4 @settitle T-gnus 6.15 Manual
10 * Gnus: (gnus). The newsreader Gnus.
15 @setchapternewpage odd
19 \documentclass[twoside,a4paper,openright,11pt]{book}
20 \usepackage[latin1]{inputenc}
21 \usepackage{pagestyle}
24 \input{gnusconfig.tex}
26 \ifx\pdfoutput\undefined
28 \usepackage[pdftex,bookmarks,colorlinks=true]{hyperref}
36 \newcommand{\gnusversionname}{T-gnus v6.15}
37 \newcommand{\gnuschaptername}{}
38 \newcommand{\gnussectionname}{}
40 \newcommand{\gnusbackslash}{/}
42 \newcommand{\gnusref}[1]{``#1'' on page \pageref{#1}}
43 \ifx\pdfoutput\undefined
44 \newcommand{\gnusuref}[1]{\gnustt{#1}}
46 \newcommand{\gnusuref}[1]{\href{#1}{\gnustt{#1}}}
48 \newcommand{\gnusxref}[1]{See ``#1'' on page \pageref{#1}}
49 \newcommand{\gnuspxref}[1]{see ``#1'' on page \pageref{#1}}
51 \newcommand{\gnuskindex}[1]{\index{#1}}
52 \newcommand{\gnusindex}[1]{\index{#1}}
54 \newcommand{\gnustt}[1]{{\gnusselectttfont{}#1}}
55 \newcommand{\gnuscode}[1]{\gnustt{#1}}
56 \newcommand{\gnussamp}[1]{``{\fontencoding{OT1}\gnusselectttfont{}#1}''}
57 \newcommand{\gnuslisp}[1]{\gnustt{#1}}
58 \newcommand{\gnuskbd}[1]{`\gnustt{#1}'}
59 \newcommand{\gnuskey}[1]{`\gnustt{#1}'}
60 \newcommand{\gnusfile}[1]{`\gnustt{#1}'}
61 \newcommand{\gnusdfn}[1]{\textit{#1}}
62 \newcommand{\gnusi}[1]{\textit{#1}}
63 \newcommand{\gnusstrong}[1]{\textbf{#1}}
64 \newcommand{\gnusemph}[1]{\textit{#1}}
65 \newcommand{\gnusvar}[1]{{\fontsize{10pt}{10}\selectfont\textsl{\textsf{#1}}}}
66 \newcommand{\gnussc}[1]{\textsc{#1}}
67 \newcommand{\gnustitle}[1]{{\huge\textbf{#1}}}
68 \newcommand{\gnusversion}[1]{{\small\textit{#1}}}
69 \newcommand{\gnusauthor}[1]{{\large\textbf{#1}}}
70 \newcommand{\gnusresult}[1]{\gnustt{=> #1}}
71 \newcommand{\gnusacronym}[1]{\textit{#1}}
72 \newcommand{\gnusemail}[1]{\textit{#1}}
74 \newcommand{\gnusbullet}{{${\bullet}$}}
75 \newcommand{\gnusdollar}{\$}
76 \newcommand{\gnusampersand}{\&}
77 \newcommand{\gnuspercent}{\%}
78 \newcommand{\gnushash}{\#}
79 \newcommand{\gnushat}{\symbol{"5E}}
80 \newcommand{\gnusunderline}{\symbol{"5F}}
81 \newcommand{\gnusnot}{$\neg$}
82 \newcommand{\gnustilde}{\symbol{"7E}}
83 \newcommand{\gnusless}{{$<$}}
84 \newcommand{\gnusgreater}{{$>$}}
85 \newcommand{\gnusbraceleft}{{$>$}}
86 \newcommand{\gnusbraceright}{{$>$}}
88 \newcommand{\gnushead}{\raisebox{-1cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-head,height=1cm}}}
89 \newcommand{\gnusinteresting}{
90 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\gnushead]{\gnushead}
93 \newcommand{\gnuscleardoublepage}{\ifodd\count0\mbox{}\clearpage\thispagestyle{empty}\mbox{}\clearpage\else\clearpage\fi}
95 \newcommand{\gnuspagechapter}[1]{
102 \newcommand{\gnuschapter}[2]{
104 \ifdim \gnusdimen = 0pt\setcounter{page}{1}\pagestyle{gnus}\pagenumbering{arabic} \gnusdimen 1pt\fi
106 \renewcommand{\gnussectionname}{}
107 \renewcommand{\gnuschaptername}{#2}
108 \thispagestyle{empty}
110 \begin{picture}(500,500)(0,0)
111 \put(480,350){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{#1}}
112 \put(40,300){\makebox(500,50)[bl]{{\Huge\bf{#2}}}}
117 \newcommand{\gnusfigure}[3]{
119 \mbox{}\ifodd\count0\hspace*{-0.8cm}\else\hspace*{-3cm}\fi\begin{picture}(440,#2)
126 \newcommand{\gnusicon}[1]{
127 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\raisebox{-1.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/#1-up,height=1.5cm}}]{\raisebox{-1cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/#1-up,height=1cm}}}
130 \newcommand{\gnuspicon}[1]{
131 \margindex{\epsfig{figure=#1,width=2cm}}
134 \newcommand{\gnusxface}[2]{
135 \margindex{\epsfig{figure=#1,width=1cm}\epsfig{figure=#2,width=1cm}}
138 \newcommand{\gnussmiley}[2]{
139 \margindex{\makebox[2cm]{\hfill\epsfig{figure=#1,width=0.5cm}\hfill\epsfig{figure=#2,width=0.5cm}\hfill}}
142 \newcommand{\gnusitemx}[1]{\mbox{}\vspace*{-\itemsep}\vspace*{-\parsep}\item#1}
144 \newcommand{\gnussection}[1]{
145 \renewcommand{\gnussectionname}{#1}
149 \newenvironment{codelist}%
154 \newenvironment{kbdlist}%
160 \newenvironment{dfnlist}%
165 \newenvironment{stronglist}%
170 \newenvironment{samplist}%
175 \newenvironment{varlist}%
180 \newenvironment{emphlist}%
185 \newlength\gnusheadtextwidth
186 \setlength{\gnusheadtextwidth}{\headtextwidth}
187 \addtolength{\gnusheadtextwidth}{1cm}
189 \newpagestyle{gnuspreamble}%
194 \hspace*{-0.23cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\mbox{}}\textbf{\hfill\roman{page}}}
198 \hspace*{-3.25cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\roman{page}\hfill\mbox{}}}
207 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
209 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
214 \newpagestyle{gnusindex}%
219 \hspace*{-0.23cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\gnuschaptername\hfill\arabic{page}}}}
223 \hspace*{-3.25cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\arabic{page}\hfill\gnuschaptername}}}
231 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
233 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
243 \makebox[12cm]{\hspace*{3.1cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\arabic{chapter}.\arabic{section}} \textbf{\gnussectionname\hfill\arabic{page}}}}}
247 \makebox[12cm]{\hspace*{-2.95cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\arabic{page}\hfill\gnuschaptername}}}}
255 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
257 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
262 \pagenumbering{roman}
263 \pagestyle{gnuspreamble}
273 %\addtolength{\oddsidemargin}{-5cm}
274 %\addtolength{\evensidemargin}{-5cm}
276 \addtolength{\textheight}{2cm}
278 \gnustitle{\gnustitlename}\hfill\gnusversion{\gnusversionname}\\
281 \hspace*{0cm}\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=15cm}
284 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
291 \thispagestyle{empty}
293 Copyright \copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001,
295 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
298 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
299 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
300 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
301 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
302 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
303 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
304 License'' in the Emacs manual.
306 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
307 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
308 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
310 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
311 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
312 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
313 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
321 This file documents gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
323 Copyright (C) 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003
324 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
326 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
327 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
328 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the
329 Invariant Sections being none, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
330 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
331 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
332 License'' in the Emacs manual.
334 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
335 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
336 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
338 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
339 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
340 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
341 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
347 @title T-gnus 6.15 Manual
349 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
352 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
353 Copyright @copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001,
355 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
357 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
358 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
359 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
360 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
361 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
362 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
363 License'' in the Emacs manual.
365 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
366 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
367 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
369 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
370 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
371 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
372 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
381 @top The gnus Newsreader
385 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using gnus. The news
386 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
387 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
390 T-gnus provides @sc{mime} features based on @sc{semi} API. So T-gnus
391 supports your right to read strange messages including big images or
392 other various kinds of formats. T-gnus also supports
393 internationalization/localization and multiscript features based on MULE
394 API. So T-gnus does not discriminate various language communities.
395 Oh, if you are a Klingon, please wait Unicode Next Generation.
397 This manual corresponds to T-gnus 6.15.
408 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
409 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
411 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
412 being accused of plagiarism:
414 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
415 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
416 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you
417 can even read news with it!
419 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
420 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
421 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend gnus to make it behave
422 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
423 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
429 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
430 * Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
431 * Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
432 * Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
433 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
434 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
435 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
436 * Various:: General purpose settings.
437 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
438 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
439 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
440 * Key Index:: Key Index.
442 Other related manuals
444 * Message:(message). Composing messages.
445 * Emacs-MIME:(emacs-mime). Composing messages; MIME-specific parts.
446 * Sieve:(sieve). Managing Sieve scripts in Emacs.
447 * PGG:(pgg). PGP/MIME with Gnus.
450 --- The Detailed Node Listing ---
454 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
455 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
456 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
457 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
458 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
459 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
460 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
461 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
462 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
463 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
464 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
468 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
469 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
470 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
474 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
475 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
476 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
477 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
478 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
479 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
480 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
481 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
482 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
483 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
484 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
485 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
486 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
487 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
488 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
489 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
490 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
494 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
495 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
496 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
500 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
501 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
502 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
503 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
504 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
508 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
509 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
510 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
511 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
512 * Sieve Commands:: Managing Sieve scripts.
516 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
517 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
518 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
519 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
520 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
521 * Delayed Articles:: Send articles at a later time.
522 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
523 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
524 * Threading:: How threads are made.
525 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
526 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
527 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
528 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
529 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
530 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
531 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
532 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
533 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
534 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
535 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
536 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
537 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
538 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
539 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
540 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
541 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
542 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
543 or reselecting the current group.
544 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
545 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
546 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
547 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
549 Summary Buffer Format
551 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
552 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
553 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
554 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
558 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
559 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
561 Reply, Followup and Post
563 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
564 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
565 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
566 * Canceling and Superseding::
570 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
571 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
572 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
574 * Generic Marking Commands::
575 * Setting Process Marks::
579 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
580 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
581 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
585 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
586 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
588 Customizing Threading
590 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
591 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
592 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
593 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over@dots{} but you were wrong!
597 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
598 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
599 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
600 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
601 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
602 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
606 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
607 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
608 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
612 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
613 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
614 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
615 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
616 * Article Header:: Doing various header transformations.
617 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
618 * Article Button Levels:: Controlling appearance of buttons.
619 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
620 * Article Display:: Display various stuff---X-Face, Picons, Smileys
621 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
622 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
624 Alternative Approaches
626 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
627 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
629 Various Summary Stuff
631 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
632 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
633 * Summary Generation Commands::
634 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
638 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
639 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
640 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
641 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
642 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
646 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
647 * Posting Server:: What server should you post and mail via?
648 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
649 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
650 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
651 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
652 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
653 * Signing and encrypting:: How to compose secure messages.
657 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
658 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
659 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
660 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
661 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
662 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
663 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
664 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
668 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
669 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
670 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
671 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
672 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
673 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
674 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
678 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
679 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
683 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
684 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
685 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
689 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
690 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
691 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
692 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
693 * Mail Back End Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
694 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
695 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
696 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
697 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
698 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
699 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
700 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail back ends for reading other files.
701 * Choosing a Mail Back End:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
705 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
706 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
707 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
709 Choosing a Mail Back End
711 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
712 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the Rmail Babyl format.
713 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
714 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like back end.
715 * Maildir:: Another one-file-per-message format.
716 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
717 * Comparing Mail Back Ends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
722 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
723 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
724 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
725 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
726 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
727 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
731 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
732 * Expiring in IMAP:: Expiring mail with nnimap.
733 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
734 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a ``compress mailbox'' button.
735 * A note on namespaces:: How to (not) use IMAP namespace in Gnus.
739 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
740 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
741 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
742 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
743 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
747 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
751 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
752 * SOUP Groups:: A back end for reading @sc{soup} packets.
753 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
757 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
758 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
762 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
763 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
764 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
765 * Agent as Cache:: The Agent is a big cache too.
766 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
767 * Agent Regeneration:: How to recover from lost connections and other accidents.
768 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
769 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
770 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
771 * Example Setup:: An example @file{~/.gnus.el} file for offline people.
772 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
773 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
777 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
778 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
779 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
783 * Group Agent Commands:: Configure groups and fetch their contents.
784 * Summary Agent Commands:: Manually select then fetch specific articles.
785 * Server Agent Commands:: Select the servers that are supported by the agent.
789 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
790 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
791 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
792 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
793 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
794 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
795 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
796 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
797 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
798 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
799 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
800 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
801 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
802 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
803 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
804 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
805 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
809 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
810 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
811 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
812 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
816 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
817 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
818 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
822 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
823 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
824 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
825 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
826 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
827 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
828 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
829 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
830 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
831 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
832 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
833 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
834 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
835 * Predicate Specifiers:: Specifying predicates.
836 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
837 * Image Enhancements:: Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
838 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
839 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
840 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
844 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
845 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
846 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
847 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
848 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
849 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
850 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
851 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
855 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what you're reading.
856 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
857 * X-Face:: Display a funky, teensy black-and-white image.
858 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
862 * The problem of spam:: Some background, and some solutions
863 * Anti-Spam Basics:: Simple steps to reduce the amount of spam.
864 * SpamAssassin:: How to use external anti-spam tools.
865 * Hashcash:: Reduce spam by burning CPU time.
866 * Filtering Spam Using The Spam ELisp Package::
867 * Filtering Spam Using Statistics with spam-stat::
871 * XEmacs:: Requirements for installing under XEmacs.
872 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
873 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
874 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
875 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
876 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
877 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
878 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
879 * Frequently Asked Questions::
883 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
884 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
885 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
886 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
887 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
888 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
889 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
890 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
891 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
895 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
896 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
897 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
898 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
899 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
903 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
904 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
905 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
906 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
910 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
911 * Back End Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
912 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
913 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
914 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
915 * Group Info:: The group info format.
916 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
917 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
918 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
922 * Required Back End Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
923 * Optional Back End Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
924 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
925 * Writing New Back Ends:: Extending old back ends.
926 * Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
927 * Mail-like Back Ends:: Some tips on mail back ends.
931 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
932 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
936 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
937 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
943 @chapter Starting gnus
948 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting gnus
949 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
952 @findex gnus-other-frame
953 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
954 If you want to start gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
955 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
957 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
958 variables in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file. This file is similar to
959 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
961 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
962 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
965 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
966 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
967 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
968 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
969 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
970 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
971 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
972 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
973 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
974 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
975 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
979 @node Finding the News
980 @section Finding the News
983 @vindex gnus-select-method
985 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where gnus should look for
986 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
987 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
988 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
991 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
992 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
995 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
998 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
1001 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
1004 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
1005 certainly be much faster. But do not use the local spool if your
1006 server is running Leafnode; in this case, use @code{(nntp "localhost")}.
1008 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
1010 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
1011 If this variable is not set, gnus will take a look at the
1012 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
1013 gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
1014 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
1015 that fails as well, gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
1017 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
1018 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
1019 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
1020 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
1022 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
1023 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
1024 You can also make gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
1025 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
1026 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), gnus will let you choose between the servers
1027 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
1028 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting. (Note that this
1029 will set @code{gnus-nntp-server}, which means that if you then @kbd{M-x
1030 gnus} later in the same Emacs session, Gnus will contact the same
1033 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
1035 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
1036 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
1037 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
1038 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
1039 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
1040 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
1042 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
1044 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
1045 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
1046 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
1047 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
1048 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
1049 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
1052 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} back end to read your mail,
1053 you would typically set this variable to
1056 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
1060 @node The First Time
1061 @section The First Time
1062 @cindex first time usage
1064 If no startup files exist, gnus will try to determine what groups should
1065 be subscribed by default.
1067 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
1068 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, gnus
1069 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
1070 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
1073 Since she hasn't, gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
1074 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
1075 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
1077 You'll also be subscribed to the gnus documentation group, which should
1078 help you with most common problems.
1080 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, gnus will just
1081 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
1085 @node The Server is Down
1086 @section The Server is Down
1087 @cindex server errors
1089 If the default server is down, gnus will understandably have some
1090 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
1091 the news groups, you may want to start gnus anyway.
1093 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
1094 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
1095 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
1096 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
1097 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
1098 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
1099 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
1101 @findex gnus-no-server
1102 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
1104 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
1105 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
1106 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start gnus. That might come in handy
1107 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
1108 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
1109 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
1110 levels.) Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1114 @section Slave Gnusae
1117 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one gnus at the
1118 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
1119 are using the two different gnusae to read from two different servers),
1120 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
1122 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
1123 @file{.newsrc} file.
1125 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the gnus
1126 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
1127 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
1128 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
1129 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
1130 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
1131 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
1134 Anyway, you start one gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
1135 however you do it). Each subsequent slave gnusae should be started with
1136 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
1137 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
1138 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master gnus
1139 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
1140 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
1141 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
1143 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
1144 information in the normal (i.e., master) @file{.newsrc} file.
1146 If the @file{.newsrc*} files have not been saved in the master when the
1147 slave starts, you may be prompted as to whether to read an auto-save
1148 file. If you answer ``yes'', the unsaved changes to the master will be
1149 incorporated into the slave. If you answer ``no'', the slave may see some
1150 messages as unread that have been read in the master.
1152 @node Fetching a Group
1153 @section Fetching a Group
1154 @cindex fetching a group
1156 @findex gnus-fetch-group
1157 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
1158 group and I don't care whether gnus has been started or not''. This is
1159 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
1160 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
1161 It takes the group name as a parameter.
1167 @cindex subscription
1169 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
1170 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
1171 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
1172 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
1173 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
1174 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
1175 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
1176 @code{always}, then Gnus will query the back ends for new groups even
1177 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1180 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
1181 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
1182 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
1186 @node Checking New Groups
1187 @subsection Checking New Groups
1189 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
1190 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
1191 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
1192 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, gnus will ask the
1193 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
1194 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
1195 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
1196 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
1197 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
1198 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
1200 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
1201 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
1202 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
1203 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
1204 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
1205 work. I could write a function to make gnus guess whether the server
1206 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
1207 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
1208 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
1209 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
1210 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
1212 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, gnus will
1213 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
1214 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
1215 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
1216 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
1217 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
1220 @node Subscription Methods
1221 @subsection Subscription Methods
1223 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
1224 What gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
1225 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
1227 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
1228 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
1230 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
1234 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
1235 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
1236 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
1237 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
1238 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
1240 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
1241 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
1242 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
1243 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
1245 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1246 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1247 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
1249 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1250 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1251 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
1252 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
1253 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
1254 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into its
1255 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
1256 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
1257 up. Or something like that.
1259 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
1260 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
1261 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that gnus will ask
1262 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
1263 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
1265 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
1266 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
1267 Kill all new groups.
1269 @item gnus-subscribe-topics
1270 @vindex gnus-subscribe-topics
1271 Put the groups into the topic that has a matching @code{subscribe} topic
1272 parameter (@pxref{Topic Parameters}). For instance, a @code{subscribe}
1273 topic parameter that looks like
1279 will mean that all groups that match that regex will be subscribed under
1282 If no topics match the groups, the groups will be subscribed in the
1287 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
1288 A closely related variable is
1289 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
1290 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, gnus will ask you in a
1291 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
1292 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
1295 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
1296 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
1297 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
1298 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
1301 @node Filtering New Groups
1302 @subsection Filtering New Groups
1304 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
1305 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
1306 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
1309 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
1312 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
1313 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
1314 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
1315 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
1316 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
1317 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
1318 subscribing these groups.
1319 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
1320 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
1322 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
1323 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
1324 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
1325 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
1326 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
1327 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
1328 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
1329 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
1331 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
1332 Yet another variable that meddles here is
1333 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
1334 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
1335 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
1336 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
1337 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
1338 that come from mail back ends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
1339 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, @code{nnmh}, and @code{nnmaildir})
1340 subscribed. If you don't like that, just set this variable to
1343 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
1344 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
1347 @node Changing Servers
1348 @section Changing Servers
1349 @cindex changing servers
1351 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
1352 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
1353 very flaky and you want to use another.
1355 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
1356 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
1360 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
1361 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
1362 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
1363 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
1366 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
1367 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
1368 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
1369 functions more than absolutely necessary.
1371 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
1372 @findex gnus-change-server
1373 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
1374 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
1375 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
1376 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
1377 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
1379 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1380 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1381 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
1382 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
1383 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
1385 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1386 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1387 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
1388 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
1389 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
1390 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
1392 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data
1393 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
1394 Clear the data from the current group only---nix out marks and the
1395 list of read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
1397 After changing servers, you @strong{must} move the cache hierarchy away,
1398 since the cached articles will have wrong article numbers, which will
1399 affect which articles Gnus thinks are read.
1400 @code{gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} will ask you if you want
1401 to have it done automatically; for @code{gnus-group-clear-data}, you
1402 can use @kbd{M-x gnus-cache-move-cache} (but beware, it will move the
1403 cache for all groups).
1407 @section Startup Files
1408 @cindex startup files
1413 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
1414 information is traditionally stored in this file.
1416 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
1417 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
1418 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
1419 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
1420 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
1421 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
1422 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
1424 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
1425 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
1426 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
1427 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
1428 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
1429 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
1431 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
1432 @vindex gnus-read-newsrc-file
1433 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
1434 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
1435 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from gnus faster.
1436 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
1437 gnus. But hey, who would want to, right? Similarly, setting
1438 @code{gnus-read-newsrc-file} to @code{nil} makes gnus ignore the
1439 @file{.newsrc} file and any @file{.newsrc-SERVER} files, which is
1440 convenient if you have a tendency to use Netscape once in a while.
1442 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
1443 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
1444 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
1445 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
1446 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
1447 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
1448 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
1449 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
1450 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
1451 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
1452 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
1453 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
1455 @vindex gnus-startup-file
1456 @vindex gnus-backup-startup-file
1457 @vindex version-control
1458 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
1459 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
1460 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
1461 If you want version control for this file, set
1462 @code{gnus-backup-startup-file}. It respects the same values as the
1463 @code{version-control} variable.
1465 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
1466 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
1467 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
1468 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
1469 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
1470 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
1471 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
1472 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
1473 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
1474 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
1477 (defun turn-off-backup ()
1478 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
1480 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1481 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1484 @vindex gnus-init-file
1485 @vindex gnus-site-init-file
1486 When gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
1487 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
1488 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
1489 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
1490 @file{site-init} files with gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
1491 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
1492 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
1493 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
1494 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
1500 @cindex dribble file
1503 Whenever you do something that changes the gnus data (reading articles,
1504 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
1505 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
1506 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
1507 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
1510 If gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
1511 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
1514 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
1515 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, gnus won't create and
1516 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
1518 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
1519 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
1520 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, gnus will dribble
1521 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
1522 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
1523 file permissions as the @file{.newsrc} file.
