score Variables
13263 @section Score Variables
13264 @cindex score variables
13268 @item gnus-use-scoring
13269 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
13270 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
13271 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
13273 @item gnus-kill-killed
13274 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
13275 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
13276 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
13277 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
13278 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
13279 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
13280 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
13282 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
13283 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
13284 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
13285 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
13286 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
13288 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
13289 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
13290 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
13291 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
13293 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
13294 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
13295 @cindex score cache
13296 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
13297 score files. However, if this might make you Emacs grow big and
13298 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
13299 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
13300 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
13301 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
13304 @item gnus-save-score
13305 @vindex gnus-save-score
13306 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
13307 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
13308 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
13310 If you do not set this to @code{t}, then manual scores (like those set
13311 with @kbd{V s} (@code{gnus-summary-set-score})) will not be preserved
13312 across group visits.
13314 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
13315 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
13316 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
13317 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
13318 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
13319 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
13320 manually entered data.
13322 @item gnus-summary-default-score
13323 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
13324 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
13326 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
13327 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
13328 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
13329 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
13330 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
13331 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
13333 @item gnus-score-over-mark
13334 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
13335 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
13336 default. Default is @samp{+}.
13338 @item gnus-score-below-mark
13339 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
13340 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
13341 default. Default is @samp{-}.
13343 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
13344 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
13345 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
13346 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
13348 Predefined functions available are:
13351 @item gnus-score-find-single
13352 @findex gnus-score-find-single
13353 Only apply the group's own score file.
13355 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
13356 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
13357 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
13358 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
13359 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
13360 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
13361 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
13362 then a regexp match is done.
13364 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
13365 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
13367 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
13368 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
13369 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
13370 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
13372 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
13373 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
13374 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
13375 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
13376 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE}.
13379 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all these
13380 functions will be called, and all the returned lists of score files will
13381 be applied. These functions can also return lists of score alists
13382 directly. In that case, the functions that return these non-file score
13383 alists should probably be placed before the ``real'' score file
13384 functions, to ensure that the last score file returned is the local
13387 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
13388 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
13389 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
13390 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
13391 are expired. It's 7 by default.
13393 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
13394 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
13395 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, matching score entries will have
13396 their dates updated. (This is how Gnus controls expiry---all
13397 non-matching entries will become too old while matching entries will
13398 stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this variable to @code{nil},
13399 even matching entries will grow old and will have to face that oh-so
13402 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
13403 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
13404 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
13406 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
13407 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
13408 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be simplified
13409 for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
13410 threading---according to the current value of
13411 gnus-simplify-subject-functions. If the scoring entry uses
13412 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
13413 simplified in this manner.
13418 @node Score File Format
13419 @section Score File Format
13420 @cindex score file format
13422 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
13423 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
13424 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
13426 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
13430 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
13432 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
13434 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
13436 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
13441 (mark-and-expunge -10)
13445 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
13446 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
13447 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
13448 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
13452 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
13453 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
13455 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
13456 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
13457 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
13459 Six keys are supported by this alist:
13464 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
13465 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
13466 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
13467 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
13468 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
13469 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
13470 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
13471 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
13472 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
13473 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
13474 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
13475 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
13476 to articles that matches these score entries.
13478 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
13479 score entry has one to four elements.
13483 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
13484 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
13488 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
13489 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
13490 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
13491 is successful. If this element is not present, the
13492 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
13493 instead. This is 1000 by default.
13496 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
13497 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
13498 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
13499 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
13500 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
13503 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
13504 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
13505 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
13506 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
13509 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
13510 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
13511 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
13512 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
13513 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
13514 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
13515 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
13516 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
13517 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
13518 instead, if you feel like.
13521 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
13522 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
13524 These predicates are true if
13527 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
13530 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
13531 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
13538 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
13539 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
13540 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
13541 it's not. I think.)
13543 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some backends (like
13544 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
13545 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
13546 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
13549 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
13550 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
13551 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
13552 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
13553 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
13554 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
13555 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
13559 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
13560 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
13561 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
13562 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
13563 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
13564 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
13565 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
13566 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
13569 @item Head, Body, All
13570 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
13574 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
13575 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
13576 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
13577 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
13578 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
13579 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
13580 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
13584 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
13585 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
13586 @samp{thread} match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each
13587 article that has @var{X} in its @code{References} header. (These new
13588 @samp{thread} matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching
13589 articles.) This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an
13590 entire thread, even though some articles in the thread may not have
13591 complete @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
13592 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
13593 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
13597 @cindex Score File Atoms
13599 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
13600 lower than this number will be marked as read.
13603 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
13604 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
13606 @item mark-and-expunge
13607 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
13608 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
13611 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
13612 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
13613 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
13614 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
13615 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
13618 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
13619 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
13622 @item exclude-files
13623 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
13624 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
13628 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
13629 ignored when handling global score files.
13632 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
13633 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
13634 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
13635 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
13638 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
13639 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
13640 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
13641 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
13643 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
13647 (mark-and-expunge -100)
13650 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
13651 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
13652 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
13653 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
13654 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
13656 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where there
13657 exist a few interesting threads which can't be found automatically by
13658 ordinary scoring rules.
13661 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
13662 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
13663 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
13664 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
13665 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
13666 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
13667 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
13668 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
13669 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
13670 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
13671 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
13675 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
13676 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
13677 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
13678 file for a number of groups.
13681 @cindex local variables
13682 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
13683 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
13684 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
13685 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
13686 much. Note that the @var{value} won't be evaluated.
13690 @node Score File Editing
13691 @section Score File Editing
13693 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
13694 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
13695 with a mode for that.
13697 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
13698 additional commands:
13703 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
13704 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
13705 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
13706 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
13709 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
13710 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
13711 Insert the current date in numerical format
13712 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
13713 you were wondering.
13716 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
13717 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
13718 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
13719 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
13720 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
13725 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
13727 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
13728 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
13730 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
13731 e} to begin editing score files.
13734 @node Adaptive Scoring
13735 @section Adaptive Scoring
13736 @cindex adaptive scoring
13738 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
13739 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
13740 stupidity, to be precise.
13742 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
13743 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
13744 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
13745 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
13746 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
13747 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
13748 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
13749 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
13750 variable to @code{(word line)}.
13752 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
13753 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
13754 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
13755 might look something like this:
13758 (defvar gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
13759 '((gnus-unread-mark)
13760 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
13761 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
13762 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
13763 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
13764 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
13765 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
13766 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
13767 (gnus-ancient-mark)
13768 (gnus-low-score-mark)
13769 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
13772 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
13773 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
13774 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
13775 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
13776 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
13777 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
13780 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
13781 will be applied to each article.
13783 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
13784 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
13785 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
13786 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
13788 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
13789 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
13790 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
13791 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
13793 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
13794 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
13795 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
13796 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
13798 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
13799 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
13800 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
13801 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
13802 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
13803 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
13805 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
13806 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
13807 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
13808 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
13809 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
13810 aspirins afterwards.)
13812 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
13813 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
13814 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
13816 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
13817 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
13818 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
13820 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
13821 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
13822 let you use different rules in different groups.
13824 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
13825 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
13826 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
13829 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
13830 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
13831 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
13832 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
13833 the length of the match is less than
13834 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
13835 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
13838 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
13839 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
13840 headers. If you adapt on words, the
13841 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
13842 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
13845 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
13846 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
13847 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
13848 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
13849 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
13852 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
13853 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
13854 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
13855 score with 30 points.
13857 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
13858 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
13859 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
13860 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
13861 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
13863 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
13864 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
13865 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
13866 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
13868 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
13869 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
13870 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
13871 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
13873 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words
13874 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words} is set to @code{t}, gnus
13875 won't adaptively word score any of the words in the group name. Useful
13876 for groups like @samp{comp.editors.emacs}, where most of the subject
13877 lines contain the word @samp{emacs}.
13879 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
13880 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
13881 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
13883 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
13884 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
13885 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
13886 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
13889 @node Home Score File
13890 @section Home Score File
13892 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
13893 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
13894 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
13895 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
13897 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
13898 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
13899 could perhaps use the same home score file.
13901 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
13902 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
13907 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
13911 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
13912 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
13916 A list. The elements in this list can be:
13920 @var{(regexp file-name)}. If the @var{regexp} matches the group name,
13921 the @var{file-name} will will be used as the home score file.
13924 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
13925 the home score file.
13928 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
13931 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
13936 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
13939 (setq gnus-home-score-file
13940 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
13943 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
13944 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
13946 @findex gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file
13948 (setq gnus-home-score-file
13949 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
13952 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
13953 Other functions include
13956 @item gnus-current-home-score-file
13957 @findex gnus-current-home-score-file
13958 Return the ``current'' regular score file. This will make scoring
13959 commands add entry to the ``innermost'' matching score file.
13963 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
13964 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
13965 their own home score files:
13968 (setq gnus-home-score-file
13969 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
13970 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
13971 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
13972 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
13975 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
13976 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
13977 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
13978 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
13979 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
13981 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
13982 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
13983 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
13984 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
13985 precedence over this variable.
13988 @node Followups To Yourself
13989 @section Followups To Yourself
13991 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
13992 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
13993 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
13994 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
13995 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
13996 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
14000 @item gnus-score-followup-article
14001 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
14002 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
14005 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
14006 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
14007 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
14011 @vindex message-sent-hook
14012 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
14013 @code{message-sent-hook}.
14015 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
14016 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
14020 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
14021 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
14024 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
14025 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
14030 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore.no>"
14034 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
14035 is system-dependent.
14039 @section Scoring Tips
14040 @cindex scoring tips
14046 @cindex scoring crossposts
14047 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
14048 the @code{Xref} header.
14050 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
14053 @item Multiple crossposts
14054 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
14055 more than, say, 3 groups:
14057 ("xref" ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+" -1000 nil r))
14060 @item Matching on the body
14061 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
14062 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
14063 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
14064 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
14065 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
14066 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
14067 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
14070 @item Marking as read
14071 You will probably want to mark articles that has a score below a certain
14072 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
14073 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
14077 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
14079 @item Negated character classes
14080 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
14081 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
14082 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
14086 @node Reverse Scoring
14087 @section Reverse Scoring
14088 @cindex reverse scoring
14090 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
14091 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
14092 like this in your score file:
14096 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
14101 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
14102 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
14105 @node Global Score Files
14106 @section Global Score Files
14107 @cindex global score files
14109 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
14110 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
14111 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
14113 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
14114 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
14115 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
14117 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
14118 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
14119 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
14120 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
14121 files are applicable to which group.
14123 Say you want to use the score file
14124 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
14125 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory:
14128 (setq gnus-global-score-files
14129 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
14130 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
14133 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
14134 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
14135 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
14136 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
14137 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
14139 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
14140 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
14142 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
14143 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
14144 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
14145 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
14146 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
14147 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
14149 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
14155 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
14157 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
14159 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
14161 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
14162 lowered out of existence.
14164 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
14165 articles completely.
14168 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
14169 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
14170 old articles for a long time.
14173 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
14174 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
14175 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
14176 holding our breath yet?
14180 @section Kill Files
14183 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
14184 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
14185 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
14187 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
14188 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
14189 files into score files.
14191 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
14192 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
14193 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
14194 that isn't a very good idea.
14196 Normal kill files look like this:
14199 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
14200 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
14204 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
14205 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
14207 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
14208 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
14211 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
14216 @kindex M-k (Summary)
14217 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
14218 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
14221 @kindex M-K (Summary)
14222 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
14223 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
14226 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
14231 @kindex M-k (Group)
14232 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
14233 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
14236 @kindex M-K (Group)
14237 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
14238 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
14241 Kill file variables:
14244 @item gnus-kill-file-name
14245 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
14246 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
14247 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
14248 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
14249 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
14250 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
14252 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
14253 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
14254 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
14255 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
14258 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
14259 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
14260 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
14261 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
14262 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
14263 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
14264 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
14265 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
14266 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
14268 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
14269 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
14270 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
14275 @node Converting Kill Files
14276 @section Converting Kill Files
14278 @cindex converting kill files
14280 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
14281 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
14282 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
14285 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
14286 You can fetch it from
14287 @file{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-other/gnus-kill-to-score}.
14289 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
14290 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
14291 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
14299 GroupLens is a collaborative filtering system that helps you work
14300 together with other people to find the quality news articles out of the
14301 huge volume of news articles generated every day.
14303 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
14304 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
14305 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
14306 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
14307 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
14308 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
14309 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
14310 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
14314 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
14315 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
14316 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
14317 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
14321 @node Using GroupLens
14322 @subsection Using GroupLens
14324 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
14326 @samp{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
14327 better bit in town at the moment.
14329 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
14333 @item gnus-use-grouplens
14334 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
14335 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
14336 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
14338 @item grouplens-pseudonym
14339 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
14340 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
14341 with the Better Bit Bureau.
14343 @item grouplens-newsgroups
14344 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
14345 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
14349 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
14350 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
14351 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
14352 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
14353 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
14354 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
14357 @node Rating Articles
14358 @subsection Rating Articles
14360 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
14361 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
14362 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
14363 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
14366 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
14371 @kindex r (GroupLens)
14372 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
14373 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
14376 @kindex k (GroupLens)
14377 @findex grouplens-score-thread
14378 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
14379 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
14380 threads in rec.humor.
14384 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
14385 the score of the article you're reading.