1525 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
1526 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
1527 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
1530 @node The Active File
1531 @section The Active File
1533 @cindex ignored groups
1535 When gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
1536 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
1537 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
1539 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
1540 Before examining the active file, gnus deletes all lines that match the
1541 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
1542 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make gnus
1543 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
1544 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
1545 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
1548 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
1549 @c if you set it to anything else.
1551 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
1553 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
1554 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent gnus from
1555 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
1557 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
1558 you actually subscribe to.
1560 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
1561 variable to @code{nil} will probably make gnus slower, not faster. At
1562 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow gnus down
1563 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
1565 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
1566 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
1567 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
1568 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
1569 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
1570 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
1572 Some news servers (old versions of Leafnode and old versions of INN, for
1573 instance) do not support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group}. For these
1574 servers, @code{nil} is probably the most efficient value for this
1577 If this variable is @code{nil}, gnus will ask for group info in total
1578 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
1579 @sc{nntp} server, gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
1580 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
1581 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
1582 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
1584 If you think that starting up Gnus takes too long, try all the three
1585 different values for this variable and see what works best for you.
1587 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
1588 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1590 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1591 secondary select methods.
1594 @node Startup Variables
1595 @section Startup Variables
1599 @item gnus-load-hook
1600 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1601 A hook run while gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1602 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1603 times you start gnus.
1605 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1606 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1607 A hook run after starting up gnus successfully.
1609 @item gnus-startup-hook
1610 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1611 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up gnus
1613 @item gnus-started-hook
1614 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1615 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up gnus
1618 @item gnus-setup-news-hook
1619 @vindex gnus-setup-news-hook
1620 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1621 generating the group buffer.
1623 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1624 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1625 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1626 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1627 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1628 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1629 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1630 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1632 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1633 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1634 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1635 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1636 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1637 @file{~/.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @file{.emacs} instead.
1639 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1640 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1641 Message displayed by gnus when no groups are available.
1643 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1644 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1645 If non-@code{nil}, play the gnus jingle at startup.
1647 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1648 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1649 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1650 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1656 @chapter Group Buffer
1657 @cindex group buffer
1659 @c Alex Schroeder suggests to rearrange this as follows:
1661 @c <kensanata> ok, just save it for reference. I'll go to bed in a minute.
1662 @c 1. Selecting a Group, 2. (new) Finding a Group, 3. Group Levels,
1663 @c 4. Subscription Commands, 5. Group Maneuvering, 6. Group Data,
1664 @c 7. Group Score, 8. Group Buffer Format
1665 @c <kensanata> Group Levels should have more information on levels 5 to 9. I
1666 @c suggest to split the 4th paragraph ("Gnus considers groups...") as follows:
1667 @c <kensanata> First, "Gnus considers groups... (default 9)."
1668 @c <kensanata> New, a table summarizing what levels 1 to 9 mean.
1669 @c <kensanata> Third, "Gnus treats subscribed ... reasons of efficiency"
1670 @c <kensanata> Then expand the next paragraph or add some more to it.
1671 @c This short one sentence explains levels 1 and 2, therefore I understand
1672 @c that I should keep important news at 3 and boring news at 4.
1673 @c Say so! Then go on to explain why I should bother with levels 6 to 9.
1674 @c Maybe keep those that you don't want to read temporarily at 6,
1675 @c those that you never want to read at 8, those that offend your
1676 @c human rights at 9...
1679 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1680 is the first buffer shown when gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1681 long as gnus is active.
1685 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1686 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=ps/group,height=9cm}}
1687 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1688 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1689 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1690 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1691 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1692 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1698 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1699 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1700 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1701 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1702 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1703 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1704 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1705 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1706 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1707 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1708 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1709 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1710 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1711 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1712 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1713 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1714 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1718 @node Group Buffer Format
1719 @section Group Buffer Format
1722 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1723 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1724 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1728 @node Group Line Specification
1729 @subsection Group Line Specification
1730 @cindex group buffer format
1732 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1733 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1735 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1738 25: news.announce.newusers
1739 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1744 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1745 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1746 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1747 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1749 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1750 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1751 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1752 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1753 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1754 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1756 @samp{%M%S%5y:%B%(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1758 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1759 the colon after performing an operation. @xref{Positioning
1760 Point}. Nothing else is required---not even the group name. All
1761 displayed text is just window dressing, and is never examined by Gnus.
1762 Gnus stores all real information it needs using text properties.
1764 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1765 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1766 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1768 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1773 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1776 Whether the group is subscribed.
1779 Level of subscribedness.
1782 Number of unread articles.
1785 Number of dormant articles.
1788 Number of ticked articles.
1791 Number of read articles.
1794 Number of unseen articles.
1797 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1798 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1800 Gnus uses this estimation because the @sc{nntp} protocol provides
1801 efficient access to @var{max-number} and @var{min-number} but getting
1802 the true unread message count is not possible efficiently. For
1803 hysterical raisins, even the mail back ends, where the true number of
1804 unread messages might be available efficiently, use the same limited
1805 interface. To remove this restriction from Gnus means that the back
1806 end interface has to be changed, which is not an easy job. If you
1807 want to work on this, please contact the Gnus mailing list.
1810 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1813 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1822 Group comment (@pxref{Group Parameters}) or group name if there is no
1823 comment element in the group parameters.
1826 Newsgroup description. You need to read the group descriptions
1827 before these will appear, and to do that, you either have to set
1828 @code{gnus-read-active-file} or use the group buffer @kbd{M-d}
1832 @samp{m} if moderated.
1835 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1841 If the summary buffer for the group is open or not.
1847 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1851 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1854 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1855 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1856 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1857 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1858 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.e.gnus}.
1861 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1863 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1867 @samp{#} (@code{gnus-process-mark}) if the group is process marked.
1870 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1874 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1875 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1876 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1877 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1878 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1879 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1884 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1885 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1886 group, or a bogus native group.
1889 @node Group Modeline Specification
1890 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1891 @cindex group modeline
1893 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1894 The mode line can be changed by setting
1895 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1896 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1900 The native news server.
1902 The native select method.
1906 @node Group Highlighting
1907 @subsection Group Highlighting
1908 @cindex highlighting
1909 @cindex group highlighting
1911 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1912 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1913 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1914 that look like @code{(@var{form} . @var{face})}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1915 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1917 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1921 (cond (window-system
1922 (setq custom-background-mode 'light)
1923 (defface my-group-face-1
1924 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))) "First group face")
1925 (defface my-group-face-2
1926 '((t (:foreground "DarkSeaGreen4" :bold t))) "Second group face")
1927 (defface my-group-face-3
1928 '((t (:foreground "Green4" :bold t))) "Third group face")
1929 (defface my-group-face-4
1930 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))) "Fourth group face")
1931 (defface my-group-face-5
1932 '((t (:foreground "Blue" :bold t))) "Fifth group face")))
1934 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1935 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1936 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1937 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1938 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1939 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1942 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1944 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1951 The number of unread articles in the group.
1955 Whether the group is a mail group.
1957 The level of the group.
1959 The score of the group.
1961 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1963 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather,
1964 @var{max-number} minus @var{min-number} plus one.
1966 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1967 topic being inserted.
1970 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1971 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal gnus
1972 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1974 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1975 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1976 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1977 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1978 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1981 @node Group Maneuvering
1982 @section Group Maneuvering
1983 @cindex group movement
1985 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1986 expected, hopefully.
1992 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1993 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1994 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
2000 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
2001 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
2002 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
2006 @findex gnus-group-next-group
2007 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
2011 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
2012 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
2016 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
2017 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
2018 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
2022 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
2023 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
2024 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
2027 Three commands for jumping to groups:
2033 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
2034 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
2035 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
2040 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
2041 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
2042 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
2046 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
2047 Jump to the first group with unread articles
2048 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
2051 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
2052 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
2053 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
2054 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
2058 @node Selecting a Group
2059 @section Selecting a Group
2060 @cindex group selection
2065 @kindex SPACE (Group)
2066 @findex gnus-group-read-group
2067 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
2068 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
2069 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
2070 this command, gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
2071 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{n}, @var{n}
2072 determines the number of articles Gnus will fetch. If @var{n} is
2073 positive, Gnus fetches the @var{n} newest articles, if @var{n} is
2074 negative, Gnus fetches the @code{abs(@var{n})} oldest articles.
2076 Thus, @kbd{SPC} enters the group normally, @kbd{C-u SPC} offers old
2077 articles, @kbd{C-u 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 newest articles, and @kbd{C-u
2078 - 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 oldest ones.
2080 When you are in the group (in the Summary buffer), you can type
2081 @kbd{M-g} to fetch new articles, or @kbd{C-u M-g} to also show the old
2086 @findex gnus-group-select-group
2087 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
2088 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
2089 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
2090 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
2094 @kindex M-RET (Group)
2095 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
2096 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
2097 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
2098 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
2099 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
2100 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
2101 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
2102 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
2103 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
2106 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
2107 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
2108 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
2109 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
2110 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
2113 @kindex C-M-RET (Group)
2114 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
2115 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
2116 doing any processing of its contents
2117 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
2118 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
2119 manner will have no permanent effects.
2123 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
2124 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what gnus should consider
2125 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
2126 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, gnus will query the user
2127 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
2128 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
2129 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
2130 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
2133 @vindex gnus-large-ephemeral-newsgroup
2134 Same as @code{gnus-large-newsgroup}, but only used for ephemeral
2137 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
2138 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
2139 @vindex gnus-auto-select-subject
2140 If @code{gnus-auto-select-first} is non-@code{nil}, select an article
2141 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
2142 Which article this is is controlled by the
2143 @code{gnus-auto-select-subject} variable. Valid values for this
2149 Place point on the subject line of the first unread article.
2152 Place point on the subject line of the first article.
2155 Place point on the subject line of the first unseen article.
2157 @item unseen-or-unread
2158 Place point on the subject line of the first unseen article, and if
2159 there is no such article, place point on the subject line of the first
2163 Place point on the subject line of the highest-scored unread article.
2167 This variable can also be a function. In that case, that function
2168 will be called to place point on a subject line.
2170 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
2171 binary group with Huge articles) you can set the
2172 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} variable to @code{nil} in
2173 @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
2177 @node Subscription Commands
2178 @section Subscription Commands
2179 @cindex subscription
2187 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
2188 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
2189 Toggle subscription to the current group
2190 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2196 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
2197 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
2198 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
2199 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
2205 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
2206 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
2207 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
2213 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
2214 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
2217 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
2218 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
2219 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
2220 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
2221 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
2227 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
2228 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
2232 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
2233 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
2236 @kindex S C-k (Group)
2237 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
2238 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
2239 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
2240 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
2241 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
2242 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
2243 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
2244 @file{.newsrc} file.
2248 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
2258 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
2259 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
2260 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
2261 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
2262 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
2263 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
2268 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
2269 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
2270 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
2274 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
2275 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
2276 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
2278 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2279 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2280 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2281 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
2282 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
2283 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
2290 @section Group Levels
2294 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
2295 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
2296 can ask gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
2297 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
2298 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
2300 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
2306 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
2307 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
2308 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
2309 prompted for a level.
2312 @vindex gnus-level-killed
2313 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
2314 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
2315 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
2316 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
2317 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
2318 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
2319 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
2320 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
2321 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
2322 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
2323 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
2324 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
2325 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
2326 reasons of efficiency.
2328 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
2329 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
2331 Maybe the following description of the default behavior of Gnus helps to
2332 understand what these levels are all about. By default, Gnus shows you
2333 subscribed nonempty groups, but by hitting @kbd{L} you can have it show
2334 empty subscribed groups and unsubscribed groups, too. Type @kbd{l} to
2335 go back to showing nonempty subscribed groups again. Thus, unsubscribed
2336 groups are hidden, in a way.
2338 Zombie and killed groups are similar to unsubscribed groups in that they
2339 are hidden by default. But they are different from subscribed and
2340 unsubscribed groups in that Gnus doesn't ask the news server for
2341 information (number of messages, number of unread messages) on zombie
2342 and killed groups. Normally, you use @kbd{C-k} to kill the groups you
2343 aren't interested in. If most groups are killed, Gnus is faster.
2345 Why does Gnus distinguish between zombie and killed groups? Well, when
2346 a new group arrives on the server, Gnus by default makes it a zombie
2347 group. This means that you are normally not bothered with new groups,
2348 but you can type @kbd{A z} to get a list of all new groups. Subscribe
2349 the ones you like and kill the ones you don't want. (@kbd{A k} shows a
2350 list of killed groups.)
2352 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
2353 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
2354 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
2356 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
2357 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
2358 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
2359 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
2360 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
2361 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
2362 relevant valid ranges.
2364 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
2365 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
2366 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
2367 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
2368 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
2369 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
2372 If this variable is @code{best}, Gnus will make the next newsgroup the
2373 one with the best level.
2375 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
2376 All groups with a level less than or equal to
2377 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
2380 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
2381 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
2382 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
2383 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
2386 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
2387 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
2388 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
2389 use this level as the ``work'' level.
2391 @vindex gnus-activate-level
2392 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
2393 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
2394 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
2395 to 5. The default is 6.
2399 @section Group Score
2404 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
2405 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
2406 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
2409 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can have Gnus assign a score
2410 to each group through the mechanism described below. You can then sort
2411 the group buffer based on this score. Alternatively, you can sort on
2412 score and then level. (Taken together, the level and the score is
2413 called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group that is on level 4 and has
2414 a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group on level 5 that has a score
2415 of 300. (The level is the most significant part and the score is the
2416 least significant part.))
2418 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
2419 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
2420 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
2421 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
2422 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
2423 action after each summary exit, you can add
2424 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
2425 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
2426 slow things down somewhat.
2429 @node Marking Groups
2430 @section Marking Groups
2431 @cindex marking groups
2433 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
2434 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
2435 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
2436 bidding on those groups.
2438 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
2439 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
2440 with the process mark and then execute the command.
2448 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
2449 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
2455 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
2456 Remove the mark from the current group
2457 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
2461 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
2462 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
2466 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
2467 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
2471 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
2472 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
2476 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
2477 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
2478 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
2481 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
2483 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
2484 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
2485 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
2486 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
2487 the command to be executed.
2490 @node Foreign Groups
2491 @section Foreign Groups
2492 @cindex foreign groups
2494 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
2495 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
2496 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
2497 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
2504 @findex gnus-group-make-group
2505 @cindex making groups
2506 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
2507 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
2508 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
2512 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
2513 @cindex renaming groups
2514 Rename the current group to something else
2515 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
2516 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
2522 @findex gnus-group-customize
2523 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
2527 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
2528 @cindex renaming groups
2529 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
2530 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
2534 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
2535 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
2536 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
2540 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
2541 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
2542 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
2546 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
2548 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
2549 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
2554 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
2555 Make the gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
2559 @cindex (ding) archive
2560 @cindex archive group
2561 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
2562 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
2563 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
2564 Make a gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
2565 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
2566 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
2567 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
2571 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
2573 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
2574 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
2575 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
2576 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
2580 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
2582 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
2583 @code{nneething} back end (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
2584 @xref{Anything Groups}.
2588 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
2589 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
2591 Make a group based on some file or other
2592 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2593 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
2594 Currently supported types are @code{mbox}, @code{babyl},
2595 @code{digest}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward},
2596 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts},
2597 @code{standard-digest}, @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs},
2598 @code{nsmail}, @code{outlook}, @code{oe-dbx}, and @code{mailman}. If
2599 you run this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file
2600 type. @xref{Document Groups}.
2604 @vindex gnus-useful-groups
2605 @findex gnus-group-make-useful-group
2606 Create one of the groups mentioned in @code{gnus-useful-groups}
2607 (@code{gnus-group-make-useful-group}).
2611 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
2615 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
2616 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2617 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
2618 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
2619 include @code{google}, @code{dejanews}, and @code{gmane}.
2620 @xref{Web Searches}.
2622 If you use the @code{google} search engine, you can limit the search
2623 to a particular group by using a match string like
2624 @samp{shaving group:alt.sysadmin.recovery}.
2627 @kindex G DEL (Group)
2628 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
2629 This function will delete the current group
2630 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
2631 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
2632 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
2633 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
2634 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
2638 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
2639 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
2640 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
2644 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
2645 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
2646 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
2649 @xref{Select Methods}, for more information on the various select
2652 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
2653 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
2654 gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
2655 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
2656 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
2657 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
2661 @node Group Parameters
2662 @section Group Parameters
2663 @cindex group parameters
2665 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
2666 Here's an example group parameter list:
2669 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2673 We see that each element consists of a ``dotted pair''---the thing before
2674 the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value. All the
2675 parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs, which are
2676 not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
2678 Some parameters have correspondant customizable variables, each of which
2679 is an alist of regexps and values.
2681 The following group parameters can be used:
2686 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
2689 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
2692 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
2693 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
2694 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
2695 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
2696 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
2698 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
2699 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
2700 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
2701 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
2702 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
2703 list address instead.
2705 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-address-alist}.
2709 Address used when doing @kbd{a} in that group.
2712 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
2715 It is totally ignored
2716 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2717 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2719 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2720 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2721 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2722 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2723 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2725 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2726 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2727 sending the message.
2729 @findex gnus-mailing-list-mode
2730 @cindex Mail List Groups
2731 If this variable is set, @code{gnus-mailing-list-mode} is turned on when
2732 entering summary buffer.
2734 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-list-alist}.
2739 If this parameter is set to @code{t}, Gnus will consider the
2740 to-address and to-list parameters for this group as addresses of
2741 mailing lists you are subscribed to. Giving Gnus this information is
2742 (only) a first step in getting it to generate correct Mail-Followup-To
2743 headers for your posts to these lists. Look here @pxref{Mailing
2744 Lists, , Mailing Lists, message, The Message Manual} for a complete
2745 treatment of available MFT support.
2747 See also @code{gnus-find-subscribed-addresses}, the function that
2748 directly uses this group parameter.
2752 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2753 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2754 of whether it has any unread articles.
2756 @item broken-reply-to
2757 @cindex broken-reply-to
2758 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2759 headers in this group are to be ignored, and for the header to be hidden
2760 if @code{reply-to} is part of @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}. This
2761 can be useful if you're reading a mailing list group where the listserv
2762 has inserted @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv
2763 itself. That is broken behavior. So there!
2767 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2768 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2772 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, gnus
2773 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2774 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2779 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2780 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group. If
2781 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2782 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2783 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2784 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2785 (@pxref{Archived Messages}). CAVEAT:: It yields an error putting
2786 @code{(gcc-self . t)} in groups of a @code{nntp} server or so, because
2787 a @code{nntp} server doesn't accept articles.
2791 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2792 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2793 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2795 See also @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups}.
2798 @cindex total-expire
2799 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2800 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2801 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2802 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2805 See also @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups}.
2809 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2810 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2811 @code{(expiry-wait . 10)}, this value will override any
2812 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function}
2813 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}) when expiring expirable messages. The value
2814 can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or the
2815 symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2818 @cindex score file group parameter
2819 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2820 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2821 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2824 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2825 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2826 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2827 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2830 @cindex admin-address
2831 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2832 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2833 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2834 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2838 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2839 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2843 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2846 Display the last @var{integer} articles in the group. This is the same as
2847 entering the group with C-u @var{integer}.
2850 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2854 Display articles that satisfy a predicate.
2856 Here are some examples:
2860 Display only unread articles.
2863 Display everything except expirable articles.
2865 @item [and (not reply) (not expire)]
2866 Display everything except expirable and articles you've already
2870 The available operators are @code{not}, @code{and} and @code{or}.
2871 Predicates include @code{tick}, @code{unsend}, @code{undownload},
2872 @code{unread}, @code{dormant}, @code{expire}, @code{reply},
2873 @code{killed}, @code{bookmark}, @code{score}, @code{save},
2874 @code{cache}, @code{forward}, @code{unseen} and @code{recent}.
2878 The @code{display} parameter works by limiting the summary buffer to
2879 the subset specified. You can pop the limit by using the @kbd{/ w}
2880 command (@pxref{Limiting}).
2884 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")} are
2885 arbitrary comments on the group. You can display comments in the
2886 group line (@pxref{Group Line Specification}).
2890 Elements that look like @code{(charset . iso-8859-1)} will make
2891 @code{iso-8859-1} the default charset; that is, the charset that will be
2892 used for all articles that do not specify a charset.
2894 See also @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}.
2896 @item ignored-charsets
2897 @cindex ignored-charset
2898 Elements that look like @code{(ignored-charsets x-unknown iso-8859-1)}
2899 will make @code{iso-8859-1} and @code{x-unknown} ignored; that is, the
2900 default charset will be used for decoding articles.
2902 See also @code{gnus-group-ignored-charsets-alist}.
2905 @cindex posting-style
2906 You can store additional posting style information for this group
2907 here (@pxref{Posting Styles}). The format is that of an entry in the
2908 @code{gnus-posting-styles} alist, except that there's no regexp matching
2909 the group name (of course). Style elements in this group parameter will
2910 take precedence over the ones found in @code{gnus-posting-styles}.
2912 For instance, if you want a funky name and signature in this group only,
2913 instead of hacking @code{gnus-posting-styles}, you could put something
2914 like this in the group parameters:
2919 ("X-My-Header" "Funky Value")
2920 (signature "Funky Signature"))
2925 If it is set, the value is used as the method for posting message
2926 instead of @code{gnus-post-method}.
2930 An item like @code{(banner . "regex")} causes any part of an article
2931 that matches the regular expression "regex" to be stripped. Instead of
2932 "regex", you can also use the symbol @code{signature} which strips the
2933 last signature or any of the elements of the alist
2934 @code{gnus-article-banner-alist}.
2938 This parameter contains a Sieve test that should match incoming mail
2939 that should be placed in this group. From this group parameter, a
2940 Sieve @samp{IF} control structure is generated, having the test as the
2941 condition and @samp{fileinto "group.name";} as the body.
2943 For example, if the INBOX.list.sieve group has the @code{(sieve
2944 address "sender" "sieve-admin@@extundo.com")} group parameter, when
2945 translating the group parameter into a Sieve script (@pxref{Sieve
2946 Commands}) the following Sieve code is generated:
2949 if address \"sender\" \"sieve-admin@@extundo.com\" @{
2950 fileinto \"INBOX.list.sieve\";
2954 The Sieve language is described in RFC 3028. @xref{Top, , Top, sieve,
2957 @item (@var{variable} @var{form})
2958 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2959 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2960 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2961 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2962 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2963 @code{eval}ed there.
2965 Note that this feature sets the variable locally to the summary buffer.
2966 But some variables are evaluated in the article buffer, or in the
2967 message buffer (of a reply or followup or otherwise newly created
2968 message). As a workaround, it might help to add the variable in
2969 question to @code{gnus-newsgroup-variables}. @xref{Various Summary
2970 Stuff}. So if you want to set @code{message-from-style} via the group
2971 parameters, then you may need the following statement elsewhere in your
2972 @file{~/.gnus} file:
2974 (add-to-list 'gnus-newsgroup-variables 'message-from-style)
2977 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
2978 A use for this feature, is to remove a mailing list identifier tag in
2979 the subject fields of articles. E.g. if the news group
2980 @samp{nntp+news.gnus.org:gmane.text.docbook.apps} has the tag
2981 @samp{DOC-BOOK-APPS:} in the subject of all articles, this tag can be
2982 removed from the article subjects in the summary buffer for the group by
2983 putting @code{(gnus-list-identifiers "DOCBOOK-APPS:")} into the group
2984 parameters for the group.
2986 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2987 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2988 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2989 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2990 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2994 Use the @kbd{G p} or the @kbd{G c} command to edit group parameters of a
2995 group. (@kbd{G p} presents you with a Lisp-based interface, @kbd{G c}
2996 presents you with a Customize-like interface. The latter helps avoid
2997 silly Lisp errors.) You might also be interested in reading about topic
2998 parameters (@pxref{Topic Parameters}).
3000 @vindex gnus-parameters
3001 Group parameters can be set via the @code{gnus-parameters} variable too.
3002 But some variables, such as @code{visible}, have no effect. For
3006 (setq gnus-parameters
3008 (gnus-show-threads nil)
3009 (gnus-use-scoring nil)
3010 (gnus-summary-line-format
3011 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%d:%ub%-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
3015 ("^nnimap:\\(foo.bar\\)$"
3019 (gnus-use-scoring t))
3023 (broken-reply-to . t))))
3026 String value of parameters will be subjected to regexp substitution, as
3027 the @code{to-group} example shows.
3030 @node Listing Groups
3031 @section Listing Groups
3032 @cindex group listing
3034 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
3042 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
3043 List all groups that have unread articles
3044 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
3045 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
3046 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
3047 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
3054 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
3055 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
3056 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
3057 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
3058 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
3059 unsubscribed groups).
3063 @findex gnus-group-list-level
3064 List all unread groups on a specific level
3065 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
3066 with no unread articles.
3070 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
3071 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
3072 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
3073 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
3078 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
3079 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
3083 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
3084 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
3085 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
3089 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
3090 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
3094 @findex gnus-group-list-active
3095 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
3096 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
3097 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
3098 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
3099 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
3100 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
3101 Take the output with some grains of salt.
3105 @findex gnus-group-apropos
3106 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
3107 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
3111 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
3112 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
3113 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
3117 @findex gnus-group-list-cached
3118 List all groups with cached articles (@code{gnus-group-list-cached}).
3122 @findex gnus-group-list-dormant
3123 List all groups with dormant articles (@code{gnus-group-list-dormant}).
3127 @findex gnus-group-list-limit
3128 List groups limited within the current selection
3129 (@code{gnus-group-list-limit}).
3133 @findex gnus-group-list-flush
3134 Flush groups from the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-flush}).
3138 @findex gnus-group-list-plus
3139 List groups plus the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-plus}).
3143 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3144 @cindex visible group parameter
3145 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
3146 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
3147 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
3148 get the same effect.
3150 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
3151 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
3152 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
3153 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
3154 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
3157 @node Sorting Groups
3158 @section Sorting Groups
3159 @cindex sorting groups
3161 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
3162 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
3163 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
3164 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
3165 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
3166 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
3171 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
3172 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
3173 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
3175 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
3176 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
3177 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
3179 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
3180 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
3181 Sort by group level.
3183 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
3184 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
3185 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
3187 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
3188 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
3189 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
3190 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
3192 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
3193 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
3194 Sort by number of unread articles.
3196 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
3197 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
3198 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
3200 @item gnus-group-sort-by-server
3201 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-server
3202 Sort alphabetically on the Gnus server name.
3207 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
3208 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
3212 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
3213 some sorting criteria:
3217 @kindex G S a (Group)
3218 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3219 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
3220 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3223 @kindex G S u (Group)
3224 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
3225 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
3226 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3229 @kindex G S l (Group)
3230 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
3231 Sort the group buffer by group level
3232 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
3235 @kindex G S v (Group)
3236 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
3237 Sort the group buffer by group score
3238 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3241 @kindex G S r (Group)
3242 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
3243 Sort the group buffer by group rank
3244 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3247 @kindex G S m (Group)
3248 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
3249 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by back end name
3250 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
3253 @kindex G S n (Group)
3254 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-real-name
3255 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by real (unprefixed) group name
3256 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-real-name}).
3260 All the commands below obey the process/prefix convention
3261 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3263 When given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), all these
3264 commands will sort in reverse order.
3266 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
3270 @kindex G P a (Group)
3271 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
3272 Sort the groups alphabetically by group name
3273 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
3276 @kindex G P u (Group)
3277 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
3278 Sort the groups by the number of unread articles
3279 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
3282 @kindex G P l (Group)
3283 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
3284 Sort the groups by group level
3285 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
3288 @kindex G P v (Group)
3289 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
3290 Sort the groups by group score
3291 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3294 @kindex G P r (Group)
3295 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
3296 Sort the groups by group rank
3297 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3300 @kindex G P m (Group)
3301 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
3302 Sort the groups alphabetically by back end name
3303 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
3306 @kindex G P n (Group)
3307 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-real-name
3308 Sort the groups alphabetically by real (unprefixed) group name
3309 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-real-name}).
3312 @kindex G P s (Group)
3313 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups
3314 Sort the groups according to @code{gnus-group-sort-function}.
3318 And finally, note that you can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} to manually
3322 @node Group Maintenance
3323 @section Group Maintenance
3324 @cindex bogus groups
3329 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
3330 Find bogus groups and delete them
3331 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
3335 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
3336 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
3337 With 1 @kbd{C-u}, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
3338 for new groups. With 2 @kbd{C-u}'s, use most complete method possible
3339 to query the server for new groups, and subscribe the new groups as
3343 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
3344 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
3345 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
3346 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}). That is, delete
3347 all expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
3348 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3351 @kindex C-c C-M-x (Group)
3352 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
3353 Run all expirable articles in all groups through the expiry process
3354 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
3359 @node Browse Foreign Server
3360 @section Browse Foreign Server
3361 @cindex foreign servers
3362 @cindex browsing servers
3367 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
3368 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
3369 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
3370 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
3373 @findex gnus-browse-mode
3374 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
3375 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
3376 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
3378 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
3383 @findex gnus-group-next-group
3384 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
3388 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
3389 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
3392 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
3393 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
3394 Enter the current group and display the first article
3395 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
3398 @kindex RET (Browse)
3399 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
3400 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
3404 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
3405 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
3406 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
3412 @findex gnus-browse-exit
3413 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
3417 @findex gnus-browse-describe-group
3418 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-browse-describe-group}).
3422 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
3423 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
3424 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
3429 @section Exiting gnus
3430 @cindex exiting gnus
3432 Yes, gnus is ex(c)iting.
3437 @findex gnus-group-suspend
3438 Suspend gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit gnus,
3439 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
3440 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
3444 @findex gnus-group-exit
3445 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
3446 Quit gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
3450 @findex gnus-group-quit
3451 Quit gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
3452 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
3455 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
3456 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
3457 @vindex gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook
3458 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend gnus and
3459 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit gnus, while
3460 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
3466 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
3467 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
3468 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
3474 @section Group Topics
3477 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
3478 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
3479 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
3480 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
3481 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
3482 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
3486 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
3487 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=ps/group-topic,height=9cm}}
3498 2: alt.religion.emacs
3501 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3503 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3504 13: comp.sources.unix
3507 @findex gnus-topic-mode
3509 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
3510 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
3511 is a toggling command.)
3513 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
3514 dum@dots{} Nice tune, that@dots{} la la la@dots{} What, you're back?
3515 Yes, and now press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed
3516 under @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy?
3519 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
3520 the hook for the group mode. Put the following line in your
3521 @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
3524 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
3528 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
3529 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
3530 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
3531 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
3532 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
3536 @node Topic Commands
3537 @subsection Topic Commands
3538 @cindex topic commands
3540 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
3541 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
3542 definitions slightly.
3544 In general, the following kinds of operations are possible on topics.
3545 First of all, you want to create topics. Secondly, you want to put
3546 groups in topics and to move them around until you have an order you
3547 like. The third kind of operation is to show/hide parts of the whole
3548 shebang. You might want to hide a topic including its subtopics and
3549 groups, to get a better overview of the other groups.
3551 Here is a list of the basic keys that you might need to set up topics
3558 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
3559 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
3560 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
3564 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
3566 @findex gnus-topic-indent
3567 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3568 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
3569 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
3572 @kindex M-TAB (Topic)
3573 @findex gnus-topic-unindent
3574 ``Un-indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3575 parent of its current parent (@code{gnus-topic-unindent}).
3579 The following two keys can be used to move groups and topics around.
3580 They work like the well-known cut and paste. @kbd{C-k} is like cut and
3581 @kbd{C-y} is like paste. Of course, this being Emacs, we use the terms
3582 kill and yank rather than cut and paste.
3588 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
3589 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
3590 topic will be removed along with the topic.
3594 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
3595 Yank the previously killed group or topic
3596 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
3599 So, to move a topic to the beginning of the list of topics, just hit
3600 @kbd{C-k} on it. This is like the `cut' part of cut and paste. Then,
3601 move the cursor to the beginning of the buffer (just below the `Gnus'
3602 topic) and hit @kbd{C-y}. This is like the `paste' part of cut and
3603 paste. Like I said -- E-Z.
3605 You can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} on groups as well as on topics. So
3606 you can move topics around as well as groups.
3610 After setting up the topics the way you like them, you might wish to
3611 hide a topic, or to show it again. That's why we have the following
3618 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
3620 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
3621 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
3622 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
3623 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
3624 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
3625 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
3629 Now for a list of other commands, in no particular order.
3635 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
3636 Move the current group to some other topic
3637 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3638 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3642 @findex gnus-topic-jump-to-topic
3643 Go to a topic (@code{gnus-topic-jump-to-topic}).
3647 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
3648 Copy the current group to some other topic
3649 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3650 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3654 @findex gnus-topic-hide-topic
3655 Hide the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-hide-topic}). If given
3656 a prefix, hide the topic permanently.
3660 @findex gnus-topic-show-topic
3661 Show the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-show-topic}). If given
3662 a prefix, show the topic permanently.
3666 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
3667 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
3668 This command is mainly useful if you have the same group in several
3669 topics and wish to remove it from one of the topics. You may also
3670 remove a group from all topics, but in that case, Gnus will add it to
3671 the root topic the next time you start Gnus. In fact, all new groups
3672 (which, naturally, don't belong to any topic) will show up in the root
3675 This command uses the process/prefix convention
3676 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3680 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
3681 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3682 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
3686 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
3687 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3688 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
3692 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
3693 Toggle hiding empty topics
3694 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
3698 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
3699 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
3700 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}). This command works recursively on
3701 sub-topics unless given a prefix.
3704 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
3705 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
3706 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
3707 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}). This command works recursively on
3708 sub-topics unless given a prefix.
3711 @kindex C-c C-x (Topic)
3712 @findex gnus-topic-expire-articles
3713 Run all expirable articles in the current group or topic through the
3714 expiry process (if any)
3715 (@code{gnus-topic-expire-articles}). (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3719 @findex gnus-topic-rename
3720 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
3723 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
3724 @findex gnus-topic-delete
3725 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
3729 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
3730 List all groups that gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
3731 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
3734 @kindex T M-n (Topic)
3735 @findex gnus-topic-goto-next-topic
3736 Go to the next topic (@code{gnus-topic-goto-next-topic}).
3739 @kindex T M-p (Topic)
3740 @findex gnus-topic-goto-previous-topic
3741 Go to the next topic (@code{gnus-topic-goto-previous-topic}).
3745 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
3746 @cindex group parameters
3747 @cindex topic parameters
3749 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
3750 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
3755 @node Topic Variables
3756 @subsection Topic Variables
3757 @cindex topic variables
3759 The previous section told you how to tell Gnus which topics to display.
3760 This section explains how to tell Gnus what to display about each topic.
3762 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
3763 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
3764 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3777 Number of groups in the topic.
3779 Number of unread articles in the topic.
3781 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
3784 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
3785 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
3786 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
3789 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
3790 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
3792 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
3793 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
3794 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
3798 @subsection Topic Sorting
3799 @cindex topic sorting
3801 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
3807 @kindex T S a (Topic)
3808 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3809 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
3810 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3813 @kindex T S u (Topic)
3814 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
3815 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
3816 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3819 @kindex T S l (Topic)
3820 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
3821 Sort the current topic by group level
3822 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
3825 @kindex T S v (Topic)
3826 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
3827 Sort the current topic by group score
3828 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3831 @kindex T S r (Topic)
3832 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
3833 Sort the current topic by group rank
3834 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3837 @kindex T S m (Topic)
3838 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
3839 Sort the current topic alphabetically by back end name
3840 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
3843 @kindex T S e (Topic)
3844 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-server
3845 Sort the current topic alphabetically by server name
3846 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-server}).
3850 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups
3851 Sort the current topic according to the function(s) given by the
3852 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable
3853 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups}).
3857 When given a prefix argument, all these commands will sort in reverse
3858 order. @xref{Sorting Groups}, for more information about group
3862 @node Topic Topology
3863 @subsection Topic Topology
3864 @cindex topic topology
3867 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
3873 2: alt.religion.emacs
3876 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3878 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3879 13: comp.sources.unix
3882 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
3883 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
3884 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
3889 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
3890 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
3894 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
3895 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
3896 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
3897 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
3898 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
3899 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
3901 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
3902 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
3903 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
3906 @node Topic Parameters
3907 @subsection Topic Parameters
3908 @cindex topic parameters
3910 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
3911 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
3912 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
3914 In addition, the following parameters are only valid as topic
3919 When subscribing new groups by topic (@pxref{Subscription Methods}), the
3920 @code{subscribe} topic parameter says what groups go in what topic. Its
3921 value should be a regexp to match the groups that should go in that
3924 @item subscribe-level
3925 When subscribing new groups by topic (see the @code{subscribe} parameter),
3926 the group will be subscribed with the level specified in the
3927 @code{subscribe-level} instead of @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}.
3931 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
3932 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
3933 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
3934 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
3940 2: alt.religion.emacs
3944 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3946 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3947 13: comp.sources.unix
3951 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
3952 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
3953 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
3954 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
3955 @* @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
3956 . "religion.SCORE")}.
3958 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
3959 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
3960 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
3961 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
3962 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
3964 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
3965 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
3966 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
3967 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
3968 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
3969 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
3970 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
3971 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
3974 @node Misc Group Stuff
3975 @section Misc Group Stuff
3978 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
3979 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
3980 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
3981 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
3982 * Sieve Commands:: Managing Sieve scripts.
3989 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
3990 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
3991 @xref{Server Buffer}.
3995 @findex gnus-group-post-news
3996 Start composing a message (a news by default)
3997 (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a prefix, post to the group
3998 under the point. If the prefix is 1, prompt for a group to post to.
3999 Contrary to what the name of this function suggests, the prepared
4000 article might be a mail instead of a news, if a mail group is specified
4001 with the prefix argument. @xref{Composing Messages}.
4005 @findex gnus-group-mail
4006 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}). If given a prefix,
4007 use the posting style of the group under the point. If the prefix is 1,
4008 prompt for a group name to find the posting style.
4009 @xref{Composing Messages}.
4013 @findex gnus-group-news
4014 Start composing a news (@code{gnus-group-news}). If given a prefix,
4015 post to the group under the point. If the prefix is 1, prompt
4016 for group to post to. @xref{Composing Messages}.
4018 This function actually prepares a news even when using mail groups.
4019 This is useful for ``posting'' messages to mail groups without actually
4020 sending them over the network: they're just saved directly to the group
4021 in question. The corresponding back end must have a request-post method
4022 for this to work though.
4026 Variables for the group buffer:
4030 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
4031 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
4032 is called after the group buffer has been
4035 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
4036 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
4037 is called after the group buffer is
4038 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
4041 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
4042 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
4043 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
4044 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
4046 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
4047 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
4048 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
4049 whether they are empty or not.
4051 @item gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
4052 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
4053 An alist of method and the charset for group names. It is used to show
4054 non-ASCII group names.
4058 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
4059 '(((nntp "news.com.cn") . cn-gb-2312)))
4062 @item gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
4063 @cindex UTF-8 group names
4064 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
4065 An alist of regexp of group name and the charset for group names. It
4066 is used to show non-ASCII group names. @code{((".*" utf-8))} is the
4067 default value if UTF-8 is supported, otherwise the default is
4072 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
4073 '(("\\.com\\.cn:" . cn-gb-2312)))
4078 @node Scanning New Messages
4079 @subsection Scanning New Messages
4080 @cindex new messages
4081 @cindex scanning new news
4087 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
4088 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
4089 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
4090 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
4091 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
4092 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
4097 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
4098 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
4099 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
4100 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
4101 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
4102 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
4103 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
4105 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
4106 @cindex activating groups
4108 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
4109 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
4114 @findex gnus-group-restart
4115 Restart gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
4116 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
4117 gnus variables, and then starts gnus all over again.
4121 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
4122 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
4124 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
4125 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
4129 @node Group Information
4130 @subsection Group Information
4131 @cindex group information
4132 @cindex information on groups
4139 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
4140 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
4143 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
4144 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
4145 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
4146 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
4147 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
4148 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
4149 for fetching the file.
4151 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, gnus will attempt to go
4152 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
4156 @findex gnus-group-fetch-charter
4157 @vindex gnus-group-charter-alist
4159 Try to open the charter for the current group in a web browser
4160 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-charter}). Query for a group if given a
4163 Gnus will use @code{gnus-group-charter-alist} to find the location of
4164 the charter. If no location is known, Gnus will fetch the control
4165 messages for the group, which in some cases includes the charter.
4169 @findex gnus-group-fetch-control
4170 @vindex gnus-group-fetch-control-use-browse-url
4171 @cindex control message
4172 Fetch the control messages for the group from the archive at
4173 @code{ftp.isc.org} (@code{gnus-group-fetch-control}). Query for a
4174 group if given a prefix argument.
4176 If @code{gnus-group-fetch-control-use-browse-url} is non-@code{nil},
4177 Gnus will open the control messages in a browser using
4178 @code{browse-url}. Otherwise they are fetched using @code{ange-ftp}
4179 and displayed in an ephemeral group.
4181 Note that the control messages are compressed. To use this command
4182 you need to turn on @code{auto-compression-mode} (@pxref{Compressed
4183 Files, ,Compressed Files, emacs, The Emacs Manual}).
4187 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
4189 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
4190 @cindex describing groups
4191 @cindex group description
4192 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
4193 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
4194 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
4198 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
4199 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
4200 prefix, force gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
4207 @findex gnus-version
4208 Display current gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
4212 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
4213 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
4216 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
4219 @findex gnus-info-find-node
4220 Go to the gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
4224 @node Group Timestamp
4225 @subsection Group Timestamp
4227 @cindex group timestamps
4229 It can be convenient to let gnus keep track of when you last read a
4230 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
4231 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
4234 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
4237 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
4239 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
4240 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
4243 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4244 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
4247 This will result in lines looking like:
4250 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
4251 0: custom 19961002T012713
4254 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
4255 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
4259 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4260 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
4263 If you would like greater control of the time format, you can use a
4264 user-defined format spec. Something like the following should do the
4268 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4269 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %ud\n")
4270 (defun gnus-user-format-function-d (headers)
4271 (let ((time (gnus-group-timestamp gnus-tmp-group)))
4273 (format-time-string "%b %d %H:%M" time)
4279 @subsection File Commands
4280 @cindex file commands
4286 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
4287 @vindex gnus-init-file
4288 @cindex reading init file
4289 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
4290 @file{~/.gnus.el}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
4294 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
4295 @cindex saving .newsrc
4296 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
4297 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
4298 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
4301 @c @kindex Z (Group)
4302 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
4303 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
4308 @node Sieve Commands
4309 @subsection Sieve Commands
4310 @cindex group sieve commands
4312 Sieve is a server-side mail filtering language. In Gnus you can use
4313 the @code{sieve} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to specify
4314 sieve rules that should apply to each group. Gnus provides two
4315 commands to translate all these group parameters into a proper Sieve
4316 script that can be transfered to the server somehow.
4318 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4319 @vindex gnus-sieve-region-start
4320 @vindex gnus-sieve-region-end
4321 The generated Sieve script is placed in @code{gnus-sieve-file} (by
4322 default @file{~/.sieve}). The Sieve code that Gnus generate is placed
4323 between two delimiters, @code{gnus-sieve-region-start} and
4324 @code{gnus-sieve-region-end}, so you may write additional Sieve code
4325 outside these delimiters that will not be removed the next time you
4326 regenerate the Sieve script.
4328 @vindex gnus-sieve-crosspost
4329 The variable @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} controls how the Sieve script
4330 is generated. If it is non-@code{nil} (the default) articles is
4331 placed in all groups that have matching rules, otherwise the article
4332 is only placed in the group with the first matching rule. For
4333 example, the group parameter @samp{(sieve address "sender"
4334 "owner-ding@@hpc.uh.edu")} will generate the following piece of Sieve
4335 code if @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} is @code{nil}. (When
4336 @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} is non-@code{nil}, it looks the same
4337 except that the line containing the call to @code{stop} is removed.)
4340 if address "sender" "owner-ding@@hpc.uh.edu" @{
4341 fileinto "INBOX.ding";
4346 @xref{Top, ,Top, sieve, Emacs Sieve}.
4352 @findex gnus-sieve-generate
4353 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4354 @cindex generating sieve script
4355 Regenerate a Sieve script from the @code{sieve} group parameters and
4356 put you into the @code{gnus-sieve-file} without saving it.
4360 @findex gnus-sieve-update
4361 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4362 @cindex updating sieve script
4363 Regenerates the Gnus managed part of @code{gnus-sieve-file} using the
4364 @code{sieve} group parameters, save the file and upload it to the
4365 server using the @code{sieveshell} program.
4370 @node Summary Buffer
4371 @chapter Summary Buffer
4372 @cindex summary buffer
4374 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
4375 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
4377 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
4378 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
4380 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
4383 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
4384 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
4385 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
4386 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
4387 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
4388 * Delayed Articles:: Send articles at a later time.
4389 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
4390 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
4391 * Threading:: How threads are made.
4392 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
4393 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
4394 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
4395 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
4396 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
4397 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
4398 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
4399 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
4400 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
4401 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
4402 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
4403 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
4404 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
4405 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
4406 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
4407 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
4408 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
4409 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
4410 or reselecting the current group.