14390 @kindex n (GroupLens)
14391 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
14392 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
14395 @kindex , (GroupLens)
14396 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
14397 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
14401 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
14402 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
14405 @node Displaying Predictions
14406 @subsection Displaying Predictions
14408 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
14409 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
14410 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
14411 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
14412 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
14414 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
14415 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
14416 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
14417 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
14418 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
14419 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
14420 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
14421 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
14422 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
14423 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
14424 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
14425 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
14426 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
14428 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
14429 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
14430 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
14431 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
14433 The following are valid values for that variable.
14436 @item prediction-spot
14437 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
14440 @item confidence-interval
14441 A numeric confidence interval.
14443 @item prediction-bar
14444 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
14446 @item confidence-bar
14447 Numerical confidence.
14449 @item confidence-spot
14450 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
14452 @item prediction-num
14453 Plain-old numeric value.
14455 @item confidence-plus-minus
14456 Prediction +/- confidence.
14461 @node GroupLens Variables
14462 @subsection GroupLens Variables
14466 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
14467 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
14468 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
14469 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%)
14472 @item grouplens-bbb-host
14473 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
14476 @item grouplens-bbb-port
14477 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
14479 @item grouplens-score-offset
14480 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
14481 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
14484 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
14485 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
14486 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
14491 @node Advanced Scoring
14492 @section Advanced Scoring
14494 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
14495 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
14496 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
14497 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
14498 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
14500 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
14504 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
14505 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
14506 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
14510 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
14511 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
14513 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
14514 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
14515 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
14516 non-@code{nil} value.
14518 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
14519 operator, and various match operators.
14526 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
14527 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
14528 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
14533 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
14534 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
14535 then this operator will return @code{false}.
14540 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
14541 logical negation of the value of its argument.
14545 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
14546 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
14547 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
14548 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
14549 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
14550 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
14551 the ancestry you want to go.
14553 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
14554 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
14555 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
14556 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
14557 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
14560 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
14561 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
14563 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
14564 when he's talking about Gnus:
14568 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
14569 ("subject" "Gnus"))
14575 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
14579 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
14586 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
14587 really don't want to read what he's written:
14591 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
14592 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
14596 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
14597 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
14598 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
14605 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
14606 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
14607 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
14608 ("body" "white.*socks"))
14612 The possibilities are endless.
14615 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
14616 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
14618 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
14619 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
14620 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
14621 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
14622 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
14623 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
14624 @samp{subject}) first.
14626 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
14627 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
14638 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
14639 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
14645 ("subject" "Gnus")))
14652 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
14653 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
14658 @section Score Decays
14659 @cindex score decays
14662 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
14663 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
14664 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
14665 use them in any sensible way.
14667 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
14668 @findex gnus-decay-score
14669 @vindex gnus-decay-score-function
14670 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
14671 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
14672 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
14673 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
14674 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-decay-score-function}
14675 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
14676 definition of that function:
14679 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
14681 This is done according to `gnus-score-decay-constant'
14682 and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
14685 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
14687 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
14689 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
14692 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
14693 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
14694 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
14695 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
14699 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
14702 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
14705 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
14709 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
14710 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
14711 the new score, which should be an integer.
14713 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
14714 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
14721 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
14722 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
14723 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
14724 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
14725 * Windows Configuration:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
14726 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
14727 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
14728 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
14729 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
14730 * Buttons:: Get tendonitis in ten easy steps!
14731 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
14732 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
14733 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
14734 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
14735 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
14736 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
14737 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
14738 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
14742 @node Process/Prefix
14743 @section Process/Prefix
14744 @cindex process/prefix convention
14746 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
14747 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
14749 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
14750 command to be performed on.
14754 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
14755 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
14756 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
14757 with the current one.
14759 @vindex transient-mark-mode
14760 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
14761 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
14763 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
14764 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
14767 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
14768 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
14770 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
14773 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
14774 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
14775 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
14776 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
14778 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
14779 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
14780 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
14781 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
14782 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
14783 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
14784 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
14785 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
14789 @section Interactive
14790 @cindex interaction
14794 @item gnus-novice-user
14795 @vindex gnus-novice-user
14796 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
14797 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
14798 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
14799 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
14802 @item gnus-expert-user
14803 @vindex gnus-expert-user
14804 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
14805 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
14806 matter how strange.
14808 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
14809 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
14810 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
14811 is @code{t} by default.
14813 @item gnus-interactive-exit
14814 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
14815 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
14820 @node Symbolic Prefixes
14821 @section Symbolic Prefixes
14822 @cindex symbolic prefixes
14824 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
14825 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
14826 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
14827 rule of 900 to the current article.
14829 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
14830 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
14831 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
14832 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
14833 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
14834 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
14835 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
14837 @kindex M-i (Summary)
14838 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
14839 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
14840 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
14841 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
14842 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a M-C-u} means ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u}
14843 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b M-C-u} means
14844 ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
14845 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
14847 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
14848 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
14849 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
14851 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
14855 @node Formatting Variables
14856 @section Formatting Variables
14857 @cindex formatting variables
14859 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
14860 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
14861 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
14862 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
14863 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
14866 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
14867 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
14868 lots of percentages everywhere.
14871 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
14872 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
14873 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
14874 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
14875 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
14878 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
14879 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
14880 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
14881 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
14882 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
14883 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
14884 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
14885 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
14887 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
14888 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
14890 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
14891 @findex gnus-update-format
14892 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
14893 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
14894 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
14895 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
14899 @node Formatting Basics
14900 @subsection Formatting Basics
14902 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
14903 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
14904 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
14906 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
14907 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
14908 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
14909 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
14910 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
14913 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
14914 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
14915 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
14916 less than 4 characters wide.
14919 @node Mode Line Formatting
14920 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
14922 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
14923 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
14924 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
14925 with the following two differences:
14930 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
14933 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
14934 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
14935 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
14936 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
14937 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
14938 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
14939 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
14944 @node Advanced Formatting
14945 @subsection Advanced Formatting
14947 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
14948 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
14949 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
14950 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
14952 These are the valid modifiers:
14957 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
14961 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
14966 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
14969 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
14974 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
14977 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
14980 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
14983 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
14987 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
14988 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
14989 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
14990 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
14991 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
14992 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
14993 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
14995 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
14996 last operation, padding.
14998 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
14999 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
15000 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
15001 @xref{Compilation}.
15004 @node User-Defined Specs
15005 @subsection User-Defined Specs
15007 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
15008 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
15009 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
15010 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
15011 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
15012 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
15013 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
15014 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
15015 should protect against that.
15017 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
15018 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
15019 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
15020 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
15024 @node Formatting Fonts
15025 @subsection Formatting Fonts
15027 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
15028 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
15029 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
15030 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
15033 Text inside the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} specifiers will have their
15034 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
15035 default. If you say @samp{%1@{}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
15036 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
15037 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
15038 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
15040 Text inside the @samp{%<} and @samp{%>} specifiers will get the special
15041 @code{balloon-help} property set to @code{gnus-balloon-face-0}. If you say
15042 @samp{%1<}, you'll get @code{gnus-balloon-face-1} and so on. The
15043 @code{gnus-balloon-face-*} variables should be either strings or
15044 symbols naming functions that return a string. Under @code{balloon-help-mode},
15045 when the mouse passes over text with this property set, a balloon window
15046 will appear and display the string. Please refer to the doc string of
15047 @code{balloon-help-mode} for more information on this.
15049 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
15052 ;; Create three face types.
15053 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
15054 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
15056 ;; We want the article count to be in
15057 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
15058 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
15059 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
15061 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
15062 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
15064 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
15065 (setq gnus-group-line-format
15066 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
15069 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
15070 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
15072 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
15073 mode-line variables.
15076 @node Windows Configuration
15077 @section Windows Configuration
15078 @cindex windows configuration
15080 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
15082 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
15083 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
15084 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
15085 @code{t} by default.
15087 Setting this variable to @code{nil} kinda works, but there are
15088 glitches. Use at your own peril.
15090 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
15091 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
15092 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
15095 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
15096 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
15097 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
15101 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
15102 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
15103 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
15104 possible names is listed below.
15106 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
15107 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
15110 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
15114 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
15115 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
15116 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
15117 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
15118 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
15119 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
15120 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
15121 size spec per split.
15123 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
15124 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
15125 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
15126 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
15127 present) gets focus.
15129 Here's a more complicated example:
15132 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
15133 (summary 0.25 point)
15134 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
15138 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
15139 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
15140 occupy, not a percentage.
15142 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
15143 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
15144 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
15145 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
15146 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
15149 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
15152 (article (horizontal 1.0
15157 (summary 0.25 point)
15162 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
15163 @code{horizontal} thingie?
15165 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
15166 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
15167 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
15168 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
15169 the screen is to be given to this strip.
15171 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
15172 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
15173 lines from the splits.
15175 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
15179 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
15180 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
15181 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
15182 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
15183 buffer = "(" buffer-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
15184 size = number | frame-params
15185 buffer-name = group | article | summary ...
15188 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
15189 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
15190 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
15191 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
15193 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
15194 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
15195 @cindex window height
15196 @cindex window width
15197 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
15198 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
15199 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
15200 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
15201 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
15202 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
15204 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
15205 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
15206 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
15207 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
15209 @findex gnus-configure-frame
15210 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
15211 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
15212 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
15213 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
15214 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
15215 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
15216 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
15217 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
15218 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
15219 configuration list.
15222 (gnus-configure-frame
15226 (article 0.3 point))
15234 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
15235 @code{frame} split:
15238 (gnus-configure-frame
15241 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
15243 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
15244 (user-position . t)
15245 (left . -1) (top . 1))
15250 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
15251 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
15252 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
15253 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
15254 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
15255 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
15256 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
15257 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
15259 The list of all possible keys for @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} can
15260 be found in its default value.
15262 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
15263 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
15264 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
15268 (message (horizontal 1.0
15269 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
15271 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
15276 One common desire for a multiple frame split is to have a separate frame
15277 for composing mail and news while leaving the original frame intact. To
15278 accomplish that, something like the following can be done:
15281 (message (frame 1.0
15282 (if (not (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer))
15283 (car (cdr (assoc 'group gnus-buffer-configuration)))
15284 (car (cdr (assoc 'summary gnus-buffer-configuration))))
15285 (vertical ((user-position . t) (top . 1) (left . 1)
15286 (name . "Message"))
15287 (message 1.0 point))))
15290 @findex gnus-add-configuration
15291 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
15292 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
15293 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
15294 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
15297 (gnus-add-configuration
15298 '(article (vertical 1.0
15300 (summary .25 point)
15304 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
15305 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
15306 Gnus has been loaded.
15308 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
15309 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
15310 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
15311 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
15312 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
15314 If you're using tree displays (@pxref{Tree Display}), and the tree
15315 window is displayed vertically next to another window, you may also want
15316 to fiddle with @code{gnus-tree-minimize-window} to avoid having the
15320 @node Faces and Fonts
15321 @section Faces and Fonts
15326 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
15327 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
15328 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
15333 @section Compilation
15334 @cindex compilation
15335 @cindex byte-compilation
15337 @findex gnus-compile
15339 Remember all those line format specification variables?
15340 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
15341 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
15342 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
15343 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
15344 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
15347 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
15348 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
15349 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
15350 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
15351 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
15352 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
15353 them into the @code{.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
15357 @section Mode Lines
15360 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
15361 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
15362 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
15363 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
15364 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
15365 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
15366 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
15369 @cindex display-time
15371 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
15372 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
15373 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
15374 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
15375 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
15376 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
15377 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
15378 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
15381 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
15383 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
15384 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
15386 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
15387 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
15388 (length display-time-string)))))
15391 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
15392 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
15393 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
15394 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
15395 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
15398 @node Highlighting and Menus
15399 @section Highlighting and Menus
15401 @cindex highlighting
15404 @vindex gnus-visual
15405 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
15406 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
15407 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
15410 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
15411 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
15414 @item group-highlight
15415 Do highlights in the group buffer.
15416 @item summary-highlight
15417 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
15418 @item article-highlight
15419 Do highlights in the article buffer.
15421 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
15423 Create menus in the group buffer.
15425 Create menus in the summary buffers.
15427 Create menus in the article buffer.
15429 Create menus in the browse buffer.
15431 Create menus in the server buffer.
15433 Create menus in the score buffers.
15435 Create menus in all buffers.
15438 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
15439 buffers, you could say something like:
15442 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
15445 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
15448 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
15451 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
15452 in all Gnus buffers.
15454 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
15457 @item gnus-mouse-face
15458 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
15459 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
15460 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
15464 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
15468 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
15469 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
15470 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
15472 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
15473 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
15474 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
15476 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
15477 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
15478 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
15480 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
15481 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
15482 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
15484 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
15485 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
15486 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
15488 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
15489 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
15490 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
15501 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
15502 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
15503 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
15504 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
15505 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
15509 @vindex gnus-carpal
15510 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
15511 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
15512 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
15517 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
15518 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
15519 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
15521 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
15522 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
15523 Face used on buttons.
15525 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
15526 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
15527 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
15529 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
15530 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
15531 Buttons in the group buffer.
15533 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
15534 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
15535 Buttons in the summary buffer.
15537 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
15538 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
15539 Buttons in the server buffer.
15541 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
15542 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
15543 Buttons in the browse buffer.
15546 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
15547 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
15548 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
15556 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
15557 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
15558 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
15559 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
15560 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
15562 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
15563 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
15564 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
15566 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
15567 been idle for thirty minutes:
15570 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
15573 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
15577 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
15580 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
15581 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
15582 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
15584 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
15585 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
15586 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
15587 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
15589 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
15590 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
15591 @var{idle} minutes.