4411 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
4412 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
4413 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
4414 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
4418 @node Summary Buffer Format
4419 @section Summary Buffer Format
4420 @cindex summary buffer format
4424 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
4425 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=ps/summary,width=7.5cm}}
4426 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-article,width=7.5cm}}}
4432 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
4433 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
4434 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
4435 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
4438 @findex mail-extract-address-components
4439 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
4440 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
4441 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
4442 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
4443 @code{From} header. Three pre-defined functions exist:
4444 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
4445 fast, and too simplistic solution;
4446 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works nicely, but is
4447 slower; and @code{std11-extract-address-components}, which works very
4448 nicely, but is slower. The default function will return the wrong
4449 answer in 5% of the cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the
4450 other function instead:
4453 (setq gnus-extract-address-components
4454 'mail-extract-address-components)
4457 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
4458 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
4459 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
4460 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
4463 @node Summary Buffer Lines
4464 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
4466 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4467 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
4468 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
4469 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
4470 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
4472 There should always be a colon or a point position marker on the line;
4473 the cursor always moves to the point position marker or the colon after
4474 performing an operation. (Of course, Gnus wouldn't be Gnus if it wasn't
4475 possible to change this. Just write a new function
4476 @code{gnus-goto-colon} which does whatever you like with the cursor.)
4477 @xref{Positioning Point}.
4479 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23f%]%) %s\n}.
4481 The following format specification characters and extended format
4482 specification(s) are understood:
4488 Subject string. List identifiers stripped,
4489 @code{gnus-list-identifies}. @xref{Article Hiding}.
4491 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
4492 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
4493 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
4495 Full @code{From} header.
4497 The name (from the @code{From} header).
4499 The name, @code{To} header or the @code{Newsgroups} header (@pxref{To
4502 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
4503 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
4504 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
4505 may be more thorough.
4507 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
4510 Number of lines in the article.
4512 Number of characters in the article. This specifier is not supported
4513 in some methods (like nnfolder).
4515 Pretty-printed version of the number of characters in the article;
4516 for example, @samp{1.2k} or @samp{0.4M}.
4518 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4520 A complex trn-style thread tree, showing response-connecting trace
4521 lines. A thread could be drawn like this:
4534 You can customize the appearance with the following options. Note
4535 that it is possible to make the thread display look really neat by
4536 replacing the default ASCII characters with graphic line-drawing
4539 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-root
4540 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-root
4541 Used for the root of a thread. If @code{nil}, use subject
4542 instead. The default is @samp{> }.
4544 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-false-root
4545 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-false-root
4546 Used for the false root of a thread (@pxref{Loose Threads}). If
4547 @code{nil}, use subject instead. The default is @samp{> }.
4549 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-single-indent
4550 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-single-indent
4551 Used for a thread with just one message. If @code{nil}, use subject
4552 instead. The default is @samp{}.
4554 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-vertical
4555 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-vertical
4556 Used for drawing a vertical line. The default is @samp{| }.
4558 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-indent
4559 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-indent
4560 Used for indenting. The default is @samp{ }.
4562 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-leaf-with-other
4563 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-leaf-with-other
4564 Used for a leaf with brothers. The default is @samp{+-> }.
4566 @item gnus-sum-thread-tree-single-leaf
4567 @vindex gnus-sum-thread-tree-single-leaf
4568 Used for a leaf without brothers. The default is @samp{\-> }
4573 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
4574 pushes everything after it off the screen).
4576 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
4577 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4579 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
4580 for adopted articles.
4582 One space for each thread level.
4584 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
4586 Unread. @xref{Read Articles}.
4589 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
4590 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
4591 or has been saved. @xref{Other Marks}.
4594 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
4596 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
4597 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
4598 default level. If the difference between
4599 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
4600 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
4608 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
4610 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
4616 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
4617 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
4619 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
4620 article has any children.
4626 Age sensitive date format. Various date format is defined in
4627 @code{gnus-user-date-format-alist}.
4629 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
4630 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
4631 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
4632 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
4633 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
4634 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
4637 Text between @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} will be highlighted with
4638 @code{gnus-mouse-face} when the mouse point is placed inside the area.
4639 There can only be one such area.
4641 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
4642 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, gnus will
4643 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
4644 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
4645 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
4646 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
4648 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
4649 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
4651 This restriction may disappear in later versions of gnus.
4654 @node To From Newsgroups
4655 @subsection To From Newsgroups
4659 In some groups (particularly in archive groups), the @code{From} header
4660 isn't very interesting, since all the articles there are written by
4661 you. To display the information in the @code{To} or @code{Newsgroups}
4662 headers instead, you need to decide three things: What information to
4663 gather; where to display it; and when to display it.
4667 @vindex gnus-extra-headers
4668 The reading of extra header information is controlled by the
4669 @code{gnus-extra-headers}. This is a list of header symbols. For
4673 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4674 '(To Newsgroups X-Newsreader))
4677 This will result in Gnus trying to obtain these three headers, and
4678 storing it in header structures for later easy retrieval.
4681 @findex gnus-extra-header
4682 The value of these extra headers can be accessed via the
4683 @code{gnus-extra-header} function. Here's a format line spec that will
4684 access the @code{X-Newsreader} header:
4687 "%~(form (gnus-extra-header 'X-Newsreader))@@"
4691 @vindex gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4692 The @code{gnus-ignored-from-addresses} variable says when the @samp{%f}
4693 summary line spec returns the @code{To}, @code{Newsreader} or
4694 @code{From} header. If this regexp matches the contents of the
4695 @code{From} header, the value of the @code{To} or @code{Newsreader}
4696 headers are used instead.
4700 @vindex nnmail-extra-headers
4701 A related variable is @code{nnmail-extra-headers}, which controls when
4702 to include extra headers when generating overview (@sc{nov}) files.
4703 If you have old overview files, you should regenerate them after
4704 changing this variable, by entering the server buffer using @kbd{^},
4705 and then @kbd{g} on the appropriate mail server (e.g. nnml) to cause
4708 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4709 You also have to instruct Gnus to display the data by changing the
4710 @code{%n} spec to the @code{%f} spec in the
4711 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable.
4713 In summary, you'd typically put something like the following in
4717 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4719 (setq nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
4720 (setq gnus-summary-line-format
4721 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
4722 (setq gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4726 (The values listed above are the default values in Gnus. Alter them
4729 A note for news server administrators, or for users who wish to try to
4730 convince their news server administrator to provide some additional
4733 The above is mostly useful for mail groups, where you have control over
4734 the @sc{nov} files that are created. However, if you can persuade your
4735 nntp admin to add (in the usual implementation, notably INN):
4741 to the end of her @file{overview.fmt} file, then you can use that just
4742 as you would the extra headers from the mail groups.
4745 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
4746 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
4748 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
4749 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
4750 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
4751 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
4753 Here are the elements you can play with:
4759 Unprefixed group name.
4761 Current article number.
4763 Current article score.
4767 Number of unread articles in this group.
4769 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
4772 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
4773 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
4774 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
4775 and no unselected ones.
4777 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
4778 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
4780 Subject of the current article.
4782 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
4784 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
4786 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4788 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4790 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
4792 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
4796 @node Summary Highlighting
4797 @subsection Summary Highlighting
4801 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4802 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4803 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
4804 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
4805 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4807 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
4808 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
4809 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
4810 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4812 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
4813 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
4814 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
4815 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
4817 @item gnus-summary-highlight
4818 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
4819 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
4820 list where the elements are of the format @code{(@var{form}
4821 . @var{face})}. If you would, for instance, like ticked articles to be
4822 italic and high-scored articles to be bold, you could set this variable
4825 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
4826 ((> score default) . bold))
4828 As you may have guessed, if @var{form} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
4829 @var{face} will be applied to the line.
4833 @node Summary Maneuvering
4834 @section Summary Maneuvering
4835 @cindex summary movement
4837 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
4838 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
4840 None of these commands select articles.
4845 @kindex M-n (Summary)
4846 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
4847 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
4848 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
4849 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
4853 @kindex M-p (Summary)
4854 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
4855 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
4856 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
4857 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
4860 @kindex G g (Summary)
4861 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
4862 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
4863 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
4866 If gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
4867 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
4868 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
4869 to the group buffer.
4871 Variables related to summary movement:
4875 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
4876 @item gnus-auto-select-next
4877 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
4878 no more unread articles after the current one, gnus will offer to go to
4879 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
4880 empty, gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
4881 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, gnus will select the
4882 next group with unread articles. As a special case, if this variable
4883 is @code{quietly}, Gnus will select the next group without asking for
4884 confirmation. If this variable is @code{almost-quietly}, the same
4885 will happen only if you are located on the last article in the group.
4886 Finally, if this variable is @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n}
4887 command will go to the next group without confirmation. Also
4888 @pxref{Group Levels}.
4890 @item gnus-auto-select-same
4891 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
4892 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
4893 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
4894 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
4895 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) If there are no more
4896 articles with the same subject, go to the first unread article.
4898 This variable is not particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
4900 @item gnus-summary-check-current
4901 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
4902 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
4903 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
4904 Instead, they will choose the current article.
4906 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
4907 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
4908 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
4909 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
4910 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
4911 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
4912 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
4913 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
4916 This variable can also be a number. In that case, center the window at
4917 the given number of lines from the top.
4922 @node Choosing Articles
4923 @section Choosing Articles
4924 @cindex selecting articles
4927 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
4928 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
4932 @node Choosing Commands
4933 @subsection Choosing Commands
4935 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
4936 and they all select and display an article.
4938 If you want to fetch new articles or redisplay the group, see
4939 @ref{Exiting the Summary Buffer}.
4943 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4944 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4945 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
4946 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4948 If you have an article window open already and you press @kbd{SPACE}
4949 again, the article will be scrolled. This lets you conveniently
4950 @kbd{SPACE} through an entire newsgroup. @pxref{Paging the Article}.
4955 @kindex G n (Summary)
4956 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
4957 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
4958 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
4963 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
4964 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
4965 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
4970 @kindex G N (Summary)
4971 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
4972 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
4977 @kindex G P (Summary)
4978 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
4979 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
4982 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
4983 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
4984 Go to the next article with the same subject
4985 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
4988 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
4989 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
4990 Go to the previous article with the same subject
4991 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
4995 @kindex G f (Summary)
4997 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
4998 Go to the first unread article
4999 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
5003 @kindex G b (Summary)
5005 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
5006 Go to the unread article with the highest score
5007 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}). If given a prefix argument,
5008 go to the first unread article that has a score over the default score.
5013 @kindex G l (Summary)
5014 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
5015 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
5018 @kindex G o (Summary)
5019 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
5021 @cindex article history
5022 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
5023 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
5024 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
5025 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
5026 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
5027 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
5032 @kindex G j (Summary)
5033 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
5034 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
5035 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
5040 @node Choosing Variables
5041 @subsection Choosing Variables
5043 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
5046 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
5047 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
5048 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
5049 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
5050 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
5051 the server and display it in the article buffer.
5053 @item gnus-select-article-hook
5054 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
5055 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
5056 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article. If you would
5057 like each article to be saved in the Agent as you read it, putting
5058 @code{gnus-agent-fetch-selected-article} on this hook will do so.
5060 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
5061 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
5062 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
5063 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
5064 @findex gnus-unread-mark
5065 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
5066 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
5067 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
5068 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
5069 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
5070 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
5071 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
5072 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
5073 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
5078 @node Paging the Article
5079 @section Scrolling the Article
5080 @cindex article scrolling
5085 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
5086 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
5087 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
5088 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
5089 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
5091 @vindex gnus-article-boring-faces
5092 @vindex gnus-article-skip-boring
5093 If @code{gnus-article-skip-boring} is non-@code{nil} and the rest of
5094 the article consists only of citations and signature, then it will be
5095 skipped; the next article will be shown instead. You can customize
5096 what is considered uninteresting with
5097 @code{gnus-article-boring-faces}. You can manually view the article's
5098 pages, no matter how boring, using @kbd{C-M-v}.
5101 @kindex DEL (Summary)
5102 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
5103 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
5106 @kindex RET (Summary)
5107 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
5108 Scroll the current article one line forward
5109 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
5112 @kindex M-RET (Summary)
5113 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-down
5114 Scroll the current article one line backward
5115 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-down}).
5119 @kindex A g (Summary)
5121 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
5122 @vindex gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
5123 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
5124 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
5125 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
5126 the way it came from the server.
5128 If given a numerical prefix, you can do semi-manual charset stuff.
5129 @kbd{C-u 0 g cn-gb-2312 RET} will decode the message as if it were
5130 encoded in the @code{cn-gb-2312} charset. If you have
5133 (setq gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
5138 then you can say @kbd{C-u 1 g} to get the same effect.
5143 @kindex A < (Summary)
5144 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
5145 Scroll to the beginning of the article
5146 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
5151 @kindex A > (Summary)
5152 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
5153 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
5157 @kindex A s (Summary)
5159 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
5160 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
5161 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
5165 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
5166 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
5171 @node Reply Followup and Post
5172 @section Reply, Followup and Post
5175 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
5176 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
5177 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
5178 * Canceling and Superseding::
5182 @node Summary Mail Commands
5183 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
5185 @cindex composing mail
5187 Commands for composing a mail message:
5193 @kindex S r (Summary)
5195 @findex gnus-summary-reply
5196 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
5197 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
5198 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
5199 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
5204 @kindex S R (Summary)
5205 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
5206 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
5207 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
5208 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
5209 command uses the process/prefix convention.
5212 @kindex S w (Summary)
5213 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
5214 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
5215 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
5216 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
5217 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
5220 @kindex S W (Summary)
5221 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
5222 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
5223 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
5224 the process/prefix convention.
5227 @kindex S v (Summary)
5228 @findex gnus-summary-very-wide-reply
5229 Mail a very wide reply to the author of the current article
5230 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{very wide reply} is a reply
5231 that goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
5232 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers in all the process/prefixed
5233 articles. This command uses the process/prefix convention.
5236 @kindex S V (Summary)
5237 @findex gnus-summary-very-wide-reply-with-original
5238 Mail a very wide reply to the author of the current article and include the
5239 original message (@code{gnus-summary-very-wide-reply-with-original}). This
5240 command uses the process/prefix convention.
5243 @kindex S B r (Summary)
5244 @findex gnus-summary-reply-broken-reply-to
5245 Mail a reply to the author of the current article but ignore the
5246 @code{Reply-To} field (@code{gnus-summary-reply-broken-reply-to}).
5247 If you need this because a mailing list incorrectly sets a
5248 @code{Reply-To} header pointing to the list, you probably want to set
5249 the @code{broken-reply-to} group parameter instead, so things will work
5250 correctly. @xref{Group Parameters}.
5253 @kindex S B R (Summary)
5254 @findex gnus-summary-reply-broken-reply-to-with-original
5255 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
5256 original message but ignore the @code{Reply-To} field
5257 (@code{gnus-summary-reply-broken-reply-to-with-original}).
5261 @kindex S o m (Summary)
5262 @kindex C-c C-f (Summary)
5263 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
5264 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
5265 Forward the current article to some other person
5266 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
5267 headers of the forwarded article.
5272 @kindex S m (Summary)
5273 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
5274 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
5275 Prepare a mail (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}). By default, use
5276 the posting style of the current group. If given a prefix, disable that.
5277 If the prefix is 1, prompt for a group name to find the posting style.
5282 @kindex S i (Summary)
5283 @findex gnus-summary-news-other-window
5284 Prepare a news (@code{gnus-summary-news-other-window}). By default,
5285 post to the current group. If given a prefix, disable that. If the
5286 prefix is 1, prompt for a group to post to.
5288 This function actually prepares a news even when using mail groups.
5289 This is useful for ``posting'' messages to mail groups without actually
5290 sending them over the network: they're just saved directly to the group
5291 in question. The corresponding back end must have a request-post method
5292 for this to work though.
5295 @kindex S D b (Summary)
5296 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
5297 @cindex bouncing mail
5298 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
5299 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
5300 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
5301 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
5302 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
5303 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, gnus will try to fetch
5304 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
5305 very well fail, though.
5308 @kindex S D r (Summary)
5309 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
5310 Not to be confused with the previous command,
5311 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
5312 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
5313 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
5314 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
5315 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
5316 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
5317 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
5319 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
5320 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
5321 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
5322 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
5323 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muss sein!
5325 This command understands the process/prefix convention
5326 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5329 @kindex S O m (Summary)
5330 @findex gnus-summary-digest-mail-forward
5331 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
5332 result using mail (@code{gnus-summary-digest-mail-forward}). This
5333 command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5336 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
5337 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
5338 @cindex crossposting
5339 @cindex excessive crossposting
5340 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
5341 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
5343 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
5344 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
5345 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
5346 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
5347 command understands the process/prefix convention
5348 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
5352 Also @xref{Header Commands, ,Header Commands, message, The Message
5353 Manual}, for more information.
5356 @node Summary Post Commands
5357 @subsection Summary Post Commands
5359 @cindex composing news
5361 Commands for posting a news article:
5367 @kindex S p (Summary)
5368 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
5369 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
5370 Prepare for posting an article (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}). By
5371 default, post to the current group. If given a prefix, disable that.
5372 If the prefix is 1, prompt for another group instead.
5377 @kindex S f (Summary)
5378 @findex gnus-summary-followup
5379 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
5380 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
5384 @kindex S F (Summary)
5386 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
5387 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
5388 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
5389 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
5390 process/prefix convention.
5393 @kindex S n (Summary)
5394 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
5395 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
5396 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
5399 @kindex S N (Summary)
5400 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
5401 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
5402 message through mail and include the original message
5403 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
5404 the process/prefix convention.
5407 @kindex S o p (Summary)
5408 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
5409 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
5410 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
5411 headers of the forwarded article.
5414 @kindex S O p (Summary)
5415 @findex gnus-summary-digest-post-forward
5417 @cindex making digests
5418 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
5419 (@code{gnus-summary-digest-post-forward}). This command uses the
5420 process/prefix convention.
5423 @kindex S u (Summary)
5424 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
5425 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
5426 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
5427 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
5430 Also @xref{Header Commands, ,Header Commands, message, The Message
5431 Manual}, for more information.
5434 @node Summary Message Commands
5435 @subsection Summary Message Commands
5439 @kindex S y (Summary)
5440 @findex gnus-summary-yank-message
5441 Yank the current article into an already existing Message composition
5442 buffer (@code{gnus-summary-yank-message}). This command prompts for
5443 what message buffer you want to yank into, and understands the
5444 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5449 @node Canceling and Superseding
5450 @subsection Canceling Articles
5451 @cindex canceling articles
5452 @cindex superseding articles
5454 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
5455 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
5457 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
5459 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
5461 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
5462 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
5463 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
5464 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
5465 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
5466 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5468 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
5469 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
5472 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
5473 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
5474 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
5476 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
5477 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
5478 your original article.
5480 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
5482 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
5483 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
5484 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
5487 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
5488 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
5489 have posted almost the same article twice.
5491 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
5492 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
5493 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
5494 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
5495 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
5496 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
5497 header by substituting one of those words for the word
5498 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
5499 you would do normally. The previous article will be
5500 canceled/superseded.
5502 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
5504 @node Delayed Articles
5505 @section Delayed Articles
5506 @cindex delayed sending
5507 @cindex send delayed
5509 Sometimes, you might wish to delay the sending of a message. For
5510 example, you might wish to arrange for a message to turn up just in time
5511 to remind your about the birthday of your Significant Other. For this,
5512 there is the @code{gnus-delay} package. Setup is simple:
5515 (gnus-delay-initialize)
5518 @findex gnus-delay-article
5519 Normally, to send a message you use the @kbd{C-c C-c} command from
5520 Message mode. To delay a message, use @kbd{C-c C-j}
5521 (@code{gnus-delay-article}) instead. This will ask you for how long the
5522 message should be delayed. Possible answers are:
5526 A time span. Consists of an integer and a letter. For example,
5527 @code{42d} means to delay for 42 days. Available letters are @code{m}
5528 (minutes), @code{h} (hours), @code{d} (days), @code{w} (weeks), @code{M}
5529 (months) and @code{Y} (years).
5532 A specific date. Looks like @code{YYYYY-MM-DD}. The message will be
5533 delayed until that day, at a specific time (eight o'clock by default).
5534 See also @code{gnus-delay-default-hour}.
5537 A specific time of day. Given in @code{hh:mm} format, 24h, no am/pm
5538 stuff. The deadline will be at that time today, except if that time has
5539 already passed, then it's at the given time tomorrow. So if it's ten
5540 o'clock in the morning and you specify @code{11:15}, then the deadline
5541 is one hour and fifteen minutes hence. But if you specify @code{9:20},
5542 that means a time tomorrow.
5545 The action of the @code{gnus-delay-article} command is influenced by a
5546 couple of variables:
5549 @item gnus-delay-default-hour
5550 @vindex gnus-delay-default-hour
5551 When you specify a specific date, the message will be due on that hour
5552 on the given date. Possible values are integers 0 through 23.
5554 @item gnus-delay-default-delay
5555 @vindex gnus-delay-default-delay
5556 This is a string and gives the default delay. It can be of any of the
5557 formats described above.
5559 @item gnus-delay-group
5560 @vindex gnus-delay-group
5561 Delayed articles will be kept in this group on the drafts server until
5562 they are due. You probably don't need to change this. The default
5563 value is @code{"delayed"}.
5565 @item gnus-delay-header
5566 @vindex gnus-delay-header
5567 The deadline for each article will be stored in a header. This variable
5568 is a string and gives the header name. You probably don't need to
5569 change this. The default value is @code{"X-Gnus-Delayed"}.
5572 The way delaying works is like this: when you use the
5573 @code{gnus-delay-article} command, you give a certain delay. Gnus
5574 calculates the deadline of the message and stores it in the
5575 @code{X-Gnus-Delayed} header and puts the message in the
5576 @code{nndraft:delayed} group.
5578 @findex gnus-delay-send-queue
5579 And whenever you get new news, Gnus looks through the group for articles
5580 which are due and sends them. It uses the @code{gnus-delay-send-queue}
5581 function for this. By default, this function is added to the hook
5582 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. But of course, you can change this.
5583 Maybe you want to use the demon to send drafts? Just tell the demon to
5584 execute the @code{gnus-delay-send-queue} function.
5587 @item gnus-delay-initialize
5588 @findex gnus-delay-initialize
5590 By default, this function installs @code{gnus-delay-send-queue} in
5591 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. But it accepts the optional second
5592 argument @code{no-check}. If it is non-@code{nil},
5593 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is not changed. The optional first
5594 argument is ignored.
5596 For example, @code{(gnus-delay-initialize nil t)} means to do nothing.
5597 Presumably, you want to use the demon for sending due delayed articles.
5598 Just don't forget to set that up :-)
5602 @node Marking Articles
5603 @section Marking Articles
5604 @cindex article marking
5605 @cindex article ticking
5608 There are several marks you can set on an article.
5610 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
5611 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
5612 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
5614 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
5617 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
5618 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
5619 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
5623 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
5627 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
5628 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
5629 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
5633 @node Unread Articles
5634 @subsection Unread Articles
5636 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
5641 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
5642 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
5644 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
5645 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
5646 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
5647 tick it. However, articles can be expired (from news servers by the
5648 news server software, Gnus itself never expires ticked messages), so if
5649 you want to keep an article forever, you'll have to make it persistent
5650 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
5653 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
5654 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
5656 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
5657 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
5658 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
5659 Otherwise (except for the visibility issue), they are just like ticked
5663 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
5664 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
5666 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
5671 @subsection Read Articles
5672 @cindex expirable mark
5674 All the following marks mark articles as read.
5679 @vindex gnus-del-mark
5680 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
5681 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
5684 @vindex gnus-read-mark
5685 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
5688 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
5689 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
5690 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
5693 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
5694 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
5697 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
5698 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
5701 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
5702 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
5705 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
5706 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
5709 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
5710 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
5713 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
5714 @sc{soup}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
5717 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
5718 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
5722 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
5723 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
5724 (@code{gnus-duplicate-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
5728 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
5729 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
5731 One more special mark, though:
5735 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
5736 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
5738 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
5739 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
5740 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
5741 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by gnus at
5747 @subsection Other Marks
5748 @cindex process mark
5751 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
5757 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
5758 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
5759 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
5760 in the article, and gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
5761 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}.
5764 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
5765 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
5766 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
5767 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
5770 @vindex gnus-forwarded-mark
5771 All articles that you have forwarded will be marked with an @samp{F} in
5772 the second column (@code{gnus-forwarded-mark}).
5775 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
5776 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
5777 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5780 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
5781 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
5782 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
5783 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
5786 @vindex gnus-recent-mark
5787 Articles that according to the server haven't been shown to the user
5788 before are marked with a @samp{N} in the second column
5789 (@code{gnus-recent-mark}). Note that not all servers support this
5790 mark, in which case it simply never appears. Compare with
5791 @code{gnus-unseen-mark}.
5794 @vindex gnus-unseen-mark
5795 Articles that haven't been seen before in Gnus by the user are marked
5796 with a @samp{.} in the second column (@code{gnus-unseen-mark}).
5797 Compare with @code{gnus-recent-mark}.
5800 @vindex gnus-downloaded-mark
5801 When using the Gnus agent @pxref{Agent Basics}, articles may be
5802 downloaded for unplugged (offline) viewing. If you are using the
5803 @samp{%O} spec, these articles get the @samp{+} mark in that spec.
5804 (The variable @code{gnus-downloaded-mark} controls which character to
5808 @vindex gnus-undownloaded-mark
5809 When using the Gnus agent @pxref{Agent Basics}, some articles might
5810 not have been downloaded. Such articles cannot be viewed while you
5811 are unplugged (offline). If you are using the @samp{%O} spec, these
5812 articles get the @samp{-} mark in that spec. (The variable
5813 @code{gnus-undownloaded-mark} controls which character to use.)
5816 @vindex gnus-downloadable-mark
5817 The Gnus agent @pxref{Agent Basics} downloads some articles
5818 automatically, but it is also possible to explicitly mark articles for
5819 download, even if they would not be downloaded automatically. Such
5820 explicitly-marked articles get the @samp{%} mark in the first column.
5821 (The variable @code{gnus-downloadable-mark} controls which character to
5825 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
5826 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
5827 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
5828 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
5829 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
5832 @vindex gnus-process-mark
5833 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
5834 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
5835 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
5836 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
5837 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
5841 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
5842 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
5843 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
5845 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
5846 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
5847 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
5851 @subsection Setting Marks
5852 @cindex setting marks
5854 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
5859 @kindex M c (Summary)
5860 @kindex M-u (Summary)
5861 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
5862 @cindex mark as unread
5863 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
5864 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
5870 @kindex M t (Summary)
5871 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
5872 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
5873 @xref{Article Caching}.
5878 @kindex M ? (Summary)
5879 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
5880 Mark the current article as dormant
5881 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5885 @kindex M d (Summary)
5887 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
5888 Mark the current article as read
5889 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
5893 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
5894 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
5895 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
5900 @kindex M k (Summary)
5901 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
5902 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
5903 and then select the next unread article
5904 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
5908 @kindex M K (Summary)
5909 @kindex C-k (Summary)
5910 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
5911 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
5912 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
5915 @kindex M C (Summary)
5916 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
5917 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
5918 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
5921 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
5922 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
5923 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
5924 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
5927 @kindex M H (Summary)
5928 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
5929 Catchup the current group to point (before the point)
5930 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
5933 @kindex M h (Summary)
5934 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-from-here
5935 Catchup the current group from point (after the point)
5936 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-from-here}).
5939 @kindex C-w (Summary)
5940 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
5941 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
5942 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
5945 @kindex M V k (Summary)
5946 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
5947 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
5948 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
5952 @kindex M e (Summary)
5954 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
5955 Mark the current article as expirable
5956 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
5959 @kindex M b (Summary)
5960 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
5961 Set a bookmark in the current article
5962 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
5965 @kindex M B (Summary)
5966 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
5967 Remove the bookmark from the current article
5968 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
5971 @kindex M V c (Summary)
5972 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
5973 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
5974 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5977 @kindex M V u (Summary)
5978 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
5979 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
5980 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
5983 @kindex M V m (Summary)
5984 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
5985 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
5986 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
5987 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5990 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
5991 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
5992 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
5993 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
5994 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
5995 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
5996 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
5997 The default is @code{t}.
6000 @node Generic Marking Commands
6001 @subsection Generic Marking Commands
6003 Some people would like the command that ticks an article (@kbd{!}) go to
6004 the next article. Others would like it to go to the next unread
6005 article. Yet others would like it to stay on the current article. And
6006 even though I haven't heard of anybody wanting it to go to the
6007 previous (unread) article, I'm sure there are people that want that as
6010 Multiply these five behaviors with five different marking commands, and
6011 you get a potentially complex set of variable to control what each
6014 To sidestep that mess, Gnus provides commands that do all these
6015 different things. They can be found on the @kbd{M M} map in the summary
6016 buffer. Type @kbd{M M C-h} to see them all---there are too many of them
6017 to list in this manual.
6019 While you can use these commands directly, most users would prefer
6020 altering the summary mode keymap. For instance, if you would like the
6021 @kbd{!} command to go to the next article instead of the next unread
6022 article, you could say something like:
6025 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'my-alter-summary-map)
6026 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
6027 (local-set-key "!" 'gnus-summary-put-mark-as-ticked-next))
6033 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
6034 (local-set-key "!" "MM!n"))
6038 @node Setting Process Marks
6039 @subsection Setting Process Marks
6040 @cindex setting process marks
6042 Process marks are displayed as @code{#} in the summary buffer, and are
6043 used for marking articles in such a way that other commands will
6044 process these articles. For instance, if you process mark four
6045 articles and then use the @kbd{*} command, Gnus will enter these four
6046 commands into the cache. For more information,
6047 @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
6054 @kindex M P p (Summary)
6055 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
6056 Mark the current article with the process mark
6057 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
6058 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
6062 @kindex M P u (Summary)
6063 @kindex M-# (Summary)
6064 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
6065 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
6068 @kindex M P U (Summary)
6069 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
6070 Remove the process mark from all articles
6071 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
6074 @kindex M P i (Summary)
6075 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
6076 Invert the list of process marked articles
6077 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
6080 @kindex M P R (Summary)
6081 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
6082 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
6083 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
6086 @kindex M P G (Summary)
6087 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp
6088 Unmark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
6089 expression (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp}).
6092 @kindex M P r (Summary)
6093 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
6094 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
6098 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-region
6099 Unmark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-region}).
6102 @kindex M P t (Summary)
6103 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
6104 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
6105 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
6108 @kindex M P T (Summary)
6109 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
6110 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
6111 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
6114 @kindex M P v (Summary)
6115 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
6116 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
6117 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
6120 @kindex M P s (Summary)
6121 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
6122 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
6125 @kindex M P S (Summary)
6126 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
6127 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
6128 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
6131 @kindex M P a (Summary)
6132 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
6133 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
6136 @kindex M P b (Summary)
6137 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
6138 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
6139 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
6142 @kindex M P k (Summary)
6143 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
6144 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
6145 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
6148 @kindex M P y (Summary)
6149 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
6150 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
6151 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
6154 @kindex M P w (Summary)
6155 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
6156 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
6157 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
6161 Also see the @kbd{&} command in @pxref{Searching for Articles} for how to
6162 set process marks based on article body contents.
6169 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
6170 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
6171 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
6174 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
6175 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
6176 additional articles.
6182 @kindex / / (Summary)
6183 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
6184 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
6185 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}). If given a prefix, exclude
6189 @kindex / a (Summary)
6190 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
6191 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
6192 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}). If given a prefix, exclude
6196 @kindex / x (Summary)
6197 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-extra
6198 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match one of the ``extra''
6199 headers (@pxref{To From Newsgroups})
6200 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-extra}). If given a prefix, exclude
6205 @kindex / u (Summary)
6207 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
6208 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
6209 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
6210 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
6211 dormant articles will also be excluded.
6214 @kindex / m (Summary)
6215 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
6216 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
6217 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
6220 @kindex / t (Summary)
6221 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
6222 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
6223 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-age}). If given a prefix, limit to
6224 articles younger than that number of days.
6227 @kindex / n (Summary)
6228 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
6229 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
6230 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
6231 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
6234 @kindex / w (Summary)
6235 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
6236 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
6237 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
6241 @kindex / . (Summary)
6242 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unseen
6243 Limit the summary buffer to the unseen articles
6244 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unseen}).
6247 @kindex / v (Summary)
6248 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
6249 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
6250 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
6253 @kindex / p (Summary)
6254 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-display-predicate
6255 Limit the summary buffer to articles that satisfy the @code{display}
6256 group parameter predicate
6257 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-display-predicate}). See @pxref{Group
6258 Parameters} for more on this predicate.
6262 @kindex M S (Summary)
6263 @kindex / E (Summary)
6264 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
6265 Include all expunged articles in the limit
6266 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
6269 @kindex / D (Summary)
6270 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
6271 Include all dormant articles in the limit
6272 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
6275 @kindex / * (Summary)
6276 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
6277 Include all cached articles in the limit
6278 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
6281 @kindex / d (Summary)
6282 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
6283 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
6284 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
6287 @kindex / M (Summary)
6288 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks
6289 Exclude all marked articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks}).
6292 @kindex / T (Summary)
6293 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
6294 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
6297 @kindex / c (Summary)
6298 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
6299 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
6300 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
6303 @kindex / C (Summary)
6304 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
6305 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
6306 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
6307 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
6310 @kindex / N (Summary)
6311 @findex gnus-summary-insert-new-articles
6312 Insert all new articles in the summary buffer. It scans for new emails
6313 if @var{back-end}@code{-get-new-mail} is non-@code{nil}.
6316 @kindex / o (Summary)
6317 @findex gnus-summary-insert-old-articles
6318 Insert all old articles in the summary buffer. If given a numbered
6319 prefix, fetch this number of articles.
6327 @cindex article threading
6329 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
6330 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
6331 hierarchical fashion.
6333 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
6334 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
6335 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
6336 or simply missing. Weird news propagation exacerbates the problem,
6337 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
6338 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
6339 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
6341 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
6345 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
6348 A tree-like article structure.
6351 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
6354 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
6355 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
6356 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
6357 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
6358 called loose threads.
6360 @item thread gathering
6361 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
6363 @item sparse threads
6364 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
6365 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
6371 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
6372 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
6376 @node Customizing Threading
6377 @subsection Customizing Threading
6378 @cindex customizing threading
6381 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
6382 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
6383 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
6384 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over@dots{} but you were wrong!
6389 @subsubsection Loose Threads
6392 @cindex loose threads
6395 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
6396 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
6397 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
6398 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
6399 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
6400 read or killed the root in a previous session.
6402 When there is no real root of a thread, gnus will have to fudge
6403 something. This variable says what fudging method gnus should use.
6404 There are four possible values:
6408 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
6409 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-adopt,width=7.5cm}}
6410 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-empty,width=7.5cm}}}
6411 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-none,width=7.5cm}}}
6412 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-dummy,width=7.5cm}}}
6417 @cindex adopting articles
6422 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
6423 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
6424 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
6425 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
6428 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
6429 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root-always
6430 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
6431 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
6432 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
6433 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
6434 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
6435 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
6436 If you want all threads to have a dummy root, even the non-gathered
6437 ones, set @code{gnus-summary-make-false-root-always} to @code{t}.
6440 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
6441 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
6442 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
6446 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
6447 display them after one another.
6450 Don't gather loose threads.
6453 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
6454 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
6455 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
6456 variable is @code{nil}, gnus requires an exact match between the
6457 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
6458 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
6459 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
6460 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
6461 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
6462 variable to a really low number, you'll find that gnus will gather
6463 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
6465 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
6466 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, gnus will
6467 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
6470 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
6471 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
6472 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
6473 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
6474 simplification is used.
6476 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6477 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6478 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
6479 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
6481 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
6483 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6489 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
6490 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
6491 "answer" "reference" "announce"
6492 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
6497 (mapconcat 'identity
6498 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
6500 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
6503 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
6506 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
6507 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
6508 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
6509 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
6510 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
6511 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
6513 Useful functions to put in this list include:
6516 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
6517 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
6518 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
6520 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
6521 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
6524 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
6525 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
6526 Remove excessive whitespace.
6528 @item gnus-simplify-all-whitespace
6529 @findex gnus-simplify-all-whitespace
6530 Remove all whitespace.
6533 You may also write your own functions, of course.
6536 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
6537 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
6538 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
6539 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
6540 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
6541 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
6542 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
6543 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
6545 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6546 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6547 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
6548 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
6549 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
6550 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
6551 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
6552 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
6553 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
6557 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
6558 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
6559 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
6560 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
6562 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
6563 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
6564 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
6567 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
6571 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6572 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
6578 @node Filling In Threads
6579 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
6582 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
6583 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
6584 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
6585 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you
6586 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
6587 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
6588 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
6589 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
6590 fetching old headers only works if the back end you are using carries
6591 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool},
6592 @code{nnml}, and @code{nnmaildir}. Also remember that if the root of
6593 the thread has been expired by the server, there's not much Gnus can do
6596 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
6597 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
6598 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
6600 @item gnus-fetch-old-ephemeral-headers
6601 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-ephemeral-headers
6602 Same as @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}, but only used for ephemeral
6605 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
6606 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
6607 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
6608 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
6609 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
6610 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
6611 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where gnus guesses that an article
6612 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
6613 lines. If you select a gap, gnus will try to fetch the article in
6614 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, gnus will display all these
6615 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
6616 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, gnus won't cut
6617 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
6618 @code{nil} by default.
6620 @item gnus-read-all-available-headers
6621 @vindex gnus-read-all-available-headers
6622 This is a rather obscure variable that few will find useful. It's
6623 intended for those non-news newsgroups where the back end has to fetch
6624 quite a lot to present the summary buffer, and where it's impossible to
6625 go back to parents of articles. This is mostly the case in the
6626 web-based groups, like the @code{nnultimate} groups.
6628 If you don't use those, then it's safe to leave this as the default
6629 @code{nil}. If you want to use this variable, it should be a regexp
6630 that matches the group name, or @code{t} for all groups.
6635 @node More Threading
6636 @subsubsection More Threading
6639 @item gnus-show-threads
6640 @vindex gnus-show-threads
6641 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
6642 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
6643 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
6644 slower and more awkward.
6646 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6647 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6648 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
6651 This can also be a predicate specifier (@pxref{Predicate Specifiers}).
6652 Available predicates are @code{gnus-article-unread-p} and
6653 @code{gnus-article-unseen-p}).
6658 (setq gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6659 '(or gnus-article-unread-p
6660 gnus-article-unseen-p))
6663 (It's a pretty nonsensical example, since all unseen articles are also
6664 unread, but you get my drift.)
6667 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
6668 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
6669 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
6670 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
6671 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
6672 threads are expunged.
6674 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
6675 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
6676 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
6679 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
6680 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
6681 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
6682 this variable is non-@code{nil}, which is the default, the subject
6683 change is ignored. If it is @code{nil}, a change in the subject will
6684 result in a new thread.
6686 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
6687 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
6688 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
6691 @item gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
6692 @vindex gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
6693 Sometimes, particularly with mailing lists, the order in which mails
6694 arrive locally is not necessarily the same as the order in which they
6695 arrived on the mailing list. Consequently, when sorting sub-threads
6696 using the default @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number}, responses can end
6697 up appearing before the article to which they are responding to.
6698 Setting this variable to an alternate value
6699 (e.g. @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}), in a group's parameters or in an
6700 appropriate hook (e.g. @code{gnus-summary-generate-hook}) can produce a
6701 more logical sub-thread ordering in such instances.
6706 @node Low-Level Threading
6707 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
6711 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
6712 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
6713 Hook run before parsing any headers. The default value is
6714 @code{(gnus-set-summary-default-charset)}, which sets up local value of
6715 @code{default-mime-charset} in summary buffer based on variable
6716 @code{gnus-newsgroup-default-charset-alist}.
6718 @item gnus-alter-header-function
6719 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
6720 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
6721 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
6722 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
6723 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
6724 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
6725 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
6726 meaningful. Here's one example:
6729 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
6731 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
6732 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
6734 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
6736 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
6743 @node Thread Commands
6744 @subsection Thread Commands
6745 @cindex thread commands
6751 @kindex T k (Summary)
6752 @kindex C-M-k (Summary)
6753 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
6754 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
6755 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
6756 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
6761 @kindex T l (Summary)
6762 @kindex C-M-l (Summary)
6763 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
6764 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
6765 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
6768 @kindex T i (Summary)
6769 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
6770 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
6771 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
6774 @kindex T # (Summary)
6775 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
6776 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
6777 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
6780 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
6781 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
6782 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
6783 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
6786 @kindex T T (Summary)
6787 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
6788 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
6791 @kindex T s (Summary)
6792 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
6793 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
6794 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
6797 @kindex T h (Summary)
6798 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
6799 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
6802 @kindex T S (Summary)
6803 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
6804 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
6807 @kindex T H (Summary)
6808 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
6809 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
6812 @kindex T t (Summary)
6813 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
6814 Re-thread the current article's thread
6815 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
6816 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
6819 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
6820 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
6821 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
6822 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
6826 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
6827 understand the numeric prefix.
6832 @kindex T n (Summary)
6834 @kindex C-M-n (Summary)
6836 @kindex M-down (Summary)
6837 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
6838 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
6841 @kindex T p (Summary)
6843 @kindex C-M-p (Summary)
6845 @kindex M-up (Summary)
6846 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
6847 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
6850 @kindex T d (Summary)
6851 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
6852 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
6855 @kindex T u (Summary)
6856 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
6857 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
6860 @kindex T o (Summary)
6861 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
6862 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
6865 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
6866 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
6867 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
6868 a command like @kbd{T k} (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
6869 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
6870 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
6871 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
6872 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
6873 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
6874 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
6875 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
6876 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
6880 @node Sorting the Summary Buffer
6881 @section Sorting the Summary Buffer
6883 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
6884 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
6885 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
6886 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6887 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
6888 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6889 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-random
6890 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
6891 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-most-recent-thread
6892 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
6893 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which can be either a single
6894 function, a list of functions, or a list containing functions and
6895 @code{(not some-function)} elements.
6897 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
6898 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
6899 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
6900 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score},
6901 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-most-recent-number},
6902 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-most-recent-date},
6903 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-random} and
6904 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
6906 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
6907 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
6908 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread.
6910 If you use more than one function, the primary sort key should be the
6911 last function in the list. You should probably always include
6912 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
6913 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
6914 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
6915 ascending article order.
6917 If you would like to sort by reverse score, then by subject, and finally
6918 by number, you could do something like:
6921 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6922 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6923 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6924 (not gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score)))
6927 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
6928 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
6929 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
6930 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
6931 which the articles arrived.
6933 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
6937 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6939 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
6940 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
6943 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
6944 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
6945 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
6946 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
6949 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
6950 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
6951 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
6952 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
6953 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
6954 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-random
6955 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
6956 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or
6957 other, you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions}
6958 variable. It is very similar to the
6959 @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that it uses slightly
6960 different functions for article comparison. Available sorting
6961 predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
6962 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author},
6963 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date},
6964 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-random}, and
6965 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
6967 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
6971 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
6972 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
6973 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
6978 @node Asynchronous Fetching
6979 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
6980 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
6981 @cindex article pre-fetch
6984 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
6985 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
6986 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
6987 article appears. Why can't gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
6988 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
6990 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
6991 article fetching, especially the way gnus does it.
6993 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
6994 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
6995 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
6996 article 3, but since gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
6997 connection is blocked.
6999 To avoid these situations, gnus will open two (count 'em two)
7000 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
7001 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
7002 extra connection takes some time, so gnus startup will be slower.
7004 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
7005 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
7006 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
7007 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
7010 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing@dots{} unless
7013 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
7014 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
7015 happen automatically.
7017 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
7018 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
7019 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
7020 that when you read an article in the group, the back end will pre-fetch
7021 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the back end will
7022 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
7023 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
7025 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
7026 @findex gnus-async-read-p
7027 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
7028 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p}
7029 variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This
7030 function should return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is
7031 to be pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which
7032 returns @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an
7033 article data structure as the only parameter.
7035 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter
7036 than 100 lines, you could say something like:
7039 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
7040 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
7041 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
7042 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
7045 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
7048 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
7049 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down gnus too much.
7050 It's probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
7052 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
7053 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
7054 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
7055 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
7059 Remove articles when they are read.
7062 Remove articles when exiting the group.
7065 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
7067 @c @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
7068 @c If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
7069 @c from the next group.
7072 @node Article Caching
7073 @section Article Caching
7074 @cindex article caching
7077 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
7078 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
7079 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
7080 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
7081 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
7083 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
7085 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
7086 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
7087 @vindex gnus-use-cache
7088 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
7089 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
7090 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
7091 cache is flat or hierarchical is controlled by the
7092 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
7094 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
7095 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
7096 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
7097 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
7098 as dormant, and don't worry.
7100 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
7102 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
7103 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
7104 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
7105 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
7106 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
7107 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
7108 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
7109 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
7110 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
7111 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
7113 @findex gnus-jog-cache
7114 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
7115 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
7116 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
7117 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
7118 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
7119 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
7120 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
7121 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
7122 not then be downloaded by this command.
7124 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
7125 @vindex gnus-cacheable-groups
7126 It is likely that you do not want caching on all groups. For instance,
7127 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
7128 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
7129 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space.
7131 To limit the caching, you could set @code{gnus-cacheable-groups} to a
7132 regexp of groups to cache, @samp{^nntp} for instance, or set the
7133 @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to @samp{^nnml}, for instance.
7134 Both variables are @code{nil} by default. If a group matches both
7135 variables, the group is not cached.
7137 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
7138 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
7139 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
7140 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
7141 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
7142 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, gnus
7143 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
7144 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
7145 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
7148 @findex gnus-cache-move-cache
7149 @code{gnus-cache-move-cache} will move your whole
7150 @code{gnus-cache-directory} to some other location. You get asked to
7151 where, isn't that cool?
7153 @node Persistent Articles
7154 @section Persistent Articles
7155 @cindex persistent articles
7157 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
7158 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
7159 useful in my opinion.
7161 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
7162 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
7163 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
7164 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
7165 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
7166 the expiry going on at the news server.