15593 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
15594 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
15597 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
15598 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
15599 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
15601 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
15602 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
15603 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
15604 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
15606 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
15607 your @file{.gnus} file:
15609 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
15611 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
15614 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
15615 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
15616 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
15617 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
15618 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
15619 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
15620 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
15621 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
15622 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
15623 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
15624 @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
15626 @findex gnus-demon-init
15627 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
15628 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
15629 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
15630 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
15631 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
15633 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
15634 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
15635 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
15644 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
15645 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
15647 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
15648 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
15649 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
15650 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
15653 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
15654 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
15655 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
15656 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
15658 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
15659 this will make spam disappear.
15661 There are some variables to customize, of course:
15664 @item gnus-use-nocem
15665 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
15666 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
15669 @item gnus-nocem-groups
15670 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
15671 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
15672 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
15673 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
15675 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
15676 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
15677 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
15678 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
15679 "rbraver@@ohww.norman.ok.us" "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca"
15680 "jem@@xpat.com" "snowhare@@xmission.com" "red@@redpoll.mrfs.oh.us
15681 (Richard E. Depew)")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
15683 Known despammers that you can put in this list include:
15686 @item clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca;
15687 @cindex Chris Lewis
15688 Chris Lewis---Major Canadian despammer who has probably canceled more
15689 usenet abuse than anybody else.
15692 @cindex CancelMoose[tm]
15693 The CancelMoose[tm] on autopilot. The CancelMoose[tm] is reputed to be
15694 Norwegian, and was the person(s) who invented NoCeM.
15696 @item jem@@xpat.com;
15698 John Milburn---despammer located in Korea who is getting very busy these
15701 @item red@@redpoll.mrfs.oh.us (Richard E. Depew)
15702 Richard E. Depew---lone American despammer. He mostly cancels binary
15703 postings to non-binary groups and removes spews (regurgitated articles).
15706 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
15707 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
15708 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
15709 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
15710 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
15711 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
15712 @var{(issuer conditions ...)} elements in the list. Each condition is
15713 either a string (which is a regexp that matches types you want to use)
15714 or a list on the form @code{(not STRING)}, where @var{string} is a
15715 regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
15717 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
15718 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
15721 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
15724 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
15725 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
15728 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
15731 The specs are applied left-to-right.
15734 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
15735 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
15737 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
15738 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
15739 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
15740 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
15742 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
15743 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
15746 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
15748 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
15756 This might be dangerous, though.
15758 @item gnus-nocem-directory
15759 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
15760 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
15761 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
15763 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
15764 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
15765 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
15766 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
15767 might then see old spam.
15771 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
15772 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
15773 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
15774 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
15781 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
15782 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
15783 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
15785 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
15786 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
15787 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
15788 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
15789 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
15790 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
15791 @code{undo} function.
15793 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
15794 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
15795 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
15796 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
15797 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
15798 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
15799 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
15800 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
15801 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
15802 never be totally undoable.
15804 @findex gnus-undo-mode
15805 @vindex gnus-use-undo
15807 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
15808 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
15809 default. The @kbd{M-C-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo} command
15810 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
15815 @section Moderation
15818 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
15819 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
15820 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
15823 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
15827 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
15830 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
15832 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
15837 You split your incoming mail by matching on
15838 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
15839 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
15842 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
15843 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
15846 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
15847 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
15851 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
15854 (setq gnus-moderated-list
15855 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
15859 @node XEmacs Enhancements
15860 @section XEmacs Enhancements
15863 XEmacs is able to display pictures and stuff, so Gnus has taken
15867 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
15868 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
15869 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
15870 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
15883 So... You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
15884 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
15885 over your shoulder as you read news.
15888 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
15889 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
15890 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
15891 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
15892 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
15897 @subsubsection Picon Basics
15899 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
15908 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
15909 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
15910 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
15911 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
15912 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
15913 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
15914 @code{GIF} formats.
15917 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
15918 If you have a permanent connection to the Internet you can use Steve
15919 Kinzler's Picons Search engine by setting
15920 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} to the string @*
15921 @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/search.html}.
15923 @vindex gnus-picons-database
15924 Otherwise you need a local copy of his database. For instructions on
15925 obtaining and installing the picons databases, point your Web browser at @*
15926 @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}. Gnus expects
15927 picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
15928 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
15931 @node Picon Requirements
15932 @subsubsection Picon Requirements
15934 To have Gnus display Picons for you, you must be running XEmacs
15935 19.13 or greater since all other versions of Emacs aren't yet able to
15938 Additionally, you must have @code{x} support compiled into XEmacs. To
15939 display color picons which are much nicer than the black & white one,
15940 you also need one of @code{xpm} or @code{gif} compiled into XEmacs.
15942 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
15943 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you should have
15944 the @code{xface} support compiled into XEmacs. Otherwise you must have
15945 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
15946 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
15950 @subsubsection Easy Picons
15952 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
15953 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
15956 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
15957 (setq gnus-treat-display-picons t)
15960 and make sure @code{gnus-picons-database} points to the directory
15961 containing the Picons databases.
15963 Alternatively if you want to use the web piconsearch engine add this:
15966 (setq gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
15967 "http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch")
15972 @subsubsection Hard Picons
15980 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
15981 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
15982 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
15983 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
15984 feature, you need to select where to get the picons from, and where to
15989 @item gnus-picons-database
15990 @vindex gnus-picons-database
15991 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
15992 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
15993 subdirectories. This is only useful if
15994 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} is @code{nil}. Defaults to
15995 @file{/usr/local/faces/}.
15997 @item gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
15998 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
15999 The URL for the web picons search engine. The only currently known
16000 engine is @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch}. To
16001 workaround network delays, icons will be fetched in the background. If
16002 this is @code{nil} 'the default), then picons are fetched from local
16003 database indicated by @code{gnus-picons-database}.
16005 @item gnus-picons-display-where
16006 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
16007 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
16008 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
16009 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
16010 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
16011 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
16012 routines---@pxref{Windows Configuration}.
16014 @item gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
16015 @vindex gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
16016 Groups that are matched by this regexp won't have their group icons
16021 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
16022 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
16024 Now that you've made those decision, you need to add the following
16025 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get displayed
16028 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
16030 @item gnus-article-display-picons
16031 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
16032 Looks up and displays the picons for the author and the author's domain
16033 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer.
16035 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
16036 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
16037 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present.
16043 @node Picon Useless Configuration
16044 @subsubsection Picon Useless Configuration
16052 The following variables offer further control over how things are
16053 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
16054 don't need to worry about.
16058 @item gnus-picons-news-directories
16059 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directories
16060 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
16061 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
16063 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
16064 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
16065 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
16066 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc")} is the default.
16068 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
16069 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
16070 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
16071 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
16072 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
16074 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
16075 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
16076 If you don't have @code{xface} support builtin XEmacs, this is the
16077 command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
16078 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
16079 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
16080 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
16082 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
16083 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
16084 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
16085 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
16087 @item gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
16088 @vindex gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
16089 If you have set @code{gnus-picons-display-where} to @code{picons}, your
16090 XEmacs frame will become really cluttered. To alleviate this a bit you
16091 can set @code{gnus-picons-has-modeline-p} to @code{nil}; this will
16092 remove the mode line from the Picons buffer. This is only useful if
16093 @code{gnus-picons-display-where} is @code{picons}.
16095 @item gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
16096 @vindex gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
16097 If non-nil, display the article buffer before computing the picons.
16098 Defaults to @code{nil}.
16100 @item gnus-picons-display-as-address
16101 @vindex gnus-picons-display-as-address
16102 If @code{t} display textual email addresses along with pictures.
16103 Defaults to @code{t}.
16105 @item gnus-picons-file-suffixes
16106 @vindex gnus-picons-file-suffixes
16107 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
16108 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your XEmacs.
16110 @item gnus-picons-setup-hook
16111 @vindex gnus-picons-setup-hook
16112 Hook run in the picon buffer, if that is displayed.
16114 @item gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
16115 @vindex gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
16116 Whether to move point to first empty line when displaying picons. This
16117 has only an effect if `gnus-picons-display-where' has value `article'.
16119 If @code{nil}, display the picons in the @code{From} and
16120 @code{Newsgroups} lines. This is the defailt.
16122 @item gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
16123 @vindex gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
16124 Whether to clear the picons cache when exiting gnus. Gnus caches every
16125 picons it finds while it is running. This saves some time in the search
16126 process but eats some memory. If this variable is set to @code{nil},
16127 Gnus will never clear the cache itself; you will have to manually call
16128 @code{gnus-picons-clear-cache} to clear it. Otherwise the cache will be
16129 cleared every time you exit Gnus. Defaults to @code{t}.
16140 @subsection Smileys
16145 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/BigFace.ps,height=20cm}}
16150 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
16151 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
16153 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
16154 @file{.gnus.el} file:
16157 (setq gnus-treat-display-smiley t)
16160 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{:-=}, @samp{:-(} and
16161 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
16162 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
16163 text and maps that to file names.
16165 @vindex smiley-nosey-regexp-alist
16166 @vindex smiley-deformed-regexp-alist
16167 Smiley supplies two example conversion alists by default:
16168 @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist} (which matches @samp{:)}, @samp{:(}
16169 and so on), and @code{smiley-nosey-regexp-alist} (which matches
16170 @samp{:-)}, @samp{:-(} and so on).
16172 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist} variable,
16173 which defaults to the value of @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist}.
16175 The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched; the second
16176 element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by the picture;
16177 and the third element is the name of the file to be displayed.
16179 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
16180 files, as well as the color to be used and stuff:
16184 @item smiley-data-directory
16185 @vindex smiley-data-directory
16186 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
16188 @item smiley-flesh-color
16189 @vindex smiley-flesh-color
16190 Skin color. The default is @samp{yellow}, which is really racist.
16192 @item smiley-features-color
16193 @vindex smiley-features-color
16194 Color of the features of the face. The default is @samp{black}.
16196 @item smiley-tongue-color
16197 @vindex smiley-tongue-color
16198 Color of the tongue. The default is @samp{red}.
16200 @item smiley-circle-color
16201 @vindex smiley-circle-color
16202 Color of the circle around the face. The default is @samp{black}.
16204 @item smiley-mouse-face
16205 @vindex smiley-mouse-face
16206 Face used for mouse highlighting over the smiley face.
16212 @subsection Toolbar
16222 @item gnus-use-toolbar
16223 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
16224 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
16225 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
16226 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
16228 @item gnus-group-toolbar
16229 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
16230 The toolbar in the group buffer.
16232 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
16233 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
16234 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
16236 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
16237 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
16238 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
16244 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
16247 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
16248 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
16249 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
16250 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
16251 unusual directory structure.
16253 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
16254 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
16255 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
16256 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
16258 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
16259 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
16260 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
16261 Valid values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
16262 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
16263 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
16265 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
16266 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
16267 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
16281 @node Fuzzy Matching
16282 @section Fuzzy Matching
16283 @cindex fuzzy matching
16285 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
16286 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
16288 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
16289 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
16290 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
16292 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
16293 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
16294 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
16295 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
16296 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
16299 @node Thwarting Email Spam
16300 @section Thwarting Email Spam
16304 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
16306 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
16307 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
16308 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
16309 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
16310 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
16311 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
16312 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
16313 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
16316 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
16317 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
16318 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
16319 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
16320 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
16321 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
16325 The way to deal with this is having Gnus split out all spam into a
16326 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
16328 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
16329 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
16330 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
16331 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
16332 sysadm whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
16333 part of the mail address.)
16336 (setq message-default-news-headers
16337 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
16340 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
16341 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
16346 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
16347 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
16348 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
16354 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
16355 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
16356 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
16357 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
16359 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @code{smtp} server
16360 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
16361 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
16362 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
16363 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
16364 your fancy split rule in this way:
16369 (to "larsi" "misc")
16373 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
16374 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
16375 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
16376 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
16377 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
16379 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
16380 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
16381 at @* @file{<URL:http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html>}.
16382 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
16383 cosmic balance somewhat.
16385 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
16386 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
16387 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
16388 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
16391 @node Various Various
16392 @section Various Various
16398 @item gnus-home-directory
16399 All Gnus path variables will be initialized from this variable, which
16400 defaults to @file{~/}.
16402 @item gnus-directory
16403 @vindex gnus-directory
16404 Most Gnus storage path variables will be initialized from this variable,
16405 which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or
16406 @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
16408 Note that gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{.gnus.el} file is read.
16409 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
16410 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
16411 @file{.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
16413 @item gnus-default-directory
16414 @vindex gnus-default-directory
16415 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
16416 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
16417 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
16418 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
16419 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
16420 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
16423 @vindex gnus-verbose
16424 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
16425 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
16426 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
16427 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
16428 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
16430 @item gnus-verbose-backends
16431 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
16432 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
16433 to the Gnus backends instead of Gnus proper.
16435 @item nnheader-max-head-length
16436 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
16437 When the backends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
16438 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
16439 the absolute max length the backends will try to read before giving up
16440 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
16441 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
16442 @code{t}, the backends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
16443 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
16444 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
16446 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
16447 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
16448 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
16449 read when doing the operation described above.
16451 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
16452 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
16454 @cindex invalid characters in file names
16455 @cindex characters in file names
16456 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
16457 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
16458 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
16461 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
16465 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
16466 Windows (phooey) systems.
16468 @item gnus-hidden-properties
16469 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
16470 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
16471 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
16472 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
16474 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
16475 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
16476 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
16477 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
16478 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
16480 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
16481 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
16482 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
16491 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
16492 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
16494 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
16496 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
16502 Not because of victories @*
16505 but for the common sunshine,@*
16507 the largess of the spring.
16511 but for the day's work done@*
16512 as well as I was able;@*
16513 not for a seat upon the dais@*
16514 but at the common table.@*
16519 @chapter Appendices
16522 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
16523 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
16524 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
16525 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
16526 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
16527 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
16528 * Frequently Asked Questions:: A question-and-answer session.
16536 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
16537 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
16539 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage, you
16540 can point your (feh!) web browser to
16541 @file{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/}. This is also the primary
16542 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is known
16543 as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
16545 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
16546 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
16547 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
16548 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
16549 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
16550 appropriate name, don't you think?)
16552 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
16553 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
16554 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
16555 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
16557 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
16558 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
16559 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
16561 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
16562 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
16564 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
16565 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4'' (67 releases).
16567 On September 13th 1997, Quassia Gnus was started and lasted 37
16568 releases. If was released as ``Gnus 5.6 on March 8th 1998.
16570 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
16571 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'' --
16572 don't panic. Don't let it know that you're frightened. Back away.
16573 Slowly. Whatever you do, don't run. Walk away, calmly, until you're
16574 out of its reach. Find a proper released version of Gnus and snuggle up
16578 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
16579 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
16580 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
16581 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
16582 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
16583 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
16584 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
16585 * Newest Features:: Features so new that they haven't been written yet.
16592 What's the point of Gnus?
16594 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
16595 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
16596 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
16597 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
16598 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
16599 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
16600 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
16601 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
16602 keep track of millions of people who post?
16604 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
16605 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
16606 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
16607 to separate the newsreader from the backends, Gnus now offers a simple
16608 interface for anybody who wants to write new backends for fetching mail
16609 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
16610 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
16611 every one of you to explore and invent.
16613 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
16614 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
16617 @node Compatibility
16618 @subsection Compatibility
16620 @cindex compatibility
16621 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
16622 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
16623 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
16628 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
16632 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
16635 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
16638 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
16639 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
16640 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
16641 important variables have their values copied into their global
16642 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
16643 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
16645 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
16646 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
16647 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
16648 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
16649 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
16653 @cindex highlighting
16654 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
16655 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
16656 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
16657 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
16658 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
16659 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
16662 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
16663 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
16664 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
16665 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
16667 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
16668 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
16669 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
16670 to stop doing it the old way.
16672 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
16674 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
16676 @cindex reporting bugs
16678 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
16679 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
16680 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
16682 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
16683 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
16684 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
16685 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
16690 @subsection Conformity
16692 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
16693 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
16700 There are no known breaches of this standard.
16704 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
16706 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
16707 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
16708 We do have some breaches to this one.
16714 These are considered to be ``vanity headers'', while I consider them
16715 to be consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted
16716 articles coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use
16717 either of those for posting articles. I would not have known that if
16718 it wasn't for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
16723 USEFOR is an IETF working group writing a successor to RFC 1036, based
16724 on Son-of-RFC 1036. They have produced a number of drafts proposing
16725 various changes to the format of news articles. The Gnus towers will
16726 look into implementing the changes when the draft is accepted as an RFC.
16730 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
16731 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
16736 @subsection Emacsen
16742 Gnus should work on :
16750 XEmacs 20.4 and up.
16754 This Gnus version will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than
16755 that. Not reliably, at least. Older versions of Gnus may work on older
16758 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
16759 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
16760 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
16764 @node Gnus Development
16765 @subsection Gnus Development
16767 Gnus is developed in a two-phased cycle. The first phase involves much
16768 discussion on the @samp{ding@@gnus.org} mailing list, where people
16769 propose changes and new features, post patches and new backends. This
16770 phase is called the @dfn{alpha} phase, since the Gnusae released in this
16771 phase are @dfn{alpha releases}, or (perhaps more commonly in other
16772 circles) @dfn{snapshots}. During this phase, Gnus is assumed to be
16773 unstable and should not be used by casual users. Gnus alpha releases
16774 have names like ``Red Gnus'' and ``Quassia Gnus''.
16776 After futzing around for 50-100 alpha releases, Gnus is declared
16777 @dfn{frozen}, and only bug fixes are applied. Gnus loses the prefix,
16778 and is called things like ``Gnus 5.6.32'' instead. Normal people are
16779 supposed to be able to use these, and these are mostly discussed on the
16780 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} newsgroup.
16783 @vindex nnmail-delete-incoming
16784 Some variable defaults differ between alpha Gnusae and released Gnusae.
16785 In particular, @code{nnmail-delete-incoming} defaults to @code{nil} in
16786 alpha Gnusae and @code{t} in released Gnusae. This is to prevent
16787 lossage of mail if an alpha release hiccups while handling the mail.
16789 The division of discussion between the ding mailing list and the Gnus
16790 newsgroup is not purely based on publicity concerns. It's true that
16791 having people write about the horrible things that an alpha Gnus release
16792 can do (sometimes) in a public forum may scare people off, but more
16793 importantly, talking about new experimental features that have been
16794 introduced may confuse casual users. New features are frequently
16795 introduced, fiddled with, and judged to be found wanting, and then
16796 either discarded or totally rewritten. People reading the mailing list
16797 usually keep up with these rapid changes, whille people on the newsgroup
16798 can't be assumed to do so.
16803 @subsection Contributors
16804 @cindex contributors
16806 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
16807 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
16808 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
16809 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
16810 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
16811 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
16812 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
16813 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
16814 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
16815 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
16817 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
16823 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
16826 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
16827 well as numerous other things).
16830 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
16833 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
16836 Shenghuo Zhu---uudecode.el, mm-uu.el, rfc1843.el and many other things
16837 connected with @sc{mime} and other types of en/decoding.
16840 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
16841 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
16844 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
16847 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
16848 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
16851 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
16854 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
16857 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
16860 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
16863 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
16864 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
16867 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
16870 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
16873 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
16876 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
16880 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
16883 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
16886 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
16889 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
16890 well as autoconf support.
16894 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
16895 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
16897 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
16906 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
16910 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
16933 Massimo Campostrini,
16941 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
16947 Michael Welsh Duggan,
16951 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
16955 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
16962 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
16964 Michelangelo Grigni,
16968 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
16970 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c ?
16972 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
16977 François Felix Ingrand,
16978 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
16980 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
16989 Peter Skov Knudsen,
16990 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
16991 Koseki Yoshinori, @c Koseki
16992 Thor Kristoffersen,
16995 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
17013 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
17014 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
17021 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
17025 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
17029 John McClary Prevost,
17035 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
17040 Christian von Roques,
17043 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
17050 Philippe Schnoebelen,
17052 Randal L. Schwartz,
17083 Katsumi Yamaoka @c Yamaoka
17088 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
17089 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
17090 (550kB and counting).
17092 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
17095 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
17096 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
17100 @subsection New Features
17101 @cindex new features
17104 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
17105 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.3/5.3.
17106 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
17107 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
17110 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
17111 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
17112 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
17116 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
17118 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
17123 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
17124 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
17127 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
17128 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
17131 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
17134 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
17135 All the mail backends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
17136 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
17139 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
17140 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
17141 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
17142 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
17145 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
17146 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
17149 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
17150 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
17151 (@pxref{The Active File}).
17154 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
17155 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
17158 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
17159 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
17160 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
17163 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
17164 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
17165 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
17168 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
17169 the @file{.emacs} file.
17172 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
17173 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
17176 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
17177 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
17180 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
17181 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
17184 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
17185 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
17188 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
17189 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
17192 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
17195 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
17196 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
17199 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
17200 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
17203 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
17204 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
17207 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
17210 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
17211 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
17214 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
17218 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
17222 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
17223 configuration (@pxref{Windows Configuration}).
17226 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
17232 @node September Gnus
17233 @subsubsection September Gnus
17237 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/september.ps,height=20cm}}
17241 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
17246 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
17247 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
17251 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
17252 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
17256 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
17260 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
17261 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
17264 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
17268 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
17271 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
17274 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
17277 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
17281 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
17282 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
17285 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
17289 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
17293 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
17297 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
17301 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
17304 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
17305 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
17308 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
17312 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
17313 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
17316 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
17319 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
17320 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
17321 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
17324 Gnus has a new backend (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
17328 The Gnus cache is much faster.
17331 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
17335 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
17336 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
17339 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
17340 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
17343 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
17344 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
17347 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
17348 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
17349 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
17352 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
17353 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
17356 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
17359 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
17362 All mail backends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
17365 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
17368 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
17369 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
17372 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Windows
17376 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
17379 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}}
17384 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
17387 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
17391 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
17394 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
17398 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
17401 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
17404 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
17405 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
17408 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
17409 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
17413 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
17414 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
17417 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
17421 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
17422 buffer to allow easier treatment.
17425 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
17428 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
17432 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
17436 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
17437 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
17440 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
17444 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
17445 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
17448 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
17449 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
17452 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
17456 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
17459 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
17462 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
17468 @subsubsection Red Gnus
17470 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
17474 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/red.ps,height=20cm}}
17481 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
17484 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
17485 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
17488 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
17489 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
17493 Article washing status can be displayed in the
17494 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
17497 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
17500 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
17501 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
17504 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
17508 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
17509 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
17513 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
17514 Server Internals}).
17517 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
17521 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
17524 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
17525 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
17528 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
17529 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
17530 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
17533 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
17534 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
17537 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
17538 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
17541 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{M-C-_}
17545 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
17546 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
17549 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
17550 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
17553 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
17557 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
17560 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
17564 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
17565 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
17568 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
17569 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
17572 A new command for reading collections of documents
17573 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{M-C-d}
17574 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
17577 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
17581 A new mail-to-news backend makes it possible to post even when the NNTP
17582 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
17585 A new backend for reading searches from Web search engines
17586 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
17587 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
17590 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
17591 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
17595 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
17599 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
17603 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}}
17608 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
17612 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
17616 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
17617 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
17620 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
17626 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
17628 New features in Gnus 5.6:
17633 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
17634 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
17635 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
17638 The @code{nndraft} backend has returned, but works differently than
17639 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
17640 group, which is created automatically.
17643 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
17647 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
17650 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
17651 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
17654 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
17658 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
17661 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
17662 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
17665 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
17668 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section "Symbolic
17669 Prefixes" in the Gnus manual for details.
17672 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
17673 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the "all.SCORE" file.
17676 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
17677 control over simplification.
17680 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
17683 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
17687 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
17690 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
17693 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
17694 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
17695 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
17698 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
17699 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
17702 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
17706 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
17707 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
17710 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
17711 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @sc{nntp} servers.
17714 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
17718 A history of where mails have been split is available.
17721 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
17724 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
17725 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
17728 A new function for citing in Message has been
17729 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
17732 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
17735 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
17739 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
17740 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
17743 The "lapsed date" article header can be kept continually
17744 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
17747 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} backend.
17750 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
17755 @node Newest Features
17756 @subsection Newest Features
17759 Also known as the @dfn{todo list}. Sure to be implemented before the
17762 Be afraid. Be very afraid.
17764 (That a feature appears in this list doesn't necessarily mean that I've
17765 decided to actually implement it. It just means that I think it sounds
17768 (Yes, this is the actual, up-to-the-second todo list.)
17773 I would like the zombie-page to contain an URL to the source of the
17774 latest version of gnus or some explanation on where to find it.
17777 A way to continue editing the latest Message composition.
17780 http://www.sonicnet.com/feature/ari3/
17783 facep is not declared.
17786 Include a section in the manual on why the number of articles
17787 isn't the same in the group buffer and on the SPC prompt.
17790 Interacting with rmail fcc isn't easy.
17795 <URL:http://www.falch.no/people/pepper/DSSSL-Lite/archives/>
17796 <URL:http://www.eit.com/software/hypermail/hypermail.html>
17797 <URL:http://homer.ncm.com/>
17798 <URL:http://www.yahoo.com/Computers_and_Internet/Internet/World_Wide_Web/HTML_Converters/>
17799 http://www.uwsg.indiana.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/9610/index.html
17800 <URL:http://union.ncsa.uiuc.edu/HyperNews/get/www/html/converters.html>
17801 http://www.miranova.com/gnus-list/
17806 @samp{^-- } is made into - in LaTeX.
17809 gnus-kill is much slower than it was in GNUS 4.1.3.
17812 when expunging articles on low score, the sparse nodes keep hanging on?
17814 starting the first time seems to hang Gnus on some systems. Does
17815 NEWGROUPS answer too fast?
17817 nndir doesn't read gzipped files.
17819 FAQ doesn't have an up node?
17821 when moving mail from a procmail spool to the crash-box,
17822 the crash-box is only appropriate to one specific group.
17824 `t' `t' makes X-Faces disappear.
17826 nnmh-be-safe means that crossposted articles will
17827 be marked as unread.
17829 Orphan score entries don't show on "V t" score trace
17831 when clearing out data, the cache data should also be reset.
17833 rewrite gnus-summary-limit-children to be non-recursive
17834 to avoid exceeding lisp nesting on huge groups.
17836 expunged articles are counted when computing scores.
17838 implement gnus-batch-brew-soup
17840 ticked articles aren't easy to read in pick mode -- `n' and
17841 stuff just skips past them. Read articles are the same.
17843 topics that contain just groups with ticked
17844 articles aren't displayed.
17846 nndoc should always allocate unique Message-IDs.
17848 If there are mail groups the first time you use Gnus, Gnus'll
17849 make the mail groups killed.
17851 no "no news is good news" when using topics.
17853 when doing crosspost marking, the cache has to be consulted
17854 and articles have to be removed.
17856 nnweb should fetch complete articles when they are split into several
17859 scoring on head immediate doesn't work.
17861 finding short score file names takes forever.
17863 canceling articles in foreign groups.
17865 nntp-open-rlogin no longer works.
17867 C-u C-x C-s (Summary) switches to the group buffer.
17869 move nnmail-split-history out to the backends.