7168 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
7169 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
7170 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
7176 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
7177 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
7180 @kindex M-* (Summary)
7181 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
7182 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
7183 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
7187 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
7189 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
7190 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
7191 interested in persistent articles:
7194 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
7198 @node Article Backlog
7199 @section Article Backlog
7201 @cindex article backlog
7203 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
7204 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
7205 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where gnus will buffer
7206 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
7207 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
7208 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
7209 that, turning the backlog on will slow gnus down a little bit, and
7210 increase memory usage some.
7212 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
7213 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, gnus will store
7214 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
7215 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, gnus will store
7216 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
7217 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
7218 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
7220 The default value is 20.
7223 @node Saving Articles
7224 @section Saving Articles
7225 @cindex saving articles
7227 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
7228 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
7229 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
7230 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
7231 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
7233 For the commands listed here, the target is a file. If you want to
7234 save to a group, see the @kbd{B c} (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article})
7235 command (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
7237 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
7238 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, gnus will not delete
7239 unwanted headers before saving the article.
7241 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
7242 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
7243 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
7244 deleted before saving.
7250 @kindex O o (Summary)
7252 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
7253 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
7254 Save the current article using the default article saver
7255 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
7258 @kindex O m (Summary)
7259 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
7260 Save the current article in mail format
7261 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
7264 @kindex O r (Summary)
7265 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
7266 Save the current article in Rmail format
7267 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
7270 @kindex O f (Summary)
7271 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
7272 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
7273 Save the current article in plain file format
7274 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
7277 @kindex O F (Summary)
7278 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
7279 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
7280 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
7283 @kindex O b (Summary)
7284 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
7285 Save the current article body in plain file format
7286 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
7289 @kindex O h (Summary)
7290 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
7291 Save the current article in mh folder format
7292 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
7295 @kindex O v (Summary)
7296 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
7297 Save the current article in a VM folder
7298 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
7302 @kindex O p (Summary)
7304 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
7305 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
7306 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
7307 If given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), include the
7308 complete headers in the piped output.
7311 @kindex O P (Summary)
7312 @findex gnus-summary-muttprint
7313 @vindex gnus-summary-muttprint-program
7314 Save the current article into muttprint. That is, print it using the
7315 external program Muttprint (see
7316 @uref{http://muttprint.sourceforge.net/}). The program name and
7317 options to use is controlled by the variable
7318 @code{gnus-summary-muttprint-program}. (@code{gnus-summary-muttprint}).
7322 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
7323 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
7324 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
7325 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
7326 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
7327 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
7328 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
7329 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
7330 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
7331 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
7332 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
7333 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
7337 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
7338 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
7339 gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the six ready-made
7340 functions below, or you can create your own.
7344 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
7345 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
7346 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
7347 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
7348 This is the default format, @dfn{Babyl}. Uses the function in the
7349 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7350 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
7352 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
7353 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
7354 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
7355 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
7356 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7357 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
7359 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
7360 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
7361 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
7362 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
7363 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
7364 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7365 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7367 @item gnus-summary-write-to-file
7368 @findex gnus-summary-write-to-file
7369 Write the article straight to an ordinary file. The file is
7370 overwritten if it exists. Uses the function in the
7371 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7372 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7374 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
7375 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
7376 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
7377 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7378 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7380 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
7381 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
7382 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
7383 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
7384 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
7387 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
7388 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
7389 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
7390 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
7391 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
7393 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
7394 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
7395 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
7396 reader to use this setting.
7399 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
7400 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
7401 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
7402 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
7405 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
7406 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
7407 available functions that generate names:
7411 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
7412 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
7413 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
7415 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
7416 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
7417 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
7419 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
7420 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
7421 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
7423 @item gnus-plain-save-name
7424 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
7425 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
7427 @item gnus-sender-save-name
7428 @findex gnus-sender-save-name
7429 File names like @file{~/News/larsi}.
7432 @vindex gnus-split-methods
7433 You can have gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
7434 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
7435 save articles related to gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
7436 related to VM in @file{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
7440 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
7441 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
7442 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
7443 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
7446 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
7447 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
7448 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
7449 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
7450 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
7451 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
7452 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
7453 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
7454 called returns a string or a list of strings.
7456 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
7457 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
7458 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
7459 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
7461 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
7462 means that gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
7463 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
7466 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
7467 lots of mail groups called things like
7468 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
7469 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
7470 following will do just that:
7473 (defun my-save-name (group)
7474 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
7475 (substring group (match-end 0))))
7477 (setq gnus-split-methods
7478 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
7483 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
7484 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
7485 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
7486 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
7487 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
7488 all the files in the top level directory
7489 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
7490 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
7491 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
7492 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
7494 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
7495 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
7496 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
7497 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
7498 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
7501 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
7505 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
7506 (setq gnus-default-article-saver
7507 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
7510 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
7511 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
7512 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
7513 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
7516 @node Decoding Articles
7517 @section Decoding Articles
7518 @cindex decoding articles
7520 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
7521 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
7524 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
7525 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
7526 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
7527 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
7528 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
7529 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
7533 @cindex article series
7534 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
7535 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
7536 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
7537 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
7538 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
7540 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
7541 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
7542 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
7544 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, gnus
7545 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
7546 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
7548 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
7549 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
7550 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
7553 @node Uuencoded Articles
7554 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
7556 @cindex uuencoded articles
7561 @kindex X u (Summary)
7562 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
7563 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
7564 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
7567 @kindex X U (Summary)
7568 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
7569 Uudecodes and saves the current series
7570 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
7573 @kindex X v u (Summary)
7574 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
7575 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
7578 @kindex X v U (Summary)
7579 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
7580 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
7581 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
7585 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
7586 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
7587 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
7588 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
7589 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
7591 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
7592 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
7593 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
7594 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
7597 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
7598 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
7599 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
7600 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
7601 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
7602 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
7606 @node Shell Archives
7607 @subsection Shell Archives
7609 @cindex shell archives
7610 @cindex shared articles
7612 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
7613 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
7614 some commands to deal with these:
7619 @kindex X s (Summary)
7620 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
7621 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
7624 @kindex X S (Summary)
7625 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
7626 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
7629 @kindex X v s (Summary)
7630 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
7631 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
7634 @kindex X v S (Summary)
7635 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
7636 Unshars, views and saves the current series
7637 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
7641 @node PostScript Files
7642 @subsection PostScript Files
7648 @kindex X p (Summary)
7649 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
7650 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
7653 @kindex X P (Summary)
7654 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
7655 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
7656 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
7659 @kindex X v p (Summary)
7660 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
7661 View the current PostScript series
7662 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
7665 @kindex X v P (Summary)
7666 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
7667 View and save the current PostScript series
7668 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
7673 @subsection Other Files
7677 @kindex X o (Summary)
7678 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
7679 Save the current series
7680 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
7683 @kindex X b (Summary)
7684 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
7685 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
7686 doesn't really work yet.
7690 @node Decoding Variables
7691 @subsection Decoding Variables
7693 Adjective, not verb.
7696 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
7697 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
7698 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
7702 @node Rule Variables
7703 @subsubsection Rule Variables
7704 @cindex rule variables
7706 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
7707 variables are of the form
7710 (list '(regexp1 command2)
7717 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7718 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7720 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
7721 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @file{.au} sound file, you could
7724 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7725 (list '("\\\\.au$" "sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio")))
7728 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
7729 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
7730 This variable is consulted if gnus couldn't make any matches from the
7731 user and default view rules.
7733 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
7734 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
7735 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
7740 @node Other Decode Variables
7741 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
7744 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
7746 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
7747 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
7748 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
7749 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
7750 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
7754 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
7755 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
7758 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
7759 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
7760 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
7763 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
7764 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
7765 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
7766 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
7767 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
7770 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
7771 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
7772 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
7774 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
7775 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
7776 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
7777 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
7778 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
7781 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
7782 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
7783 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
7785 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7786 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7787 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
7788 looking for files to display.
7790 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
7791 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
7792 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
7795 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7796 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7797 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
7800 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7801 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7802 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
7805 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7806 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7807 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
7810 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7811 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7812 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
7813 decoded articles as unread.
7815 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7816 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7817 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
7818 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
7820 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7821 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7822 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
7824 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7825 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7827 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
7828 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
7829 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
7830 @code{metamail} for viewing.
7832 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7833 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7834 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
7835 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
7836 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
7837 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC 1153---no easy way
7838 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
7839 simply dropped them.
7844 @node Uuencoding and Posting
7845 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
7849 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7850 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7851 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
7852 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
7853 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
7854 for you when you post the article.
7856 @item gnus-uu-post-length
7857 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
7858 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
7859 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
7861 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
7862 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
7863 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
7864 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
7865 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
7866 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
7867 think that counts@dots{}) Default is @code{nil}.
7869 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7870 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7871 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
7872 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
7873 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
7874 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
7875 Default is @code{t}.
7881 @subsection Viewing Files
7882 @cindex viewing files
7883 @cindex pseudo-articles
7885 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, gnus will attempt
7886 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
7887 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
7888 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, gnus will
7889 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
7890 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
7891 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
7893 Finally, gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
7894 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
7895 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
7896 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
7898 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
7899 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
7900 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
7902 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
7903 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
7904 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
7905 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
7906 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
7908 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
7909 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
7910 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
7911 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
7912 a list of parameters to that command.
7914 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
7915 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
7916 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
7918 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
7919 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
7920 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
7923 @node Article Treatment
7924 @section Article Treatment
7926 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
7927 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
7928 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
7929 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
7930 these articles easier.
7933 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
7934 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
7935 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
7936 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
7937 * Article Header:: Doing various header transformations.
7938 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
7939 * Article Button Levels:: Controlling appearance of buttons.
7940 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
7941 * Article Display:: Display various stuff---X-Face, Picons, Smileys
7942 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
7943 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
7947 @node Article Highlighting
7948 @subsection Article Highlighting
7949 @cindex highlighting
7951 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
7952 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
7957 @kindex W H a (Summary)
7958 @findex gnus-article-highlight
7959 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
7960 Do much highlighting of the current article
7961 (@code{gnus-article-highlight}). This function highlights header, cited
7962 text, the signature, and adds buttons to the body and the head.
7965 @kindex W H h (Summary)
7966 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
7967 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
7968 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
7969 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
7970 variable, which is a list where each element has the form
7971 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{name} @var{content})}.
7972 @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
7973 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
7974 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
7975 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
7976 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
7979 @kindex W H c (Summary)
7980 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
7981 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
7983 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
7986 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7988 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7989 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
7990 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
7992 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
7993 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
7994 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
7996 @item gnus-cite-face-list
7997 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
7998 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
7999 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
8000 gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
8001 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
8003 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
8004 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
8005 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
8007 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
8008 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
8009 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
8011 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
8012 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
8013 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
8014 that it's a citation.
8016 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
8017 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
8018 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
8020 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
8021 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
8022 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
8024 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
8025 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
8026 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
8027 cited text belonging to the attribution.
8033 @kindex W H s (Summary)
8034 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
8035 @vindex gnus-signature-face
8036 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
8037 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
8038 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
8039 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
8040 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
8045 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to highlight articles automatically.
8048 @node Article Fontisizing
8049 @subsection Article Fontisizing
8051 @cindex article emphasis
8053 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
8054 @kindex W e (Summary)
8055 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
8056 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*} or @samp{/this/}. Gnus can make
8057 this look nicer by running the article through the @kbd{W e}
8058 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
8060 @vindex gnus-emphasis-alist
8061 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
8062 @code{gnus-emphasis-alist} variable. This is an alist where the first
8063 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
8064 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
8065 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
8066 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
8067 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
8071 (setq gnus-emphasis-alist
8072 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
8073 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
8082 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
8083 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
8084 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
8085 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
8086 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
8087 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
8088 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
8089 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
8090 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
8091 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
8092 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
8093 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
8094 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
8096 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
8097 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
8098 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
8102 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
8105 @vindex gnus-group-highlight-words-alist
8107 If you want to highlight arbitrary words, you can use the
8108 @code{gnus-group-highlight-words-alist} variable, which uses the same
8109 syntax as @code{gnus-emphasis-alist}. The @code{highlight-words} group
8110 parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) can also be used.
8112 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to fontize articles automatically.
8115 @node Article Hiding
8116 @subsection Article Hiding
8117 @cindex article hiding
8119 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
8120 too much cruft in most articles.
8125 @kindex W W a (Summary)
8126 @findex gnus-article-hide
8127 Do quite a lot of hiding on the article buffer
8128 (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}). In particular, this function will hide
8129 headers, PGP, cited text and the signature.
8132 @kindex W W h (Summary)
8133 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
8134 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
8138 @kindex W W b (Summary)
8139 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
8140 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
8141 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
8144 @kindex W W s (Summary)
8145 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
8146 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
8150 @kindex W W l (Summary)
8151 @findex gnus-article-hide-list-identifiers
8152 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
8153 Strip list identifiers specified in @code{gnus-list-identifiers}. These
8154 are strings some mailing list servers add to the beginning of all
8155 @code{Subject} headers---for example, @samp{[zebra 4711]}. Any leading
8156 @samp{Re: } is skipped before stripping. @code{gnus-list-identifiers}
8157 may not contain @code{\\(..\\)}.
8161 @item gnus-list-identifiers
8162 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
8163 A regular expression that matches list identifiers to be removed from
8164 subject. This can also be a list of regular expressions.
8169 @kindex W W P (Summary)
8170 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
8171 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
8172 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
8175 @kindex W W B (Summary)
8176 @findex gnus-article-strip-banner
8177 @vindex gnus-article-banner-alist
8178 @vindex gnus-article-address-banner-alist
8181 @cindex stripping advertisements
8182 @cindex advertisements
8183 Strip the banner specified by the @code{banner} group parameter
8184 (@code{gnus-article-strip-banner}). This is mainly used to hide those
8185 annoying banners and/or signatures that some mailing lists and moderated
8186 groups adds to all the messages. The way to use this function is to add
8187 the @code{banner} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to the
8188 group you want banners stripped from. The parameter either be a string,
8189 which will be interpreted as a regular expression matching text to be
8190 removed, or the symbol @code{signature}, meaning that the (last)
8191 signature should be removed, or other symbol, meaning that the
8192 corresponding regular expression in @code{gnus-article-banner-alist} is
8195 Regardless of a group, you can hide things like advertisements only when
8196 the sender of an article has a certain mail address specified in
8197 @code{gnus-article-address-banner-alist}.
8201 @item gnus-article-address-banner-alist
8202 @vindex gnus-article-address-banner-alist
8203 Alist of mail addresses and banners. Each element has the form
8204 @code{(@var{address} . @var{banner})}, where @var{address} is a regexp
8205 matching a mail address in the From header, @var{banner} is one of a
8206 symbol @code{signature}, an item in @code{gnus-article-banner-alist},
8207 a regexp and @code{nil}. If @var{address} matches author's mail
8208 address, it will remove things like advertisements. For example, if a
8209 sender has the mail address @samp{hail@@yoo-hoo.co.jp} and there is a
8210 banner something like @samp{Do You Yoo-hoo!?} in all articles he
8211 sends, you can use the following element to remove them:
8214 ("@@yoo-hoo\\.co\\.jp\\'" . "\n_+\nDo You Yoo-hoo!\\?\n.*\n.*\n")
8220 @kindex W W c (Summary)
8221 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
8222 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
8223 customizing the hiding:
8227 @item gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
8228 @itemx gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
8229 @vindex gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
8230 @vindex gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
8231 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
8232 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
8233 by these format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
8238 Starting point of the hidden text.
8240 Ending point of the hidden text.
8242 Number of characters in the hidden region.
8244 Number of lines of hidden text.
8247 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
8248 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
8249 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave
8250 shown. This can also be a cons cell with the number of lines at the top
8251 and bottom of the text, respectively, to remain visible.
8256 @kindex W W C-c (Summary)
8257 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe
8259 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe}) depending on the
8260 following two variables:
8263 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
8264 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
8265 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
8266 50), hide the cited text.
8268 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
8269 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
8270 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
8275 @kindex W W C (Summary)
8276 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
8277 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
8278 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
8279 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
8280 have happen automatically (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
8284 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
8285 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
8286 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
8288 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
8289 citation customization.
8291 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to hide article elements
8295 @node Article Washing
8296 @subsection Article Washing
8298 @cindex article washing
8300 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
8301 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
8303 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
8304 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
8307 @xref{Customizing Articles}, if you want to change how Gnus displays
8308 articles by default.
8313 This is not really washing, it's sort of the opposite of washing. If
8314 you type this, you see the article exactly as it exists on disk or on
8318 Force redisplaying of the current article
8319 (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). This is also not really washing.
8320 If you type this, you see the article without any previously applied
8321 interactive Washing functions but with all default treatments
8322 (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
8325 @kindex W l (Summary)
8326 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
8327 Remove page breaks from the current article
8328 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article}, for page
8332 @kindex W r (Summary)
8333 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
8334 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
8335 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
8336 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
8337 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
8338 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
8340 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
8341 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
8342 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
8343 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
8346 @kindex W m (Summary)
8347 @findex gnus-summary-morse-message
8348 Morse decode the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-morse-message}).
8352 @kindex W t (Summary)
8354 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
8355 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
8356 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
8359 @kindex W v (Summary)
8360 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-headers
8361 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
8362 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-headers}).
8365 @kindex W m (Summary)
8366 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-mime
8367 Toggle whether to run the article through @sc{mime} before displaying
8368 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-mime}).
8371 @kindex W o (Summary)
8372 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
8373 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
8376 @kindex W d (Summary)
8377 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
8378 @vindex gnus-article-dumbquotes-map
8380 @cindex M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s
8382 Treat M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s according to
8383 @code{gnus-article-dumbquotes-map}
8384 (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}). Note that this function guesses
8385 whether a character is a sm*rtq**t* or not, so it should only be used
8388 Sm*rtq**t*s are M****s***'s unilateral extension to the character map in
8389 an attempt to provide more quoting characters. If you see something
8390 like @code{\222} or @code{\264} where you're expecting some kind of
8391 apostrophe or quotation mark, then try this wash.
8394 @kindex W Y f (Summary)
8395 @findex gnus-article-outlook-deuglify-article
8396 @cindex Outlook Express
8397 Full deuglify of broken Outlook (Express) articles: Treat dumbquotes,
8398 unwrap lines, repair attribution and rearrange citation.
8399 (@code{gnus-article-outlook-deuglify-article}).
8402 @kindex W Y u (Summary)
8403 @findex gnus-article-outlook-unwrap-lines
8404 @vindex gnus-outlook-deuglify-unwrap-min
8405 @vindex gnus-outlook-deuglify-unwrap-max
8406 Unwrap lines that appear to be wrapped citation lines. You can control
8407 what lines will be unwrapped by frobbing
8408 @code{gnus-outlook-deuglify-unwrap-min} and
8409 @code{gnus-outlook-deuglify-unwrap-max}, indicating the miminum and
8410 maximum length of an unwrapped citation line.
8411 (@code{gnus-article-outlook-unwrap-lines}).
8414 @kindex W Y a (Summary)
8415 @findex gnus-article-outlook-repair-attribution
8416 Repair a broken attribution line.
8417 (@code{gnus-article-outlook-repair-attribution}).
8420 @kindex W Y c (Summary)
8421 @findex gnus-article-outlook-rearrange-citation
8422 Repair broken citations by rearranging the text.
8423 (@code{gnus-article-outlook-rearrange-citation}).
8426 @kindex W w (Summary)
8427 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
8428 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}).
8430 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
8434 @kindex W Q (Summary)
8435 @findex gnus-article-fill-long-lines
8436 Fill long lines (@code{gnus-article-fill-long-lines}).
8439 @kindex W C (Summary)
8440 @findex gnus-article-capitalize-sentences
8441 Capitalize the first word in each sentence
8442 (@code{gnus-article-capitalize-sentences}).
8445 @kindex W c (Summary)
8446 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
8447 Translate CRLF pairs (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines) into LF
8448 (this takes care of DOS line endings), and then translate any remaining
8449 CRs into LF (this takes care of Mac line endings)
8450 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
8453 @kindex W 6 (Summary)
8454 @findex gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable
8455 Treat base64 (@code{gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable}).
8456 Base64 is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending non-ASCII
8457 (i. e., 8-bit) articles. Note that this is usually done
8458 automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
8459 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} header that says that this encoding has
8461 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8464 @kindex W Z (Summary)
8465 @findex gnus-article-decode-HZ
8466 Treat HZ or HZP (@code{gnus-article-decode-HZ}). HZ (or HZP) is one
8467 common encoding employed when sending Chinese articles. It typically
8468 makes strings look like @samp{~@{<:Ky2;S@{#,NpJ)l6HK!#~@}}.
8471 @kindex W u (Summary)
8472 @findex gnus-article-unsplit-urls
8473 Remove newlines from within URLs. Some mailers insert newlines into
8474 outgoing email messages to keep lines short. This reformatting can
8475 split long URLs onto multiple lines. Repair those URLs by removing
8476 the newlines (@code{gnus-article-unsplit-urls}).
8479 @kindex W h (Summary)
8480 @findex gnus-article-wash-html
8481 Treat @sc{html} (@code{gnus-article-wash-html}). Note that this is
8482 usually done automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
8483 @code{Content-Type} header that says that the message is @sc{html}.
8485 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8487 @vindex gnus-article-wash-function
8488 The default is to use the function specified by
8489 @code{mm-text-html-renderer} (@pxref{Display Customization, ,Display
8490 Customization, emacs-mime, The Emacs MIME Manual}) to convert the
8491 @sc{html}, but this is controlled by the
8492 @code{gnus-article-wash-function} variable. Pre-defined functions you
8500 Use emacs-w3m (see @uref{http://emacs-w3m.namazu.org/} for more
8504 Use Links (see @uref{http://artax.karlin.mff.cuni.cz/~mikulas/links/}).
8507 Use Lynx (see @uref{http://lynx.browser.org/}).
8510 Use html2text -- a simple @sc{html} converter included with Gnus.
8515 @kindex W b (Summary)
8516 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
8517 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
8518 @xref{Article Buttons}.
8521 @kindex W B (Summary)
8522 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
8523 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
8524 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
8527 @kindex W p (Summary)
8528 @findex gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig
8529 Verify a signed control message (@code{gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig}).
8530 Control messages such as @code{newgroup} and @code{checkgroups} are
8531 usually signed by the hierarchy maintainer. You need to add the PGP
8532 public key of the maintainer to your keyring to verify the
8533 message.@footnote{PGP keys for many hierarchies are available at
8534 @uref{ftp://ftp.isc.org/pub/pgpcontrol/README.html}}
8537 @kindex W s (Summary)
8538 @findex gnus-summary-force-verify-and-decrypt
8539 Verify a signed (PGP, @sc{pgp/mime} or @sc{s/mime}) message
8540 (@code{gnus-summary-force-verify-and-decrypt}). @xref{Security}.
8543 @kindex W a (Summary)
8544 @findex gnus-article-strip-headers-in-body
8545 Strip headers like the @code{X-No-Archive} header from the beginning of
8546 article bodies (@code{gnus-article-strip-headers-in-body}).
8549 @kindex W E l (Summary)
8550 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
8551 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
8552 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
8555 @kindex W E m (Summary)
8556 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
8557 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
8558 lines with a single empty line.