17871 nnweb doesn't work properly.
17873 using a virtual server name as `gnus-select-method' doesn't work?
17875 when killing/yanking a group from one topic to another in a slave, the
17876 master will yank it first to one topic and then add it to another.
17880 warn user about `=' redirection of a group in the active file?
17882 take over the XEmacs menubar and offer a toggle between the XEmacs
17883 bar and the Gnus bar.
17886 push active file and NOV file parsing down into C code.
17887 `(canonize-message-id id)'
17888 `(mail-parent-message-id references n)'
17889 `(parse-news-nov-line &optional dependency-hashtb)'
17890 `(parse-news-nov-region beg end &optional dependency-hashtb fullp)'
17891 `(parse-news-active-region beg end hashtb)'
17896 nnml .overview directory with splits.
17900 postponed commands.
17902 the selected article show have its Subject displayed in its summary line.
17904 when entering groups, get the real number of unread articles from
17907 sort after gathering threads -- make false roots have the
17908 headers of the oldest orphan with a 0 article number?
17910 nndoc groups should inherit the score files of their parents? Also
17911 inherit copy prompts and save files.
17913 command to start up Gnus (if not running) and enter a mail mode buffer.
17915 allow editing the group description from the group buffer
17916 for backends that support that.
17918 gnus-hide,show-all-topics
17920 groups and sub-topics should be allowed to mingle inside each topic,
17921 and not just list all subtopics at the end.
17923 a command to remove all read articles that are not needed to connect
17924 threads -- `gnus-summary-limit-to-sparse-unread'?
17926 a variable to turn off limiting/cutting of threads in the tree buffer.
17928 a variable to limit how many files are uudecoded.
17930 add zombie groups to a special "New Groups" topic.
17932 server mode command: close/open all connections
17934 put a file date in gnus-score-alist and check whether the file
17935 has been changed before using it.
17937 on exit from a digest group, go to the next article in the parent group.
17939 hide (sub)threads with low score.
17941 when expiring, remove all marks from expired articles.
17943 gnus-summary-limit-to-body
17945 a regexp alist that says what level groups are to be subscribed
17946 on. Eg. -- `(("nnml:" . 1))'.
17948 easier interface to nnkiboze to create ephemeral groups that
17949 contain groups that match a regexp.
17951 allow newlines in <URL:> urls, but remove them before using
17954 If there is no From line, the mail backends should fudge one from the
17957 fuzzy simplifying should strip all non-alpha-numerical info
17958 from subject lines.
17960 gnus-soup-brew-soup-with-high-scores.
17962 nntp-ping-before-connect
17964 command to check whether NOV is evil. "list overview.fmt".
17966 when entering a group, Gnus should look through the score
17967 files very early for `local' atoms and set those local variables.
17969 message annotations.
17971 topics are always yanked before groups, and that's not good.
17973 (set-extent-property extent 'help-echo "String to display in minibuf")
17974 to display help in the minibuffer on buttons under XEmacs.
17976 allow group line format spec to say how many articles there
17981 support qmail maildir spools
17983 `run-with-idle-timer' in gnus-demon.
17985 stop using invisible text properties and start using overlays instead
17987 C-c C-f C-e to add an Expires header.
17989 go from one group to the next; everything is expunged; go to the
17990 next group instead of going to the group buffer.
17992 gnus-renumber-cache -- to renumber the cache using "low" numbers.
17994 record topic changes in the dribble buffer.
17996 `nnfolder-generate-active-file' should look at the folders it
17997 finds and generate proper active ranges.
17999 nneething-look-in-files-for-article-heads variable to control
18000 whether nneething should sniff all files in the directories.
18002 gnus-fetch-article -- start Gnus, enter group, display article
18004 gnus-dont-move-articles-to-same-group variable when respooling.
18006 when messages are crossposted between several auto-expirable groups,
18007 articles aren't properly marked as expirable.
18009 nneething should allow deletion/moving.
18011 TAB on the last button should go to the first button.
18013 if the car of an element in `mail-split-methods' is a function,
18014 and the function returns non-nil, use that as the name of the group(s) to
18017 command for listing all score files that have been applied.
18019 a command in the article buffer to return to `summary' config.
18021 `gnus-always-post-using-current-server' -- variable to override
18022 `C-c C-c' when posting.
18024 nnmail-group-spool-alist -- says where each group should use
18027 when an article is crossposted to an auto-expirable group, the article
18028 should be marker as expirable.
18030 article mode command/menu for "send region as URL to browser".
18032 on errors, jump to info nodes that explain the error. For instance,
18033 on invalid From headers, or on error messages from the nntp server.
18035 when gathering threads, make the article that has no "Re: " the parent.
18036 Also consult Date headers.
18038 a token in splits to call shrink-window-if-larger-than-buffer
18040 `1 0 A M' to do matches on the active hashtb.
18042 duplicates -- command to remove Gnus-Warning header, use the read
18043 Message-ID, delete the "original".
18045 when replying to several messages at once, put the "other" message-ids
18046 into a See-Also header.
18048 support setext: URL:http://www.bsdi.com/setext/
18050 support ProleText: <URL:http://proletext.clari.net/prole/proletext.html>
18052 when browsing a foreign server, the groups that are already subscribed
18053 should be listed as such and not as "K".
18055 generate font names dynamically.
18057 score file mode auto-alist.
18059 allow nndoc to change/add/delete things from documents. Implement
18060 methods for each format for adding an article to the document.
18062 `gnus-fetch-old-headers' `all' value to incorporate
18063 absolutely all headers there is.
18065 function like `|', but concatenate all marked articles
18066 and pipe them to the process.
18068 cache the list of killed (or active) groups in a separate file. Update
18069 the file whenever we read the active file or the list
18070 of killed groups in the .eld file reaches a certain length.
18072 function for starting to edit a file to put into
18073 the current mail group.
18075 score-find-trace should display the total score of the article.
18077 "ghettozie" -- score on Xref header and nix it out after using it
18078 to avoid marking as read in other groups it has been crossposted to.
18080 look at procmail splitting. The backends should create
18081 the groups automatically if a spool file exists for that group.
18083 function for backends to register themselves with Gnus.
18085 when replying to several process-marked articles,
18086 have all the From end up in Cc headers? Variable to toggle.
18088 command to delete a crossposted mail article from all
18089 groups it has been mailed to.
18091 `B c' and `B m' should be crosspost aware.
18093 hide-pgp should also hide PGP public key blocks.
18095 Command in the group buffer to respool process-marked groups.
18097 `gnus-summary-find-matching' should accept
18098 pseudo-"headers" like "body", "head" and "all"
18100 When buttifying <URL: > things, all white space (including
18101 newlines) should be ignored.
18103 Process-marking all groups in a topic should process-mark
18104 groups in subtopics as well.
18106 Add non-native groups to the list of killed groups when killing them.
18108 nntp-suggest-kewl-config to probe the nntp server and suggest
18111 add edit and forward secondary marks.
18113 nnml shouldn't visit its .overview files.
18115 allow customizing sorting within gathered threads.
18117 `B q' shouldn't select the current article.
18119 nnmbox should support a newsgroups file for descriptions.
18121 allow fetching mail from several pop servers.
18123 Be able to specify whether the saving commands save the original
18124 or the formatted article.
18126 a command to reparent with the child process-marked (cf. `T ^'.).
18128 I think the possibility to send a password with nntp-open-rlogin
18129 should be a feature in Red Gnus.
18131 The `Z n' command should be possible to execute from a mouse click.
18133 more limiting functions -- date, etc.
18135 be able to limit on a random header; on body; using reverse matches.
18137 a group parameter (`absofucking-total-expiry') that will make Gnus expire
18138 even unread articles.
18140 a command to print the article buffer as postscript.
18142 variable to disable password fetching when opening by nntp-open-telnet.
18144 manual: more example servers -- nntp with rlogin, telnet
18146 checking for bogus groups should clean topic alists as well.
18148 canceling articles in foreign groups.
18150 article number in folded topics isn't properly updated by
18153 Movement in the group buffer to the next unread group should go to the
18154 next closed topic with unread messages if no group can be found.
18156 Extensive info pages generated on the fly with help everywhere --
18157 in the "*Gnus edit*" buffers, for instance.
18159 Topic movement commands -- like thread movement. Up, down, forward, next.
18161 a way to tick/mark as read Gcc'd articles.
18163 a way to say that all groups within a specific topic comes
18164 from a particular server? Hm.
18166 `gnus-article-fill-if-long-lines' -- a function to fill
18167 the article buffer if there are any looong lines there.
18169 `T h' should jump to the parent topic and fold it.
18171 a command to create an ephemeral nndoc group out of a file,
18172 and then splitting it/moving it to some other group/backend.
18174 a group parameter for nnkiboze groups that says that
18175 all kibozed articles should be entered into the cache.
18177 It should also probably be possible to delimit what
18178 `gnus-jog-cache' does -- for instance, work on just some groups, or on
18179 some levels, and entering just articles that have a score higher than
18182 nnfolder should append to the folder instead of re-writing
18183 the entire folder to disk when accepting new messages.
18185 allow all backends to do the proper thing with .gz files.
18187 a backend for reading collections of babyl files nnbabylfolder?
18189 a command for making the native groups into foreign groups.
18191 server mode command for clearing read marks from all groups
18194 when following up multiple articles, include all To, Cc, etc headers
18197 a command for deciding what the total score of the current
18198 thread is. Also a way to highlight based on this.
18200 command to show and edit group scores
18202 a gnus-tree-minimize-horizontal to minimize tree buffers
18205 command to generate nnml overview file for one group.
18207 `C-u C-u a' -- prompt for many crossposted groups.
18209 keep track of which mail groups have received new articles (in this session).
18210 Be able to generate a report and perhaps do some marking in the group
18213 gnus-build-sparse-threads to a number -- build only sparse threads
18214 that are of that length.
18216 have nnmh respect mh's unseen sequence in .mh_profile.
18218 cache the newsgroups descriptions locally.
18220 asynchronous posting under nntp.
18222 be able to control word adaptive scoring from the score files.
18224 a variable to make `C-c C-c' post using the "current" select method.
18226 `limit-exclude-low-scored-articles'.
18228 if `gnus-summary-show-thread' is a number, hide threads that have
18229 a score lower than this number.
18231 split newsgroup subscription variable up into "order" and "method".
18233 buttonize ange-ftp file names.
18235 a command to make a duplicate copy of the current article
18236 so that each copy can be edited separately.
18238 nnweb should allow fetching from the local nntp server.
18240 record the sorting done in the summary buffer so that
18241 it can be repeated when limiting/regenerating the buffer.
18243 nnml-generate-nov-databses should generate for
18246 when the user does commands in the group buffer, check
18247 the modification time of the .newsrc.eld file and use
18248 ask-user-about-supersession-threat. Also warn when trying
18249 to save .newsrc.eld and it has changed.
18251 M-g on a topic will display all groups with 0 articles in
18254 command to remove all topic stuff.
18256 allow exploding incoming digests when reading incoming mail
18257 and splitting the resulting digests.
18259 nnsoup shouldn't set the `message-' variables.
18261 command to nix out all nnoo state information.
18263 nnmail-process-alist that calls functions if group names
18264 matches an alist -- before saving.
18266 use buffer-invisibility-spec everywhere for hiding text.
18268 variable to activate each group before entering them
18269 to get the (new) number of articles. `gnus-activate-before-entering'.
18271 command to fetch a Message-ID from any buffer, even
18272 starting Gnus first if necessary.
18274 when posting and checking whether a group exists or not, just
18275 ask the nntp server instead of relying on the active hashtb.
18277 buttonize the output of `C-c C-a' in an apropos-like way.
18279 `G p' should understand process/prefix, and allow editing
18280 of several groups at once.
18282 command to create an ephemeral nnvirtual group that
18283 matches some regexp(s).
18285 nndoc should understand "Content-Type: message/rfc822" forwarded messages.
18287 it should be possible to score "thread" on the From header.
18289 hitting RET on a "gnus-uu-archive" pseudo article should unpack it.
18291 `B i' should display the article at once in the summary buffer.
18293 remove the "*" mark at once when unticking an article.
18295 `M-s' should highlight the matching text.
18297 when checking for duplicated mails, use Resent-Message-ID if present.
18299 killing and yanking groups in topics should be better. If killing one copy
18300 of a group that exists in multiple topics, only that copy should
18301 be removed. Yanking should insert the copy, and yanking topics
18302 should be possible to be interspersed with the other yankings.
18304 command for enter a group just to read the cached articles. A way to say
18305 "ignore the nntp connection; just read from the cache."
18307 `X u' should decode base64 articles.
18309 a way to hide all "inner" cited text, leaving just the most
18310 recently cited text.
18312 nnvirtual should be asynchronous.
18314 after editing an article, gnus-original-article-buffer should
18317 there should probably be a way to make Gnus not connect to the
18318 server and just read the articles in the server
18320 allow a `set-default' (or something) to change the default
18321 value of nnoo variables.
18323 a command to import group infos from a .newsrc.eld file.
18325 groups from secondary servers have the entire select method
18326 listed in each group info.
18328 a command for just switching from the summary buffer to the group
18331 a way to specify that some incoming mail washing functions
18332 should only be applied to some groups.
18334 Message `C-f C-t' should ask the user whether to heed
18335 mail-copies-to: never.
18337 new group parameter -- `post-to-server' that says to post
18338 using the current server. Also a variable to do the same.
18340 the slave dribble files should auto-save to the slave file names.
18342 a group parameter that says what articles to display on group entry, based
18345 a way to visually distinguish slave Gnusae from masters. (Whip instead
18348 Use DJ Bernstein "From " quoting/dequoting, where applicable.
18350 Why is hide-citation-maybe and hide-citation different? Also
18353 group user-defined meta-parameters.
18357 From: John Griffith <griffith@@sfs.nphil.uni-tuebingen.de>
18359 I like the option for trying to retrieve the FAQ for a group and I was
18360 thinking it would be great if for those newsgroups that had archives
18361 you could also try to read the archive for that group. Part of the
18362 problem is that archives are spread all over the net, unlike FAQs.
18363 What would be best I suppose is to find the one closest to your site.
18365 In any case, there is a list of general news group archives at @*
18366 ftp://ftp.neosoft.com/pub/users/claird/news.lists/newsgroup_archives.html
18373 From: Jason L Tibbitts III <tibbs@@hpc.uh.edu>
18374 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
18376 (gnus-group-add-parameter group
18377 (cons 'gnus-group-date-last-entered (list (current-time-string))))))
18379 (defun gnus-user-format-function-d (headers)
18380 "Return the date the group was last read."
18381 (cond ((car (gnus-group-get-parameter gnus-tmp-group 'gnus-group-date-last-entered)))
18386 tanken var at når du bruker `gnus-startup-file' som prefix (FOO) til å lete
18387 opp en fil FOO-SERVER, FOO-SERVER.el, FOO-SERVER.eld, kan du la den være en
18388 liste hvor du bruker hvert element i listen som FOO, istedet. da kunne man
18389 hatt forskjellige serveres startup-filer forskjellige steder.
18393 LMI> Well, nnbabyl could alter the group info to heed labels like
18394 LMI> answered and read, I guess.
18396 It could also keep them updated (the same for the Status: header of
18399 They could be used like this:
18403 `M l <name> RET' add label <name> to current message.
18404 `M u <name> RET' remove label <name> from current message.
18405 `/ l <expr> RET' limit summary buffer according to <expr>.
18407 <expr> would be a boolean expression on the labels, e.g.
18409 `/ l bug & !fixed RET'
18412 would show all the messages which are labeled `bug' but not labeled
18415 One could also imagine the labels being used for highlighting, or
18416 affect the summary line format.
18420 Sender: abraham@@dina.kvl.dk
18422 I'd like a gnus-find-file which work like find file, except that it
18423 would recognize things that looks like messages or folders:
18425 - If it is a directory containing numbered files, create an nndir
18428 - For other directories, create a nneething summary buffer.
18430 - For files matching "\\`From ", create a nndoc/mbox summary.
18432 - For files matching "\\`BABYL OPTIONS:", create a nndoc/baby summary.
18434 - For files matching "\\`[^ \t\n]+:", create an *Article* buffer.
18436 - For other files, just find them normally.
18438 I'd like `nneething' to use this function, so it would work on a
18439 directory potentially containing mboxes or babyl files.
18442 Please send a mail to bwarsaw@@cnri.reston.va.us (Barry A. Warsaw) and
18443 tell him what you are doing.
18446 Currently, I get prompted:
18450 decend into sci.something ?
18454 The problem above is that since there is really only one subsection of
18455 science, shouldn't it prompt you for only descending sci.something? If
18456 there was a sci.somethingelse group or section, then it should prompt
18457 for sci? first the sci.something? then sci.somethingelse?...
18460 Ja, det burde være en måte å si slikt. Kanskje en ny variabel?
18461 `gnus-use-few-score-files'? SÃ¥ kunne score-regler legges til den
18462 "mest" lokale score-fila. F. eks. ville no-gruppene betjenes av
18463 "no.all.SCORE", osv.
18466 What i want is for Gnus to treat any sequence or combination of the following
18467 as a single spoiler warning and hide it all, replacing it with a "Next Page"
18473 more than n blank lines
18475 more than m identical lines
18476 (which should be replaced with button to show them)
18478 any whitespace surrounding any of the above
18482 Well, we could allow a new value to `gnus-thread-ignore-subject' --
18483 `spaces', or something. (We could even default to that.) And then
18484 subjects that differ in white space only could be considered the
18485 "same" subject for threading purposes.
18488 Modes to preprocess the contents (e.g. jka-compr) use the second form
18489 "(REGEXP FUNCTION NON-NIL)" while ordinary modes (e.g. tex) use the first
18490 form "(REGEXP . FUNCTION)", so you could use it to distinguish between
18491 those two types of modes. (auto-modes-alist, insert-file-contents-literally.)
18494 Under XEmacs -- do funny article marks:
18497 soup - bowl of soup
18498 score below - dim light bulb
18499 score over - bright light bulb
18502 Yes. I think the algorithm is as follows:
18507 show-list-of-articles-in-group
18508 if (key-pressed == SPACE)
18509 if (no-more-articles-in-group-to-select)
18510 if (articles-selected)
18511 start-reading-selected-articles;
18512 junk-unread-articles;
18517 else if (key-pressed = '.')
18518 if (consolidated-menus) # same as hide-thread in Gnus
18519 select-thread-under-cursor;
18521 select-article-under-cursor;
18525 if (key-pressed == SPACE)
18526 if (more-pages-in-article)
18528 else if (more-selected-articles-to-read)
18535 My precise need here would have been to limit files to Incoming*.
18536 One could think of some `nneething-only-files' variable, but I guess
18537 it would have been unacceptable if one was using many unrelated such
18540 A more useful approach would be to, in response to the `G D' prompt, be
18541 allowed to say something like: `~/.mail/Incoming*', somewhat limiting
18542 the top-level directory only (in case directories would be matched by
18543 the wildcard expression).
18546 It would be nice if it also handled
18548 <URL:news://sunsite.auc.dk/>
18550 which should correspond to `B nntp RET sunsite.auc.dk' in *Group*.
18555 Take a look at w3-menu.el in the Emacs-W3 distribution - this works out
18556 really well. Each menu is 'named' by a symbol that would be on a
18557 gnus-*-menus (where * would be whatever, but at least group, summary, and
18558 article versions) variable.
18560 So for gnus-summary-menus, I would set to '(sort mark dispose ...)
18562 A value of '1' would just put _all_ the menus in a single 'GNUS' menu in
18563 the main menubar. This approach works really well for Emacs-W3 and VM.
18567 nndoc should take care to create unique Message-IDs for all its
18570 gnus-score-followup-article only works when you have a summary buffer
18571 active. Make it work when posting from the group buffer as well.
18572 (message-sent-hook).
18574 rewrite gnus-demon to use run-with-idle-timers.
18577 * Enhancements to Gnus:
18581 * gnus-servers (gnus-start-server-buffer?)--enters Gnus and goes
18582 straight to the server buffer, without opening any connections to
18585 * gnus-server-read-server-newsrc--produces a buffer very similar to
18586 the group buffer, but with only groups from that server listed;
18587 quitting this buffer returns to the server buffer.
18590 add a command to check the integrity of an nnfolder folder --
18591 go through the article numbers and see that there are no duplicates,
18595 `unsmileyfy-buffer' to undo smileification.
18598 a command to give all relevant info on an article, including all
18602 when doing `-request-accept-article', the backends should do
18603 the nnmail duplicate checking.
18606 allow `message-signature-file' to be a function to return the
18607 value of the signature file.
18610 In addition, I would love it if I could configure message-tab so that it
18611 could call `bbdb-complete-name' in other headers. So, some sort of
18614 (setq message-tab-alist
18615 '((message-header-regexp message-expand-group)
18616 ("^\\(To\\|[cC]c\\|[bB]cc\\)" bbdb-complete-name)))
18618 then you could run the relevant function to complete the information in
18622 cache the newsgroups file locally to avoid reloading it all the time.
18625 a command to import a buffer into a group.
18628 nnweb should allow fetching by Message-ID from servers.
18631 point in the article buffer doesn't always go to the
18632 beginning of the buffer when selecting new articles.
18635 a command to process mark all unread articles.
18638 `gnus-gather-threads-by-references-and-subject' -- first
18639 do gathering by references, and then go through the dummy roots and
18640 do more gathering by subject.
18643 gnus-uu-mark-in-numerical-order -- process mark articles in
18644 article numerical order.
18647 (gnus-thread-total-score
18648 (gnus-id-to-thread (mail-header-id (gnus-summary-article-header))))
18652 sorting by score is wrong when using sparse threads.
18655 a command to fetch an arbitrary article -- without having to be
18656 in the summary buffer.
18659 a new nncvs backend. Each group would show an article, using
18660 version branches as threading, checkin date as the date, etc.
18663 http://www.dejanews.com/forms/dnsetfilter_exp.html ?
18664 This filter allows one to construct advance queries on the Dejanews
18665 database such as specifying start and end dates, subject, author,
18666 and/or newsgroup name.
18669 new Date header scoring type -- older, newer
18672 use the summary toolbar in the article buffer.
18675 a command to fetch all articles that are less than X days old.
18678 in pick mode, `q' should save the list of selected articles in the
18679 group info. The next time the group is selected, these articles
18680 will automatically get the process mark.
18683 Isn't it possible to (also?) allow M-^ to automatically try the
18684 default server if it fails on the current server? (controlled by a
18685 user variable, (nil, t, 'ask)).
18688 make it possible to cancel articles using the select method for the
18692 `gnus-summary-select-article-on-entry' or something. It'll default
18693 to t and will select whatever article decided by `gnus-auto-select-first'.
18696 a new variable to control which selection commands should be unselecting.
18697 `first', `best', `next', `prev', `next-unread', `prev-unread' are
18701 be able to select groups that have no articles in them
18702 to be able to post in them (using the current select method).
18705 be able to post via DejaNews.
18708 `x' should retain any sortings that have been performed.
18711 allow the user to specify the precedence of the secondary marks. Also
18712 allow them to be displayed separately.
18715 gnus-summary-save-in-pipe should concatenate the results from
18716 the processes when doing a process marked pipe.
18719 a new match type, like Followup, but which adds Thread matches on all
18720 articles that match a certain From header.
18723 a function that can be read from kill-emacs-query-functions to offer
18724 saving living summary buffers.
18727 a function for selecting a particular group which will contain
18728 the articles listed in a list of article numbers/id's.
18731 a battery of character translation functions to translate common
18732 Mac, MS (etc) characters into ISO 8859-1.
18735 (defun article-fix-m$word ()
18736 "Fix M$Word smartquotes in an article."
18739 (let ((buffer-read-only nil))
18740 (goto-char (point-min))
18741 (while (search-forward "\221" nil t)
18742 (replace-match "`" t t))
18743 (goto-char (point-min))
18744 (while (search-forward "\222" nil t)
18745 (replace-match "'" t t))
18746 (goto-char (point-min))
18747 (while (search-forward "\223" nil t)
18748 (replace-match "\"" t t))
18749 (goto-char (point-min))
18750 (while (search-forward "\224" nil t)
18751 (replace-match "\"" t t)))))
18756 (add-hook 'gnus-exit-query-functions
18758 (if (and (file-exists-p nnmail-spool-file)
18759 (> (nnheader-file-size nnmail-spool-file) 0))
18760 (yes-or-no-p "New mail has arrived. Quit Gnus anyways? ")
18761 (y-or-n-p "Are you sure you want to quit Gnus? "))))
18765 allow message-default-headers to be a function.
18768 new Date score match types -- < > = (etc) that take floating point
18769 numbers and match on the age of the article.
18773 > > > If so, I've got one gripe: It seems that when I fire up gnus 5.2.25
18774 > > > under xemacs-19.14, it's creating a new frame, but is erasing the
18775 > > > buffer in the frame that it was called from =:-O
18777 > > Hm. How do you start up Gnus? From the toolbar or with
18778 > > `M-x gnus-other-frame'?
18780 > I normally start it up from the toolbar; at
18781 > least that's the way I've caught it doing the
18786 all commands that react to the process mark should push
18787 the current process mark set onto the stack.
18790 gnus-article-hide-pgp
18791 Selv ville jeg nok ha valgt å slette den dersom teksten matcher
18793 "\\(This\s+\\)?[^ ]+ has been automatically signed by"
18795 og det er maks hundre tegn mellom match-end og ----linja. Men -det-
18796 er min type heuristikk og langt fra alles.
18799 `gnus-subscribe-sorted' -- insert new groups where they would have been
18800 sorted to if `gnus-group-sort-function' were run.
18803 gnus-(group,summary)-highlight should respect any `face' text props set
18807 use run-with-idle-timer for gnus-demon instead of the
18808 home-brewed stuff for better reliability.
18811 add a way to select which NoCeM type to apply -- spam, troll, etc.
18814 nndraft-request-group should tally auto-save files.
18817 implement nntp-retry-on-break and nntp-command-timeout.
18820 gnus-article-highlight-limit that says when not to highlight (long)
18824 (nnoo-set SERVER VARIABLE VALUE)
18830 interrupitng agent fetching of articles should save articles.
18833 command to open a digest group, and copy all the articles there to the
18837 a variable to disable article body highlights if there's more than
18838 X characters in the body.
18841 handle 480/381 authinfo requests separately.
18844 include the texi/dir file in the distribution.
18847 format spec to "tab" to a position.
18850 Move all prompting to the new `M-n' default style.
18853 command to display all dormant articles.
18856 gnus-auto-select-next makeover -- list of things it should do.
18859 a score match type that adds scores matching on From if From has replied
18860 to something someone else has said.
18863 Read Netscape discussion groups:
18864 snews://secnews.netscape.com/netscape.communicator.unix
18867 One command to edit the original version if an article, and one to edit
18868 the displayed version.