8559 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
8562 @kindex W E t (Summary)
8563 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
8564 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
8565 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
8568 @kindex W E a (Summary)
8569 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
8570 Do all the three commands above
8571 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
8574 @kindex W E A (Summary)
8575 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
8576 Remove all blank lines
8577 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
8580 @kindex W E s (Summary)
8581 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
8582 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
8583 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
8586 @kindex W E e (Summary)
8587 @findex gnus-article-strip-trailing-space
8588 Remove all white space from the end of all lines of the article
8589 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-trailing-space}).
8593 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to wash articles automatically.
8596 @node Article Header
8597 @subsection Article Header
8599 These commands perform various transformations of article header.
8604 @kindex W G u (Summary)
8605 @findex gnus-article-treat-unfold-headers
8606 Unfold folded header lines (@code{gnus-article-treat-unfold-headers}).
8609 @kindex W G n (Summary)
8610 @findex gnus-article-treat-fold-newsgroups
8611 Fold the @code{Newsgroups} and @code{Followup-To} headers
8612 (@code{gnus-article-treat-fold-newsgroups}).
8615 @kindex W G f (Summary)
8616 @findex gnus-article-treat-fold-headers
8617 Fold all the message headers
8618 (@code{gnus-article-treat-fold-headers}).
8622 @findex gnus-article-remove-leading-whitespace
8623 Remove excessive whitespace from all headers
8624 (@code{gnus-article-remove-leading-whitespace}).
8629 @node Article Buttons
8630 @subsection Article Buttons
8633 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
8634 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
8635 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
8636 button on these references.
8638 @vindex gnus-button-man-handler
8639 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
8640 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses, Message-IDs, Info links, man pages and
8641 Emacs or Gnus related references. This is controlled by two variables,
8642 one that handles article bodies and one that handles article heads:
8646 @item gnus-button-alist
8647 @vindex gnus-button-alist
8648 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
8651 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
8657 All text that match this regular expression (case insensitive) will be
8658 considered an external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches
8659 embedded URLs: @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}. This can also be a
8660 variable containing a regexp, useful variables to use include
8661 @code{gnus-button-url-regexp} and @code{gnus-button-mid-or-mail-regexp}.
8664 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
8665 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
8666 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
8669 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
8670 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
8671 avoid false matches. Often variables named
8672 @code{gnus-button-@var{*}-level} are used here, @xref{Article Button
8673 Levels}, but any other form may be used too.
8675 @c @code{use-p} is @code{eval}ed only if @code{regexp} matches.
8678 This function will be called when you click on this button.
8681 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
8682 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
8686 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
8689 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
8692 @item gnus-header-button-alist
8693 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
8694 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
8695 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
8696 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
8699 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
8702 @var{header} is a regular expression.
8704 @subsubheading Related variables and functions
8706 @item gnus-button-@var{*}-level
8707 @xref{Article Button Levels}.
8709 @c Stuff related to gnus-button-browse-level
8711 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
8712 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
8713 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
8714 default values of the variables above.
8716 @c Stuff related to gnus-button-man-level
8718 @item gnus-button-man-handler
8719 @vindex gnus-button-man-handler
8720 The function to use for displaying man pages. It must take at least one
8721 argument with a string naming the man page.
8723 @c Stuff related to gnus-button-message-level
8725 @item gnus-button-mid-or-mail-regexp
8726 @vindex gnus-button-mid-or-mail-regexp
8727 Regular expression that matches a message ID or a mail address.
8729 @item gnus-button-prefer-mid-or-mail
8730 @vindex gnus-button-prefer-mid-or-mail
8731 This variable determines what to do when the button on a string as
8732 @samp{foo123@@bar.invalid} is pushed. Strings like this can be either a
8733 message ID or a mail address. If it is one of the symbols @code{mid} or
8734 @code{mail}, Gnus will always assume that the string is a message ID or
8735 a mail address, respectivly. If this variable is set to the symbol
8736 @code{ask}, always query the user what do do. If it is a function, this
8737 function will be called with the string as it's only argument. The
8738 function must return @code{mid}, @code{mail}, @code{invalid} or
8739 @code{ask}. The default value is the function
8740 @code{gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic}.
8742 @item gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic
8743 @findex gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic
8744 Function that guesses whether it's argument is a message ID or a mail
8745 address. Returns @code{mid} it's a message IDs, @code{mail} if it's a
8746 mail address, @code{ask} if unsure and @code{invalid} if the string is
8749 @item gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic-alist
8750 @vindex gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic-alist
8751 An alist of @code{(RATE . REGEXP)} pairs used by the function
8752 @code{gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic}.
8754 @c Stuff related to gnus-button-tex-level
8756 @item gnus-button-ctan-handler
8757 @findex gnus-button-ctan-handler
8758 The function to use for displaying CTAN links. It must take one
8759 argument, the string naming the URL.
8762 @vindex gnus-ctan-url
8763 Top directory of a CTAN (Comprehensive TeX Archive Network) archive used
8764 by @code{gnus-button-ctan-handler}.
8768 @item gnus-article-button-face
8769 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
8770 Face used on buttons.
8772 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
8773 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
8774 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
8778 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to buttonize articles automatically.
8781 @node Article Button Levels
8782 @subsection Article button levels
8783 @cindex button levels
8784 The higher the value of the variables @code{gnus-button-@var{*}-level},
8785 the more buttons will appear. If the level is zero, no corresponding
8786 buttons are displayed. With the default value (which is 5) you should
8787 already see quite a lot of buttons. With higher levels, you will see
8788 more buttons, but you may also get more false positives. To avoid them,
8789 you can set the variables @code{gnus-button-@var{*}-level} local to
8790 specific groups (@pxref{Group Parameters}). Here's an example for the
8791 variable @code{gnus-parameters}:
8794 ;; increase `gnus-button-*-level' in some groups:
8795 (setq gnus-parameters
8796 '(("\\<\\(emacs\\|gnus\\)\\>" (gnus-button-emacs-level 10))
8797 ("\\<unix\\>" (gnus-button-man-level 10))
8798 ("\\<tex\\>" (gnus-button-tex-level 10))))
8803 @item gnus-button-browse-level
8804 @vindex gnus-button-browse-level
8805 Controls the display of references to message IDs, mail addresses and
8806 news URLs. Related variables and functions include
8807 @code{gnus-button-url-regexp}, @code{browse-url}, and
8808 @code{browse-url-browser-function}.
8810 @item gnus-button-emacs-level
8811 @vindex gnus-button-emacs-level
8812 Controls the display of Emacs or Gnus references. Related functions are
8813 @code{gnus-button-handle-custom},
8814 @code{gnus-button-handle-describe-function},
8815 @code{gnus-button-handle-describe-variable},
8816 @code{gnus-button-handle-symbol},
8817 @code{gnus-button-handle-describe-key},
8818 @code{gnus-button-handle-apropos},
8819 @code{gnus-button-handle-apropos-command},
8820 @code{gnus-button-handle-apropos-variable},
8821 @code{gnus-button-handle-apropos-documentation}, and
8822 @code{gnus-button-handle-library}.
8824 @item gnus-button-man-level
8825 @vindex gnus-button-man-level
8826 Controls the display of references to (Unix) man pages.
8827 See @code{gnus-button-man-handler}.
8829 @item gnus-button-message-level
8830 @vindex gnus-button-message-level
8831 Controls the display of message IDs, mail addresses and news URLs.
8832 Related variables and functions include
8833 @code{gnus-button-mid-or-mail-regexp},
8834 @code{gnus-button-prefer-mid-or-mail},
8835 @code{gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic}, and
8836 @code{gnus-button-mid-or-mail-heuristic-alist}.
8838 @item gnus-button-tex-level
8839 @vindex gnus-button-tex-level
8840 Controls the display of references to TeX or LaTeX stuff, e.g. for CTAN
8841 URLs. See the variables @code{gnus-ctan-url},
8842 @code{gnus-button-ctan-handler},
8843 @code{gnus-button-ctan-directory-regexp}, and
8844 @code{gnus-button-handle-ctan-bogus-regexp}.
8850 @subsection Article Date
8852 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
8853 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
8854 when the article was sent.
8859 @kindex W T u (Summary)
8860 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
8861 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
8862 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
8865 @kindex W T i (Summary)
8866 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
8868 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
8869 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
8872 @kindex W T l (Summary)
8873 @findex gnus-article-date-local
8874 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
8877 @kindex W T p (Summary)
8878 @findex gnus-article-date-english
8879 Display the date in a format that's easily pronounceable in English
8880 (@code{gnus-article-date-english}).
8883 @kindex W T s (Summary)
8884 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
8885 @findex gnus-article-date-user
8886 @findex format-time-string
8887 Display the date using a user-defined format
8888 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
8889 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
8890 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
8891 for a list of possible format specs.
8894 @kindex W T e (Summary)
8895 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
8896 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
8897 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
8898 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
8899 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). It looks something like:
8902 X-Sent: 6 weeks, 4 days, 1 hour, 3 minutes, 8 seconds ago
8905 @vindex gnus-article-date-lapsed-new-header
8906 The value of @code{gnus-article-date-lapsed-new-header} determines
8907 whether this header will just be added below the old Date one, or will
8910 An advantage of using Gnus to read mail is that it converts simple bugs
8911 into wonderful absurdities.
8913 If you want to have this line updated continually, you can put
8916 (gnus-start-date-timer)
8919 in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
8920 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
8924 @kindex W T o (Summary)
8925 @findex gnus-article-date-original
8926 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
8927 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
8928 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
8929 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
8930 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
8934 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to display the date in your
8935 preferred format automatically.
8938 @node Article Display
8939 @subsection Article Display
8944 These commands add various frivolous display gimmicks to the article
8945 buffer in Emacs versions that support them.
8947 @code{X-Face} headers are small black-and-white images supplied by the
8948 message headers (@pxref{X-Face}).
8950 Picons, on the other hand, reside on your own system, and Gnus will
8951 try to match the headers to what you have (@pxref{Picons}).
8953 Smileys are those little @samp{:-)} symbols that people like to litter
8954 their messages with (@pxref{Smileys}).
8956 All these functions are toggles--if the elements already exist,
8961 @kindex W D x (Summary)
8962 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
8963 Display an @code{X-Face} in the @code{From} header.
8964 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}).
8967 @kindex W D d (Summary)
8968 @findex gnus-article-display-face
8969 Display a @code{Face} in the @code{From} header.
8970 (@code{gnus-article-display-face}).
8973 @kindex W D s (Summary)
8974 @findex gnus-treat-smiley
8975 Display smileys (@code{gnus-treat-smiley}).
8978 @kindex W D f (Summary)
8979 @findex gnus-treat-from-picon
8980 Piconify the @code{From} header (@code{gnus-treat-from-picon}).
8983 @kindex W D m (Summary)
8984 @findex gnus-treat-mail-picon
8985 Piconify all mail headers (i. e., @code{Cc}, @code{To})
8986 (@code{gnus-treat-mail-picon}).
8989 @kindex W D n (Summary)
8990 @findex gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon
8991 Piconify all news headers (i. e., @code{Newsgroups} and
8992 @code{Followup-To}) (@code{gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon}).
8995 @kindex W D D (Summary)
8996 @findex gnus-article-remove-images
8997 Remove all images from the article buffer
8998 (@code{gnus-article-remove-images}).
9004 @node Article Signature
9005 @subsection Article Signature
9007 @cindex article signature
9009 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
9010 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
9011 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
9012 that says what is to be considered a signature is
9013 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
9014 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
9015 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
9016 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
9017 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
9020 (setq gnus-signature-separator
9021 '("^-- $" ; The standard
9022 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
9023 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
9024 ; line of dashes. Shame!
9025 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
9026 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
9027 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
9030 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
9033 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
9034 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
9035 signature when displaying articles.
9039 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
9042 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
9045 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
9046 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
9048 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
9049 in question is not a signature.
9052 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
9053 listed above. Here's an example:
9056 (setq gnus-signature-limit
9057 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
9060 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
9061 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
9062 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
9063 signature after all.
9066 @node Article Miscellania
9067 @subsection Article Miscellania
9071 @kindex A t (Summary)
9072 @findex gnus-article-babel
9073 Translate the article from one language to another
9074 (@code{gnus-article-babel}).
9080 @section MIME Commands
9081 @cindex MIME decoding
9083 @cindex viewing attachments
9085 The following commands all understand the numerical prefix. For
9086 instance, @kbd{3 b} means ``view the third @sc{mime} part''.
9092 @kindex K v (Summary)
9093 View the @sc{mime} part.
9096 @kindex K o (Summary)
9097 Save the @sc{mime} part.
9100 @kindex K c (Summary)
9101 Copy the @sc{mime} part.
9104 @kindex K e (Summary)
9105 View the @sc{mime} part externally.
9108 @kindex K i (Summary)
9109 View the @sc{mime} part internally.
9112 @kindex K | (Summary)
9113 Pipe the @sc{mime} part to an external command.
9116 The rest of these @sc{mime} commands do not use the numerical prefix in
9121 @kindex K b (Summary)
9122 Make all the @sc{mime} parts have buttons in front of them. This is
9123 mostly useful if you wish to save (or perform other actions) on inlined
9127 @kindex K m (Summary)
9128 @findex gnus-summary-repair-multipart
9129 Some multipart messages are transmitted with missing or faulty headers.
9130 This command will attempt to ``repair'' these messages so that they can
9131 be viewed in a more pleasant manner
9132 (@code{gnus-summary-repair-multipart}).
9135 @kindex X m (Summary)
9136 @findex gnus-summary-save-parts
9137 Save all parts matching a @sc{mime} type to a directory
9138 (@code{gnus-summary-save-parts}). Understands the process/prefix
9139 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9142 @kindex M-t (Summary)
9143 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized
9144 Toggle the buttonized display of the article buffer
9145 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized}).
9148 @kindex W M w (Summary)
9149 @findex gnus-article-decode-mime-words
9150 Decode RFC 2047-encoded words in the article headers
9151 (@code{gnus-article-decode-mime-words}).
9154 @kindex W M c (Summary)
9155 @findex gnus-article-decode-charset
9156 Decode encoded article bodies as well as charsets
9157 (@code{gnus-article-decode-charset}).
9159 This command looks in the @code{Content-Type} header to determine the
9160 charset. If there is no such header in the article, you can give it a
9161 prefix, which will prompt for the charset to decode as. In regional
9162 groups where people post using some common encoding (but do not
9163 include @sc{mime} headers), you can set the @code{charset} group/topic
9164 parameter to the required charset (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
9167 @kindex W M v (Summary)
9168 @findex gnus-mime-view-all-parts
9169 View all the @sc{mime} parts in the current article
9170 (@code{gnus-mime-view-all-parts}).
9177 @item gnus-ignored-mime-types
9178 @vindex gnus-ignored-mime-types
9179 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
9180 this list will be completely ignored by Gnus. The default value is
9183 To have all Vcards be ignored, you'd say something like this:
9186 (setq gnus-ignored-mime-types
9190 @item gnus-article-loose-mime
9191 @vindex gnus-article-loose-mime
9192 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus won't required the @samp{MIME-Version} header
9193 before interpreting the message as a @sc{mime} message. This helps
9194 when reading messages from certain broken mail user agents. The
9195 default is @code{nil}.
9197 @item gnus-article-emulate-mime
9198 @vindex gnus-article-emulate-mime
9199 There are other, non-@sc{mime} encoding methods used. The most common
9200 is @samp{uuencode}, but yEncode is also getting to be popular. If
9201 This variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will look in message bodies to
9202 see if it finds these encodings, and if so, it'll run them through the
9203 Gnus @sc{mime} machinery. The default is @code{t}.
9205 @item gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
9206 @vindex gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
9207 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
9208 this list won't have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
9209 displayed or this variable is overridden by
9210 @code{gnus-buttonized-mime-types}. The default value is
9211 @code{(".*/.*")}. This variable is only used when
9212 @code{gnus-inhibit-mime-unbuttonizing} is @code{nil}.
9214 @item gnus-buttonized-mime-types
9215 @vindex gnus-buttonized-mime-types
9216 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
9217 this list will have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
9218 displayed. This variable overrides
9219 @code{gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types}. The default value is @code{nil}.
9220 This variable is only used when @code{gnus-inhibit-mime-unbuttonizing}
9223 To see e.g. security buttons but no other buttons, you could set this
9224 variable to @code{("multipart/signed")} and leave
9225 @code{gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types} at the default value.
9227 @item gnus-inhibit-mime-unbuttonizing
9228 @vindex gnus-inhibit-mime-unbuttonizing
9229 If this is non-@code{nil}, then all @sc{mime} parts get buttons. The
9230 default value is @code{nil}.
9232 @item gnus-article-mime-part-function
9233 @vindex gnus-article-mime-part-function
9234 For each @sc{mime} part, this function will be called with the @sc{mime}
9235 handle as the parameter. The function is meant to be used to allow
9236 users to gather information from the article (e. g., add Vcard info to
9237 the bbdb database) or to do actions based on parts (e. g., automatically
9238 save all jpegs into some directory).
9240 Here's an example function the does the latter:
9243 (defun my-save-all-jpeg-parts (handle)
9244 (when (equal (car (mm-handle-type handle)) "image/jpeg")
9246 (insert (mm-get-part handle))
9247 (write-region (point-min) (point-max)
9248 (read-file-name "Save jpeg to: ")))))
9249 (setq gnus-article-mime-part-function
9250 'my-save-all-jpeg-parts)
9253 @vindex gnus-mime-multipart-functions
9254 @item gnus-mime-multipart-functions
9255 Alist of @sc{mime} multipart types and functions to handle them.
9257 @vindex mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
9258 @item mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
9259 List of functions used for rewriting file names of @sc{mime} parts.
9260 Each function takes a file name as input and returns a file name.
9262 Ready-made functions include@*
9263 @code{mm-file-name-delete-whitespace},
9264 @code{mm-file-name-trim-whitespace},
9265 @code{mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace}, and
9266 @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace}. The later uses the value of
9267 the variable @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace} to replace each
9268 whitespace character in a file name with that string; default value
9269 is @code{"_"} (a single underscore).
9270 @findex mm-file-name-delete-whitespace
9271 @findex mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
9272 @findex mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
9273 @findex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
9274 @vindex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
9276 The standard functions @code{capitalize}, @code{downcase},
9277 @code{upcase}, and @code{upcase-initials} may be useful, too.
9279 Everybody knows that whitespace characters in file names are evil,
9280 except those who don't know. If you receive lots of attachments from
9281 such unenlightened users, you can make live easier by adding
9284 (setq mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
9285 '(mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
9286 mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
9287 mm-file-name-replace-whitespace))
9291 to your @file{~/.gnus.el} file.
9300 People use different charsets, and we have @sc{mime} to let us know what
9301 charsets they use. Or rather, we wish we had. Many people use
9302 newsreaders and mailers that do not understand or use @sc{mime}, and
9303 just send out messages without saying what character sets they use. To
9304 help a bit with this, some local news hierarchies have policies that say
9305 what character set is the default. For instance, the @samp{fj}
9306 hierarchy uses @code{iso-2022-jp-2}.
9308 @vindex gnus-group-charset-alist
9309 This knowledge is encoded in the @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}
9310 variable, which is an alist of regexps (use the first item to match full
9311 group names) and default charsets to be used when reading these groups.
9313 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets
9314 In addition, some people do use soi-disant @sc{mime}-aware agents that
9315 aren't. These blithely mark messages as being in @code{iso-8859-1}
9316 even if they really are in @code{koi-8}. To help here, the
9317 @code{gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets} variable can be used. The
9318 charsets that are listed here will be ignored. The variable can be
9319 set on a group-by-group basis using the group parameters (@pxref{Group
9320 Parameters}). The default value is @code{(unknown-8bit x-unknown)},
9321 which includes values some agents insist on having in there.
9323 @vindex gnus-group-posting-charset-alist
9324 When posting, @code{gnus-group-posting-charset-alist} is used to
9325 determine which charsets should not be encoded using the @sc{mime}
9326 encodings. For instance, some hierarchies discourage using
9327 quoted-printable header encoding.
9329 This variable is an alist of regexps and permitted unencoded charsets
9330 for posting. Each element of the alist has the form @code{(}@var{test
9331 header body-list}@code{)}, where:
9335 is either a regular expression matching the newsgroup header or a
9338 is the charset which may be left unencoded in the header (@code{nil}
9339 means encode all charsets),
9341 is a list of charsets which may be encoded using 8bit content-transfer
9342 encoding in the body, or one of the special values @code{nil} (always
9343 encode using quoted-printable) or @code{t} (always use 8bit).
9350 @cindex coding system aliases
9351 @cindex preferred charset
9353 Other charset tricks that may be useful, although not Gnus-specific:
9355 If there are several @sc{mime} charsets that encode the same Emacs
9356 charset, you can choose what charset to use by saying the following:
9359 (put-charset-property 'cyrillic-iso8859-5
9360 'preferred-coding-system 'koi8-r)
9363 This means that Russian will be encoded using @code{koi8-r} instead of
9364 the default @code{iso-8859-5} @sc{mime} charset.
9366 If you want to read messages in @code{koi8-u}, you can cheat and say
9369 (define-coding-system-alias 'koi8-u 'koi8-r)
9372 This will almost do the right thing.
9374 And finally, to read charsets like @code{windows-1251}, you can say
9378 (codepage-setup 1251)
9379 (define-coding-system-alias 'windows-1251 'cp1251)
9383 @node Article Commands
9384 @section Article Commands
9391 @kindex A P (Summary)
9392 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
9393 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
9394 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
9395 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will
9396 be run just before printing the buffer. An alternative way to print
9397 article is to use Muttprint (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
9402 @node Summary Sorting
9403 @section Summary Sorting
9404 @cindex summary sorting
9406 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
9407 can't really see why you'd want that.
9412 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
9413 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
9414 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
9417 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
9418 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
9419 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
9422 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
9423 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
9424 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
9427 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
9428 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
9429 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
9432 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
9433 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
9434 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
9437 @kindex C-c C-s C-c (Summary)
9438 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-chars
9439 Sort by article length (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-chars}).
9442 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
9443 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
9444 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
9447 @kindex C-c C-s C-r (Summary)
9448 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-random
9449 Randomize (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-random}).
9452 @kindex C-c C-s C-o (Summary)
9453 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-original
9454 Sort using the default sorting method
9455 (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-original}).
9458 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
9459 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
9460 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
9461 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
9462 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
9466 @node Finding the Parent
9467 @section Finding the Parent
9468 @cindex parent articles
9469 @cindex referring articles
9474 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
9475 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
9476 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
9477 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
9478 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
9479 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
9480 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
9481 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
9482 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
9484 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
9485 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
9486 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, gnus will fetch the parent, the
9487 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
9488 @kbd{-3 ^}, gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
9492 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
9493 @kindex A R (Summary)
9494 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
9495 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
9498 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
9499 @kindex A T (Summary)
9500 Display the full thread where the current article appears
9501 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
9502 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
9503 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
9504 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
9505 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
9506 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
9508 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
9509 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
9510 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
9511 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
9512 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
9513 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
9516 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
9517 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
9519 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
9520 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
9521 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
9522 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
9523 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
9524 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
9525 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
9528 The current select method will be used when fetching by
9529 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
9530 by giving this command a prefix.