18871 @kbd{T v} -- make all process-marked articles the children of the
18875 Switch from initial text to the new default text mechanism.
18878 How about making it possible to expire local articles? Will it be
18879 possible to make various constraints on when an article can be
18880 expired, e.g. (read), (age > 14 days), or the more interesting (read
18884 New limit command---limit to articles that have a certain string
18885 in the head or body.
18888 Allow breaking lengthy NNTP commands.
18891 gnus-article-highlight-limit, to disable highlighting in big articles.
18894 Editing an article should put the article to be edited
18895 in a special, unique buffer.
18898 A command to send a mail to the admin-address group param.
18901 A Date scoring type that will match if the article
18902 is less than a certain number of days old.
18905 New spec: %~(tab 56) to put point on column 56
18908 Allow Gnus Agent scoring to use normal score files.
18911 Rething the Agent active file thing. `M-g' doesn't update the active
18912 file, for instance.
18915 With dummy roots, `^' and then selecing the first article
18916 in any other dummy thread will make gnus highlight the
18917 dummy root instead of the first article.
18920 Propagate all group properties (marks, article numbers, etc) up to the
18921 topics for displaying.
18924 `n' in the group buffer with topics should go to the next group
18925 with unread articles, even if that group is hidden in a topic.
18928 gnus-posting-styles doesn't work in drafts.
18931 gnus-summary-limit-include-cached is slow when there are
18932 many articles in the cache, since it regenerates big parts of the
18933 summary buffer for each article.
18936 Implement gnus-batch-brew-soup.
18939 Group parameters and summary commands for un/subscribing to mailing
18943 Introduce nnmail-home-directory.
18946 gnus-fetch-group and friends should exit Gnus when the user
18950 The jingle is only played on the second invocation of Gnus.
18953 Bouncing articles should do MIME.
18956 Crossposted articles should "inherit" the % or @ mark from the other
18957 groups it has been crossposted to, or something. (Agent.)
18960 `S D r' should allow expansion of aliases.
18963 If point is on a group that appears multiple times in topics, and
18964 you press `l', point will move to the first instance of the group.
18967 Fetch by Message-ID from dejanews.
18969 <URL:http://search.dejanews.com/msgid.xp?MID=%3C62h9l9$hm4@@basement.replay.com%3E&fmt=raw>
18972 A spec for the group line format to display the number of
18973 agent-downloaded articles in the group.
18976 Some nntp servers never respond when posting, so there should be a
18977 timeout for all commands.
18980 When stading on a topic line and `t'-ing, point goes to the last line.
18981 It should go somewhere else.
18984 I'm having trouble accessing a newsgroup with a "+" in its name with
18985 Gnus. There is a new newsgroup on msnews.microsoft.com named
18986 "microsoft.public.multimedia.directx.html+time" that I'm trying to
18988 "nntp+msnews.microsoft.com:microsoft.public.multimedia.directx.html+time"
18989 but it gives an error that it cant access the group.
18991 Is the "+" character illegal in newsgroup names? Is there any way in
18992 Gnus to work around this? (gnus 5.6.45 - XEmacs 20.4)
18999 Subject: Answer to your mails 01.01.1999-01.05.1999
19000 --text follows this line--
19001 Sorry I killfiled you...
19003 Under the subject "foo", you wrote on 01.01.1999:
19005 Under the subject "foo1", you wrote on 01.01.1999:
19010 Solve the halting problem.
19019 @section The Manual
19023 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
19024 either @code{texi2dvi}
19026 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
19027 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
19029 to get what you hold in your hands now.
19031 The following conventions have been used:
19036 This is a @samp{string}
19039 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
19042 This is a @file{file}
19045 This is a @code{symbol}
19049 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
19053 (setq flargnoze "yes")
19056 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
19059 (setq flumphel 'yes)
19062 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
19063 ever get them confused.
19067 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
19068 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
19069 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
19070 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
19071 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
19072 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
19073 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
19081 @section Terminology
19083 @cindex terminology
19088 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
19089 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
19090 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
19091 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
19092 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
19096 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
19097 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
19098 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
19099 not posting, and replying is not following up.
19103 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
19107 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
19112 Gnus gets fed articles from a number of backends, both news and mail
19113 backends. Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this
19114 is all done by the backends.
19118 Gnus will always use one method (and backend) as the @dfn{native}, or
19119 default, way of getting news.
19123 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
19124 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary backends for getting
19129 Secondary backends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
19130 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
19134 A message that has been posted as news.
19137 @cindex mail message
19138 A message that has been mailed.
19142 A mail message or news article
19146 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
19151 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
19156 A line from the head of an article.
19160 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
19161 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
19165 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the backend for the headers of all
19166 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
19167 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
19168 normal @sc{head} format.
19172 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
19173 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
19174 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
19175 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
19176 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
19177 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
19179 @item killed groups
19180 @cindex killed groups
19181 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
19182 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
19184 @item zombie groups
19185 @cindex zombie groups
19186 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
19189 @cindex active file
19190 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
19191 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
19192 is rather large, as you might surmise.
19195 @cindex bogus groups
19196 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
19197 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
19198 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
19201 @cindex activating groups
19202 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
19203 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
19204 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
19208 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
19210 @item select method
19211 @cindex select method
19212 A structure that specifies the backend, the server and the virtual
19215 @item virtual server
19216 @cindex virtual server
19217 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
19218 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
19219 whole is a virtual server.
19223 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
19224 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
19227 @item ephemeral groups
19228 @cindex ephemeral groups
19229 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
19230 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
19231 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
19234 @cindex solid groups
19235 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
19236 group buffer are solid groups.
19238 @item sparse articles
19239 @cindex sparse articles
19240 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
19241 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
19245 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
19246 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
19250 @cindex thread root
19251 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
19252 articles in the thread.
19256 An article that has responses.
19260 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
19264 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
19265 specified by RFC1153.
19271 @node Customization
19272 @section Customization
19273 @cindex general customization
19275 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
19276 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
19277 for some quite common situations.
19280 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
19281 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
19282 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
19283 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
19287 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
19288 @subsection Slow/Expensive @sc{nntp} Connection
19290 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
19291 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
19292 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
19296 @item gnus-read-active-file
19297 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
19298 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
19299 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
19300 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
19301 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
19303 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
19304 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
19305 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
19306 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
19310 @node Slow Terminal Connection
19311 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
19313 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
19314 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
19315 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
19319 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
19320 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
19321 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
19322 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
19323 horizontal and vertical recentering.
19325 @item gnus-visible-headers
19326 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
19327 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
19328 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
19329 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
19331 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
19333 (setq gnus-treat-hide-headers 'head
19334 gnus-treat-hide-signature t
19335 gnus-treat-hide-citation t)
19338 @item gnus-use-full-window
19339 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
19340 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
19341 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
19342 want to read them anyway.
19344 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
19345 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
19348 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
19349 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
19350 lines, which might save some time.
19354 @node Little Disk Space
19355 @subsection Little Disk Space
19358 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
19359 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
19363 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
19364 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
19365 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
19366 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
19369 @item gnus-read-newsrc-file
19370 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never read @file{.newsrc}---it will
19371 only read @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
19372 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
19375 @item gnus-save-killed-list
19376 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
19377 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
19378 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
19379 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
19385 @subsection Slow Machine
19386 @cindex slow machine
19388 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
19389 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
19391 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
19392 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
19394 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
19395 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
19396 summary buffer faster.
19400 @node Troubleshooting
19401 @section Troubleshooting
19402 @cindex troubleshooting
19404 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
19412 Make sure your computer is switched on.
19415 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
19416 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
19420 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
19421 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
19422 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
19423 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
19426 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
19430 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
19431 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
19432 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
19433 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
19434 something like that.
19437 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
19440 @cindex reporting bugs
19442 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
19444 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
19445 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
19446 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
19447 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
19449 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
19450 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
19451 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
19452 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
19455 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
19456 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
19457 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
19458 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
19459 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
19460 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
19462 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
19463 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
19464 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
19467 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
19468 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
19470 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
19471 @cindex ding mailing list
19472 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@gnus.org}.
19473 Write to @samp{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
19477 @node Gnus Reference Guide
19478 @section Gnus Reference Guide
19480 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
19481 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
19482 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
19483 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
19486 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
19487 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
19488 backends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
19489 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
19490 and general methods of operation.
19493 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
19494 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
19495 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
19496 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
19497 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
19498 * Group Info:: The group info format.
19499 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
19500 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
19501 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
19505 @node Gnus Utility Functions
19506 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
19507 @cindex Gnus utility functions
19508 @cindex utility functions
19510 @cindex internal variables
19512 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
19513 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
19514 Below is a list of the most common ones.
19518 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
19519 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
19520 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
19522 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
19523 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
19524 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
19526 @item gnus-group-real-name
19527 @findex gnus-group-real-name
19528 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
19531 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
19532 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
19533 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
19534 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
19536 @item gnus-get-info
19537 @findex gnus-get-info
19538 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
19540 @item gnus-group-unread
19541 @findex gnus-group-unread
19542 The number of unread articles in @var{group}, or @code{t} if that is
19546 @findex gnus-active
19547 The active entry for @var{group}.
19549 @item gnus-set-active
19550 @findex gnus-set-active
19551 Set the active entry for @var{group}.
19553 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
19554 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
19555 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
19558 @item gnus-continuum-version
19559 @findex gnus-continuum-version
19560 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
19561 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
19564 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
19565 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
19566 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
19568 @item gnus-news-group-p
19569 @findex gnus-news-group-p
19570 Says whether @var{group} came from a news backend.
19572 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
19573 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
19574 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
19576 @item gnus-server-to-method
19577 @findex gnus-server-to-method
19578 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
19580 @item gnus-server-equal
19581 @findex gnus-server-equal
19582 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
19584 @item gnus-group-native-p
19585 @findex gnus-group-native-p
19586 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
19588 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
19589 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
19590 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
19592 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
19593 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
19594 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
19596 @item group-group-find-parameter
19597 @findex group-group-find-parameter
19598 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
19599 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
19601 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
19602 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
19603 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
19605 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
19606 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
19607 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
19609 @item gnus-check-backend-function
19610 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
19611 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the backend
19612 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
19615 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
19619 @item gnus-read-method
19620 @findex gnus-read-method
19621 Prompts the user for a select method.
19626 @node Backend Interface
19627 @subsection Backend Interface
19629 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
19630 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
19631 server is a @dfn{backend} and some @dfn{backend variables}. As examples
19632 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
19633 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
19634 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
19636 When Gnus asks for information from a backend---say @code{nntp}---on
19637 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
19638 function parameters. (If not, the backend should use the ``current''
19639 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
19640 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
19641 been opened, the function should fail.
19643 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
19644 name. Take this example:
19648 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
19649 (nntp-port-number 4324))
19652 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
19653 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
19655 The backends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
19656 The standard backends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
19657 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
19659 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
19660 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
19661 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
19663 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
19664 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
19665 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
19666 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
19667 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
19668 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
19671 Some backends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} backends, and
19672 some might be said not to be. The latter are backends that generally
19673 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
19674 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
19677 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary backend
19680 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
19683 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
19684 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
19685 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
19686 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
19687 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
19688 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
19692 @node Required Backend Functions
19693 @subsubsection Required Backend Functions
19697 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
19699 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
19700 @code{Message-ID}s. Current backends do not fully support either---only
19701 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most backends do not support
19702 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
19704 The result data should either be HEADs or NOV lines, and the result
19705 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
19706 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
19707 of HEADs and NOV lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
19709 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching "extra
19710 headers", in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
19711 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
19712 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
19713 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the backend finds it
19714 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
19715 number, do maximum fetches.
19717 Here's an example HEAD:
19720 221 1056 Article retrieved.
19721 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
19722 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
19723 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
19724 Subject: Re: Something very droll
19725 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
19726 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
19728 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
19729 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
19730 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
19734 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
19735 these in the data buffer.
19737 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
19741 head = error / valid-head
19742 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
19743 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
19744 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
19745 header = <text> eol
19748 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
19749 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
19753 nov-buffer = *nov-line
19754 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
19755 field = <text except TAB>
19758 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
19762 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
19764 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
19765 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
19767 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The backend
19768 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
19769 server. In fact, it should do so.
19771 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
19772 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
19775 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
19777 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
19778 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
19781 There should be no data returned.
19784 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
19786 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the backend
19787 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that backend
19788 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
19789 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
19791 There should be no data returned.
19794 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
19796 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
19797 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
19798 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
19799 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
19801 There should be no data returned.
19804 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
19806 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
19808 There should be no data returned.
19811 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
19813 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
19814 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
19815 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
19816 it would be nice if that were possible.
19818 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
19819 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
19820 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
19821 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
19822 into its article buffer.
19824 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
19825 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
19826 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
19827 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
19828 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
19829 on successful article retrieval.
19832 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
19834 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
19835 making @var{group} the current group.
19837 If @var{FAST}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
19840 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
19843 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
19846 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
19847 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
19848 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
19849 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
19850 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
19851 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
19852 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
19853 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader.
19856 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
19857 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
19858 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
19862 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
19864 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
19865 a no-op on most backends.
19867 There should be no data returned.
19870 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
19872 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
19875 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
19878 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
19879 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
19882 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
19883 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag.
19886 active-file = *active-line
19887 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
19889 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
19892 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
19893 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
19894 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
19897 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
19899 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
19900 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
19901 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
19902 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
19903 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
19904 clear if the posting could not be completed.
19906 There should be no result data from this function.
19911 @node Optional Backend Functions
19912 @subsubsection Optional Backend Functions
19916 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
19918 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
19919 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
19920 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
19922 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
19923 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
19924 former is in the same format as the data from
19925 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
19926 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
19929 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
19933 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
19935 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the backend for
19936 alterations. This comes in handy if the backend really carries all the
19937 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
19938 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
19939 should return the (altered) group info.
19941 There should be no result data from this function.
19944 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
19946 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
19947 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
19948 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
19949 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
19950 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
19951 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
19952 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
19953 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
19955 There should be no result data from this function.
19958 @item (nnchoke-request-set-mark GROUP ACTION &optional SERVER)
19960 Set/remove/add marks on articles. Normally Gnus handles the article
19961 marks (such as read, ticked, expired etc) internally, and store them in
19962 @code{~/.newsrc.eld}. Some backends (such as IMAP) however carry all
19963 information about the articles on the server, so Gnus need to propagate
19964 the mark information to the server.
19966 ACTION is a list of mark setting requests, having this format:
19969 (RANGE ACTION MARK)
19972 Range is a range of articles you wish to update marks on. Action is
19973 @code{set}, @code{add} or @code{del}, respectively used for removing all
19974 existing marks and setting them as specified, adding (preserving the
19975 marks not mentioned) mark and removing (preserving the marks not
19976 mentioned) marks. Mark is a list of marks; where each mark is a
19977 symbol. Currently used marks are @code{read}, @code{tick}, @code{reply},
19978 @code{expire}, @code{killed}, @code{dormant}, @code{save},
19979 @code{download} and @code{unsend}, but your backend should, if possible,
19980 not limit itself to theese.
19982 Given contradictory actions, the last action in the list should be the
19983 effective one. That is, if your action contains a request to add the
19984 @code{tick} mark on article 1 and, later in the list, a request to
19985 remove the mark on the same article, the mark should in fact be removed.
19987 An example action list:
19990 (((5 12 30) 'del '(tick))
19991 ((10 . 90) 'add '(read expire))
19992 ((92 94) 'del '(read)))
19995 The function should return a range of articles it wasn't able to set the
19996 mark on (currently not used for anything).
19998 There should be no result data from this function.
20000 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
20002 If the user tries to set a mark that the backend doesn't like, this
20003 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
20004 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
20005 @var{mark}. If the backend doesn't care, it must return the original
20006 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
20008 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
20009 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
20010 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
20013 There should be no result data from this function.
20016 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
20018 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
20019 request that the backend check for incoming articles, in one way or
20020 another. A mail backend will typically read the spool file or query the
20021 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
20022 to be heeded---if the backend decides that it is too much work just
20023 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
20024 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
20026 There should be no result data from this function.
20029 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
20031 The result data from this function should be a description of
20035 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
20037 description = <text>
20040 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
20042 The result data from this function should be the description of all
20043 groups available on the server.
20046 description-buffer = *description-line
20050 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
20052 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
20053 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date
20054 format. The data should be in the active buffer format.
20057 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
20059 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
20061 There should be no return data.
20064 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
20066 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
20067 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
20068 numbers.) It is left up to the backend to decide how old articles
20069 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
20070 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
20073 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
20076 There should be no result data returned.
20079 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
20082 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
20083 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
20085 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
20086 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
20087 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
20088 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
20089 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
20090 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
20092 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
20093 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
20096 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
20097 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
20099 There should be no data returned.
20102 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
20104 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
20105 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
20106 this function in short order.
20108 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
20109 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
20111 There should be no data returned.
20114 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
20116 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
20117 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
20119 There should be no data returned.
20122 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
20124 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
20125 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
20126 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
20128 There should be no data returned.
20131 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
20133 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
20134 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
20136 There should be no data returned.
20141 @node Error Messaging
20142 @subsubsection Error Messaging
20144 @findex nnheader-report
20145 @findex nnheader-get-report
20146 The backends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
20147 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
20148 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the backend
20149 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
20150 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
20151 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
20154 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
20156 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
20159 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
20160 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
20161 recently reported message for the backend in question. This function
20162 takes one argument---the server symbol.
20164 Internally, these functions access @var{backend}@code{-status-string},
20165 so the @code{nnchoke} backend will have its error message stored in
20166 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
20169 @node Writing New Backends
20170 @subsubsection Writing New Backends
20172 Many backends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
20173 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
20174 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
20175 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
20176 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
20179 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
20180 backends when writing new backends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
20181 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
20183 All the backends declare their public variables and functions by using a
20184 package called @code{nnoo}.
20186 To inherit functions from other backends (and allow other backends to
20187 inherit functions from the current backend), you should use the
20193 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
20194 parameters. For instance:
20197 (nnoo-declare nndir
20201 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
20202 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
20205 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
20206 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
20207 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
20209 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
20210 variables in the parent backends to map the variable to when executing
20211 a function in those backends.
20214 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
20215 "Where nndir will look for groups."
20216 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
20219 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
20220 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
20221 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
20223 @item nnoo-define-basics
20224 This macro defines some common functions that almost all backends should
20228 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
20232 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
20233 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
20234 function as being public so that other backends can inherit it.
20236 @item nnoo-map-functions
20237 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current backend to
20238 functions from the parent backends.
20241 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
20242 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
20243 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
20246 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
20247 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
20248 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
20249 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
20252 This macro allows importing functions from backends. It should be the
20253 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
20254 haven't already been defined.
20260 nnmh-request-newgroups)
20264 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
20265 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
20266 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
20271 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} backend.
20274 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
20275 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
20279 (require 'nnheader)
20283 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
20285 (nnoo-declare nndir
20288 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
20289 "Where nndir will look for groups."
20290 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
20292 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
20293 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
20296 (defvoo nndir-current-group "" nil nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
20297 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
20298 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
20300 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
20301 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
20303 ;;; Interface functions.
20305 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
20307 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
20308 (setq nndir-directory
20309 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
20311 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
20312 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
20313 (push `(nndir-current-group
20314 ,(file-name-nondirectory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
20316 (push `(nndir-top-directory
20317 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
20319 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
20321 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
20322 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
20323 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
20324 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
20325 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
20329 nnmh-status-message
20331 nnmh-request-newgroups))
20337 @node Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
20338 @subsubsection Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
20340 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
20341 Having Gnus start using your new backend is rather easy---you just
20342 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
20343 enter the backend into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
20345 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the backend name and
20346 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
20351 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
20354 The abilities can be:
20358 This is a mailish backend---followups should (probably) go via mail.
20360 This is a newsish backend---followups should (probably) go via news.
20362 This backend supports both mail and news.
20364 This is neither a post nor mail backend---it's something completely
20367 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
20368 articles and groups.
20370 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
20371 true for almost all backends.
20372 @item prompt-address
20373 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
20374 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for backends like
20375 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
20379 @node Mail-like Backends
20380 @subsubsection Mail-like Backends
20382 One of the things that separate the mail backends from the rest of the
20383 backends is the heavy dependence by the mail backends on common
20384 functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the definition of
20385 @code{nnml-request-scan}:
20388 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
20389 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
20390 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
20393 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
20394 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
20397 This function takes four parameters.
20401 This should be a symbol to designate which backend is responsible for
20404 @item exit-function
20405 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
20407 @item temp-directory
20408 Where the temporary files should be stored.
20411 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
20412 performed for one group only.
20415 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{backend}@code{-save-mail} to
20416 save each article. @var{backend}@code{-active-number} will be called to
20417 find the article number assigned to this article.
20419 The function also uses the following variables:
20420 @var{backend}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
20421 this backend); and @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} and
20422 @var{backend}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
20423 @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
20427 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
20428 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
20432 @node Score File Syntax
20433 @subsection Score File Syntax
20435 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
20436 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
20437 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
20439 Here's a typical score file:
20443 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
20450 BNF definition of a score file:
20453 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
20454 element = rule / atom
20455 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
20456 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
20457 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
20458 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
20460 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
20461 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
20462 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
20463 date-header = "date"
20464 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
20465 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
20466 score = "nil" / <integer>
20467 date = "nil" / <natural number>
20468 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
20469 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
20470 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
20471 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
20472 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
20473 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
20474 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
20475 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
20476 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
20477 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
20478 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
20479 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
20480 exclude-files / read-only / touched
20481 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
20482 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
20483 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
20484 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
20485 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
20486 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
20487 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
20488 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
20489 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
20490 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
20491 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
20492 eval = "eval" space <form>
20493 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
20496 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
20499 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
20500 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
20501 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
20502 one looong line, then that's ok.
20504 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
20505 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
20509 @subsection Headers
20511 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
20512 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
20513 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
20514 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
20516 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
20517 RFC1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
20518 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
20519 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
20520 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
20521 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
20522 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
20524 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
20525 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
20526 @code{xref}, and @code{extra}. There are macros for accessing and
20527 setting these slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
20528 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
20530 All these slots contain strings, except the @code{extra} slot, which
20531 contains an alist of header/value pairs (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
20537 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
20538 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
20540 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
20541 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
20542 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
20543 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
20545 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
20549 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
20552 is transformed into
20555 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
20558 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
20559 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
20562 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
20565 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
20566 is slightly tricky:
20569 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
20575 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
20578 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
20584 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
20591 and is equal to the previous range.
20593 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
20594 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
20595 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
20599 range = simple-range / normal-range
20600 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
20601 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
20602 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
20603 number *[ " " contents ]
20606 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
20607 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
20608 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
20609 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
20610 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
20615 @subsection Group Info
20617 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
20618 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
20619 describes the group.
20621 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
20622 second is a more complex one:
20625 ("no.group" 5 ((1 . 54324)))
20627 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
20628 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
20630 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
20633 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
20634 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
20635 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
20636 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
20637 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
20638 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
20639 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
20640 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
20641 this section is about.
20643 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
20644 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
20645 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
20647 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
20650 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
20651 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
20652 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
20653 group = quote <string> quote
20654 ralevel = rank / level
20655 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
20656 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
20657 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
20659 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
20660 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
20661 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
20662 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
20665 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
20666 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
20669 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
20670 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
20673 @item gnus-info-group
20674 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
20675 @findex gnus-info-group
20676 @findex gnus-info-set-group
20677 Get/set the group name.
20679 @item gnus-info-rank
20680 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
20681 @findex gnus-info-rank
20682 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
20683 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
20685 @item gnus-info-level
20686 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
20687 @findex gnus-info-level
20688 @findex gnus-info-set-level
20689 Get/set the group level.
20691 @item gnus-info-score
20692 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
20693 @findex gnus-info-score
20694 @findex gnus-info-set-score
20695 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
20697 @item gnus-info-read
20698 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
20699 @findex gnus-info-read
20700 @findex gnus-info-set-read
20701 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
20703 @item gnus-info-marks
20704 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
20705 @findex gnus-info-marks
20706 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
20707 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
20709 @item gnus-info-method
20710 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
20711 @findex gnus-info-method
20712 @findex gnus-info-set-method
20713 Get/set the group select method.
20715 @item gnus-info-params
20716 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
20717 @findex gnus-info-params
20718 @findex gnus-info-set-params
20719 Get/set the group parameters.
20722 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
20723 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
20725 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
20726 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
20727 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
20728 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
20731 @node Extended Interactive
20732 @subsection Extended Interactive
20733 @cindex interactive
20734 @findex gnus-interactive
20736 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
20737 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
20738 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
20741 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
20742 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
20747 The best thing to do would have been to implement
20748 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
20749 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
20750 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
20751 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
20752 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
20753 @code{interactive}.
20755 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
20760 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
20761 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
20765 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
20766 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
20767 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
20770 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
20774 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
20778 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
20784 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
20785 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
20789 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
20790 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
20791 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
20793 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
20794 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
20795 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
20796 Gnus, that's very useful.
20798 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
20799 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
20800 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
20801 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
20802 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
20803 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
20804 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
20805 following function:
20808 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
20812 (,function ,@@args))
20816 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
20817 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
20818 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
20821 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
20822 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
20823 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
20825 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
20826 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
20827 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
20830 @node Various File Formats
20831 @subsection Various File Formats
20834 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
20835 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
20839 @node Active File Format
20840 @subsubsection Active File Format
20842 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
20843 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
20846 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
20849 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
20850 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
20851 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
20852 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
20853 no.general 1000 900 y
20856 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
20859 active = *group-line
20860 group-line = group space high-number space low-number space flag <NEWLINE>
20861 group = <non-white-space string>
20863 high-number = <non-negative integer>
20864 low-number = <positive integer>
20865 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
20868 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
20869 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
20872 @node Newsgroups File Format
20873 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
20875 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
20876 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
20877 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
20880 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
20881 Here's the definition:
20885 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
20886 group = <non-white-space string>
20888 description = <string>
20893 @node Emacs for Heathens
20894 @section Emacs for Heathens
20896 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
20897 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
20898 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{M-C-a}'', ``kill the
20899 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
20900 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
20901 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
20902 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
20906 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
20907 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
20912 @subsection Keystrokes
20916 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
20919 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
20922 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
20923 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
20924 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
20925 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
20926 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
20927 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
20929 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
20930 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
20931 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
20932 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
20933 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
20934 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
20935 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
20937 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
20938 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{M-C-m}
20939 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
20940 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
20941 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
20942 ``Press @kbd{M-C-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
20943 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
20945 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
20946 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
20947 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
20948 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
20949 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
20955 @subsection Emacs Lisp
20957 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
20958 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
20959 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
20960 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
20962 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
20963 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
20964 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
20965 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
20966 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
20967 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
20968 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
20971 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
20972 write the following:
20975 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
20978 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
20979 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
20980 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
20983 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
20984 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
20985 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
20986 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
20987 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
20989 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
20990 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
20991 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
20995 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
20999 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
21002 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
21003 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
21006 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
21009 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
21010 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
21013 @include gnus-faq.texi