9532 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
9533 If the group you are reading is located on a back end that does not
9534 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
9535 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
9536 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
9537 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
9540 It can also be a list of select methods, as well as the special symbol
9541 @code{current}, which means to use the current select method. If it
9542 is a list, Gnus will try all the methods in the list until it finds a
9545 Here's an example setting that will first try the current method, and
9546 then ask Google if that fails:
9549 (setq gnus-refer-article-method
9551 (nnweb "google" (nnweb-type google))))
9554 Most of the mail back ends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but
9555 do not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox},
9556 @code{nnbabyl}, and @code{nnmaildir} are able to locate articles from
9557 any groups, while @code{nnml}, @code{nnfolder}, and @code{nnimap} are
9558 only able to locate articles that have been posted to the current group.
9559 (Anything else would be too time consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not
9560 support this at all.
9563 @node Alternative Approaches
9564 @section Alternative Approaches
9566 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
9567 gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
9570 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
9571 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
9576 @subsection Pick and Read
9577 @cindex pick and read
9579 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
9580 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
9581 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
9582 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
9584 @findex gnus-pick-mode
9585 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
9586 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
9587 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
9588 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
9589 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
9591 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
9596 @findex gnus-pick-article-or-thread
9597 Pick the article or thread on the current line
9598 (@code{gnus-pick-article-or-thread}). If the variable
9599 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key selects the
9600 entire thread when used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise,
9601 it selects just the article. If given a numerical prefix, go to that
9602 thread or article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
9603 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
9606 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
9607 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
9608 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
9609 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
9613 @findex gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread.
9614 Unpick the thread or article
9615 (@code{gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread}). If the variable
9616 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key unpicks the
9617 thread if used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise it unpicks
9618 just the article. You can give this key a numerical prefix to unpick
9619 the thread or article at that line.
9623 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
9624 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
9625 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
9626 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
9627 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
9628 will still be visible when you are reading.
9632 All the normal summary mode commands are still available in the
9633 pick-mode, with the exception of @kbd{u}. However @kbd{!} is available
9634 which is mapped to the same function
9635 @code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}.
9637 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
9640 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
9643 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
9644 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
9646 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
9647 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
9648 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
9650 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
9651 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
9652 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
9653 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
9654 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
9655 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
9656 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
9660 @subsection Binary Groups
9661 @cindex binary groups
9663 @findex gnus-binary-mode
9664 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
9665 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
9666 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
9667 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
9668 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
9669 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
9672 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
9673 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
9674 command, when you have turned on this mode
9675 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
9677 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
9678 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
9682 @section Tree Display
9685 @vindex gnus-use-trees
9686 If you don't like the normal gnus summary display, you might try setting
9687 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
9688 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
9691 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
9694 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
9695 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
9696 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
9698 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
9699 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
9700 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
9701 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
9702 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
9704 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
9705 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
9706 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
9707 default is @code{modeline}.
9709 @item gnus-tree-line-format
9710 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
9711 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
9712 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
9713 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
9714 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
9715 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
9721 The name of the poster.
9723 The @code{From} header.
9725 The number of the article.
9727 The opening bracket.
9729 The closing bracket.
9734 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
9736 Variables related to the display are:
9739 @item gnus-tree-brackets
9740 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
9741 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
9742 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @code{((@var{real-open} . @var{real-close})
9743 (@var{sparse-open} . @var{sparse-close}) (@var{dummy-open} . @var{dummy-close}))}, and the
9744 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
9746 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
9747 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
9748 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
9749 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
9753 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
9754 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
9755 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, gnus will try to keep the tree
9756 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other gnus
9757 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
9758 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
9759 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
9760 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
9761 other windows displayed next to it.
9763 You may also wish to add the following hook to keep the window minimized
9767 (add-hook 'gnus-configure-windows-hook
9768 'gnus-tree-perhaps-minimize)
9771 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
9772 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
9773 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
9774 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
9775 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
9776 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
9777 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
9781 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
9784 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
9794 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
9798 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
9799 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
9801 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
9803 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
9808 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
9809 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
9810 following to your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
9813 (setq gnus-use-trees t
9814 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
9815 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
9816 (gnus-add-configuration
9820 (summary 0.75 point)
9825 @xref{Window Layout}.
9828 @node Mail Group Commands
9829 @section Mail Group Commands
9830 @cindex mail group commands
9832 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
9833 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
9835 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
9836 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9841 @kindex B e (Summary)
9842 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
9843 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
9844 process (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}). That is, delete all
9845 expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
9846 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
9849 @kindex B C-M-e (Summary)
9850 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
9851 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
9852 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
9853 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
9854 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
9857 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
9858 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
9859 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
9860 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
9861 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
9862 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
9865 @kindex B m (Summary)
9867 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
9868 @vindex gnus-preserve-marks
9869 Move the article from one mail group to another
9870 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}). Marks will be preserved if
9871 @code{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
9874 @kindex B c (Summary)
9876 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
9877 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
9878 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
9879 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}). Marks will be preserved if
9880 @code{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
9883 @kindex B B (Summary)
9884 @cindex crosspost mail
9885 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
9886 Crosspost the current article to some other group
9887 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
9888 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
9889 be properly updated.
9892 @kindex B i (Summary)
9893 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
9894 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
9895 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
9896 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
9899 @kindex B I (Summary)
9900 @findex gnus-summary-create-article
9901 Create an empty article in the current mail newsgroups
9902 (@code{gnus-summary-create-article}). You will be prompted for a
9903 @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
9906 @kindex B r (Summary)
9907 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
9908 @vindex gnus-summary-respool-default-method
9909 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-respool-article}).
9910 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
9911 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
9912 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
9913 Marks will be preserved if @code{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil}
9914 (which is the default).
9918 @kindex B w (Summary)
9920 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
9921 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
9922 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article-done
9923 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
9924 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
9925 (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
9926 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, gnus won't re-highlight the article.
9929 @kindex B q (Summary)
9930 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
9931 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
9932 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
9933 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
9936 @kindex B t (Summary)
9937 @findex gnus-summary-respool-trace
9938 Similarly, this command will display all fancy splitting patterns used
9939 when respooling, if any (@code{gnus-summary-respool-trace}).
9942 @kindex B p (Summary)
9943 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
9944 Some people have a tendency to send you ``courtesy'' copies when they
9945 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
9946 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
9947 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
9948 article from your news server (or rather, from
9949 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
9950 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
9951 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
9952 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
9953 just not have arrived yet.
9956 @kindex K E (Summary)
9957 @findex gnus-article-encrypt-body
9958 @vindex gnus-article-encrypt-protocol
9959 Encrypt the body of an article (@code{gnus-article-encrypt-body}).
9960 The body is encrypted with the encryption protocol specified by the
9961 variable @code{gnus-article-encrypt-protocol}.
9965 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
9966 @cindex moving articles
9967 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have gnus
9968 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
9969 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
9970 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
9971 suggestions you find reasonable. (Note that
9972 @code{gnus-move-split-methods} uses group names where
9973 @code{gnus-split-methods} uses file names.)
9976 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
9977 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
9978 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
9979 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
9983 @node Various Summary Stuff
9984 @section Various Summary Stuff
9987 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
9988 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
9989 * Summary Generation Commands::
9990 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
9994 @vindex gnus-summary-display-while-building
9995 @item gnus-summary-display-while-building
9996 If non-@code{nil}, show and update the summary buffer as it's being
9997 built. If @code{t}, update the buffer after every line is inserted.
9998 If the value is an integer, @var{n}, update the display every @var{n}
9999 lines. The default is @code{nil}.
10001 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
10002 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
10003 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
10005 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
10006 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
10007 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
10008 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
10009 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
10010 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
10013 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
10014 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
10015 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
10016 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
10017 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
10019 @vindex gnus-summary-prepared-hook
10020 @item gnus-summary-prepared-hook
10021 A hook called as the very last thing after the summary buffer has been
10024 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
10025 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
10026 When gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
10027 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
10028 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
10029 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
10030 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), gnus will rename the
10031 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
10032 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
10033 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
10035 @vindex gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
10036 @item gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
10037 This function, which takes two parameters (the group name and the list
10038 of articles to be selected), is called to allow the user to alter the
10039 list of articles to be selected.
10041 For instance, the following function adds the list of cached articles to
10042 the list in one particular group:
10045 (defun my-add-cached-articles (group articles)
10046 (if (string= group "some.group")
10047 (append gnus-newsgroup-cached articles)
10051 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-variables
10052 @item gnus-newsgroup-variables
10053 A list of newsgroup (summary buffer) local variables, or cons of
10054 variables and their default values (when the default values are not
10055 @code{nil}), that should be made global while the summary buffer is
10056 active. These variables can be used to set variables in the group
10057 parameters while still allowing them to affect operations done in
10058 other buffers. For example:
10061 (setq gnus-newsgroup-variables
10062 '(message-use-followup-to
10063 (gnus-visible-headers .
10064 "^From:\\|^Newsgroups:\\|^Subject:\\|^Date:\\|^To:")))
10070 @node Summary Group Information
10071 @subsection Summary Group Information
10076 @kindex H f (Summary)
10077 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
10078 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
10079 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
10080 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
10081 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
10082 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
10083 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
10084 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
10085 be used for fetching the file.
10088 @kindex H d (Summary)
10089 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
10090 Give a brief description of the current group
10091 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
10092 rereading the description from the server.
10095 @kindex H h (Summary)
10096 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
10097 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
10098 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
10101 @kindex H i (Summary)
10102 @findex gnus-info-find-node
10103 Go to the gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
10107 @node Searching for Articles
10108 @subsection Searching for Articles
10113 @kindex M-s (Summary)
10114 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
10115 Search through all subsequent (raw) articles for a regexp
10116 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
10119 @kindex M-r (Summary)
10120 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
10121 Search through all previous (raw) articles for a regexp
10122 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
10125 @kindex & (Summary)
10126 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
10127 This command will prompt you for a header, a regular expression to match
10128 on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
10129 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If the header is an empty
10130 string, the match is done on the entire article. If given a prefix,
10131 search backward instead.
10133 For instance, @kbd{& RET some.*string #} will put the process mark on
10134 all articles that have heads or bodies that match @samp{some.*string}.
10137 @kindex M-& (Summary)
10138 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
10139 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
10140 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
10143 @node Summary Generation Commands
10144 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
10149 @kindex Y g (Summary)
10150 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
10151 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
10154 @kindex Y c (Summary)
10155 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
10156 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
10157 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
10160 @kindex Y d (Summary)
10161 @findex gnus-summary-insert-dormant-articles
10162 Pull all dormant articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
10163 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-dormant-articles}).
10168 @node Really Various Summary Commands
10169 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
10175 @kindex C-d (Summary)
10176 @kindex A D (Summary)
10177 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
10178 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
10179 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
10180 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
10181 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
10182 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
10183 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
10184 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
10188 @kindex C-M-d (Summary)
10189 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
10190 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
10191 several documents into one biiig group
10192 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
10193 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
10194 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
10195 command understands the process/prefix convention
10196 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
10199 @kindex C-t (Summary)
10200 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
10201 Toggle truncation of summary lines
10202 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
10203 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
10204 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
10207 @kindex = (Summary)
10208 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
10209 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
10210 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
10213 @kindex C-M-e (Summary)
10214 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
10215 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
10216 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
10219 @kindex C-M-a (Summary)
10220 @findex gnus-summary-customize-parameters
10221 Customize the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
10222 group (@code{gnus-summary-customize-parameters}).
10227 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
10228 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
10229 @cindex summary exit
10230 @cindex exiting groups
10232 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
10233 group and return you to the group buffer.
10239 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
10240 @kindex q (Summary)
10241 @findex gnus-summary-exit
10242 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
10243 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
10244 @vindex gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook
10245 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
10246 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
10247 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
10248 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
10249 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
10250 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
10251 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
10252 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
10256 @kindex Z E (Summary)
10257 @kindex Q (Summary)
10258 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
10259 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
10260 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
10264 @kindex Z c (Summary)
10265 @kindex c (Summary)
10266 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
10267 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
10268 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
10269 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
10272 @kindex Z C (Summary)
10273 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
10274 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
10275 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
10278 @kindex Z n (Summary)
10279 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
10280 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
10281 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
10284 @kindex Z R (Summary)
10285 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
10286 Exit this group, and then enter it again
10287 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
10288 all articles, both read and unread.
10292 @kindex Z G (Summary)
10293 @kindex M-g (Summary)
10294 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
10295 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
10296 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
10297 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
10298 articles, both read and unread.
10301 @kindex Z N (Summary)
10302 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
10303 Exit the group and go to the next group
10304 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
10307 @kindex Z P (Summary)
10308 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
10309 Exit the group and go to the previous group
10310 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
10313 @kindex Z s (Summary)
10314 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
10315 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
10316 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
10317 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
10318 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
10321 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
10322 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current group
10323 with an ``updating'' exit. For instance @kbd{Q}
10324 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}) does not call this hook.
10326 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
10327 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
10328 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
10329 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
10330 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
10331 If you do that, gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
10332 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
10333 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
10334 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
10335 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
10336 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
10337 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
10339 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
10341 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
10342 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
10343 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
10344 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
10345 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
10346 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
10347 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
10348 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
10349 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
10352 @node Crosspost Handling
10353 @section Crosspost Handling
10357 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
10358 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
10359 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
10360 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
10361 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
10362 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
10365 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
10366 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
10367 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
10368 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
10369 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
10371 @cindex cross-posting
10374 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
10375 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
10376 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
10377 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
10378 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
10379 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
10380 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
10381 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
10382 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
10383 the cross reference mechanism.
10385 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
10386 @cindex overview.fmt
10387 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
10388 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
10389 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
10390 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
10391 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
10392 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
10395 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
10396 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
10397 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
10402 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
10405 @node Duplicate Suppression
10406 @section Duplicate Suppression
10408 By default, gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
10409 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
10410 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
10411 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various
10416 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
10417 is evil and not very common.
10420 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
10421 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
10424 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
10425 different @sc{nntp} servers.
10428 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
10431 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
10432 well, but these four are the most common situations.
10434 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
10435 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
10436 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
10437 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
10438 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
10439 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
10440 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
10443 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
10444 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
10445 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
10446 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
10447 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
10448 saw the article in.
10451 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
10452 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
10453 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
10455 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
10456 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
10457 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
10458 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
10459 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single gnus
10460 session are suppressed.
10462 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
10463 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
10464 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
10465 suppression list. The default is 10000.
10467 @item gnus-duplicate-file
10468 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
10469 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
10470 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
10473 If you have a tendency to stop and start gnus often, setting
10474 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
10475 you leave gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
10476 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
10477 so that means that if you stop and start gnus often, you should set
10478 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
10479 to you to figure out, I think.
10484 Gnus is able to verify signed messages or decrypt encrypted messages.
10485 The formats that are supported are PGP, @sc{pgp/mime} and @sc{s/mime},
10486 however you need some external programs to get things to work:
10490 To handle PGP and PGP/MIME messages, you have to install an OpenPGP
10491 implementation such as GnuPG. The lisp interface to GnuPG included
10492 with Gnus is called PGG (@pxref{Top, ,PGG, pgg, PGG Manual}), but
10493 Mailcrypt and gpg.el are also supported.
10496 To handle @sc{s/mime} message, you need to install OpenSSL. OpenSSL 0.9.6
10497 or newer is recommended.
10501 More information on how to set things up can be found in the message
10502 manual (@pxref{Security, ,Security, message, Message Manual}).
10505 @item mm-verify-option
10506 @vindex mm-verify-option
10507 Option of verifying signed parts. @code{never}, not verify;
10508 @code{always}, always verify; @code{known}, only verify known
10509 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
10511 @item mm-decrypt-option
10512 @vindex mm-decrypt-option
10513 Option of decrypting encrypted parts. @code{never}, no decryption;
10514 @code{always}, always decrypt; @code{known}, only decrypt known
10515 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
10518 @vindex mml1991-use
10519 Symbol indicating elisp interface to OpenPGP implementation for PGP
10520 messages. The default is @code{pgg}, but @code{mailcrypt} and
10521 @code{gpg} are also supported although deprecated.
10524 @vindex mml2015-use
10525 Symbol indicating elisp interface to OpenPGP implementation for
10526 PGP/MIME messages. The default is @code{pgg}, but @code{mailcrypt}
10527 and @code{gpg} are also supported although deprecated.
10531 @cindex snarfing keys
10532 @cindex importing PGP keys
10533 @cindex PGP key ring import
10534 Snarfing OpenPGP keys (i.e., importing keys from articles into your
10535 key ring) is not supported explicitly through a menu item or command,
10536 rather Gnus do detect and label keys as @samp{application/pgp-keys},
10537 allowing you to specify whatever action you think is appropriate
10538 through the usual MIME infrastructure. You can use a
10539 @file{~/.mailcap} entry (@pxref{mailcap, , mailcap, emacs-mime, The
10540 Emacs MIME Manual}) such as the following to import keys using GNU
10541 Privacy Guard when you click on the MIME button (@pxref{Using MIME}).
10544 application/pgp-keys; gpg --import --interactive --verbose; needsterminal
10547 This happens to also be the default action defined in
10548 @var{mailcap-mime-data}.
10551 @section Mailing List
10553 @kindex A M (summary)
10554 @findex gnus-mailing-list-insinuate
10555 Gnus understands some mailing list fields of RFC 2369. To enable it,
10556 add a @code{to-list} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}),
10557 possibly using @kbd{A M} (@code{gnus-mailing-list-insinuate}) in the
10560 That enables the following commands to the summary buffer:
10565 @kindex C-c C-n h (Summary)
10566 @findex gnus-mailing-list-help
10567 Send a message to fetch mailing list help, if List-Help field exists.
10570 @kindex C-c C-n s (Summary)
10571 @findex gnus-mailing-list-subscribe
10572 Send a message to subscribe the mailing list, if List-Subscribe field exists.
10575 @kindex C-c C-n u (Summary)
10576 @findex gnus-mailing-list-unsubscribe
10577 Send a message to unsubscribe the mailing list, if List-Unsubscribe
10581 @kindex C-c C-n p (Summary)
10582 @findex gnus-mailing-list-post
10583 Post to the mailing list, if List-Post field exists.
10586 @kindex C-c C-n o (Summary)
10587 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
10588 Send a message to the mailing list owner, if List-Owner field exists.
10591 @kindex C-c C-n a (Summary)
10592 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
10593 Browse the mailing list archive, if List-Archive field exists.
10598 @node Article Buffer
10599 @chapter Article Buffer
10600 @cindex article buffer
10602 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
10603 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
10604 tell gnus otherwise.
10607 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
10608 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
10609 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
10610 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
10611 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
10615 @node Hiding Headers
10616 @section Hiding Headers
10617 @cindex hiding headers
10618 @cindex deleting headers
10620 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
10621 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
10623 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
10624 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
10625 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
10626 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
10627 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
10628 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
10629 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
10630 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
10631 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
10633 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
10637 @item gnus-visible-headers
10638 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
10639 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
10640 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
10641 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
10643 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
10644 the article and the subject, you'd say:
10647 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
10650 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
10653 @item gnus-ignored-headers
10654 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
10655 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
10656 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
10657 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
10658 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
10660 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} field
10661 and the @code{Xref} field, you might say:
10664 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
10667 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
10670 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
10671 variable will have no effect.
10675 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
10676 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
10677 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
10678 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
10679 the headers are to be displayed.
10681 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
10682 and then the subject, you might say something like:
10685 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
10688 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
10689 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed in this variable.
10691 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
10692 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
10693 You can hide further boring headers by setting
10694 @code{gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers} to @code{head}. What this function
10695 does depends on the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a
10696 list, but this list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is
10697 lists various @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove
10700 These conditions are:
10703 Remove all empty headers.
10705 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
10706 @code{Newsgroups} header.
10708 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
10709 @code{From} header, or if the @code{broken-reply-to} group parameter is
10712 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
10715 Remove the @code{To} header if it only contains the address identical to
10716 the current groups's @code{to-address} parameter.
10718 Remove the @code{To} header if it only contains the address identical to
10719 the current groups's @code{to-list} parameter.
10721 Remove the @code{CC} header if it only contains the address identical to
10722 the current groups's @code{to-list} parameter.
10724 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
10727 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
10729 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
10732 To include these three elements, you could say something like:
10735 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
10736 '(empty followup-to reply-to))
10739 This is also the default value for this variable.
10743 @section Using MIME
10746 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
10747 while people stand around yawning.
10749 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
10750 while all newsreaders die of fear.
10752 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
10753 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
10754 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
10756 @vindex gnus-show-mime
10757 @vindex gnus-article-display-method-for-mime
10758 @findex gnus-article-display-mime-message
10759 Gnus handles @sc{mime} by pushing the articles through
10760 @code{gnus-article-display-method-for-mime}, which is
10761 @code{gnus-article-display-mime-message} by default. This function
10762 calls the @sc{semi} MIME-View program to actually do the work. For more
10763 information on @sc{semi} MIME-View, see its manual page (however it is
10764 not existed yet, sorry).
10766 Set @code{gnus-show-mime} to @code{t} if you want to use
10767 @sc{mime} all the time. If you have @code{gnus-show-mime} set, then
10768 you'll see some unfortunate display glitches in the article buffer.
10769 These can't be avoided.
10771 In GNUS or Gnus, it might be best to just use the toggling functions
10772 from the summary buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance,
10773 you enter the group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it,
10774 @sc{mime} has decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible
10775 sing-a-long song comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find
10776 the volume button, because there isn't one, and people are starting to
10777 look at you, and you try to stop the program, but you can't, and you
10778 can't find the program to control the volume, and everybody else in the
10779 room suddenly decides to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel
10782 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
10784 To avoid such kind of situation, gnus stops to use
10785 @code{metamail-buffer}. So now, you can set @code{gnus-show-mime} to
10786 non-@code{nil} every-time, then you can push button in the article
10787 buffer when there are nobody else.
10789 Also see @pxref{MIME Commands}.
10792 @node Customizing Articles
10793 @section Customizing Articles
10794 @cindex article customization
10796 A slew of functions for customizing how the articles are to look like
10797 exist. You can call these functions interactively
10798 (@pxref{Article Washing}), or you can have them
10799 called automatically when you select the articles.
10801 To have them called automatically, you should set the corresponding
10802 ``treatment'' variable. For instance, to have headers hidden, you'd set
10803 @code{gnus-treat-hide-headers}. Below is a list of variables that can
10804 be set, but first we discuss the values these variables can have.
10806 Note: Some values, while valid, make little sense. Check the list below
10807 for sensible values.
10811 @code{nil}: Don't do this treatment.
10814 @code{t}: Do this treatment on all body parts.
10817 @code{head}: Do the treatment on the headers.
10820 @code{last}: Do this treatment on the last part.
10823 An integer: Do this treatment on all body parts that have a length less
10827 A list of strings: Do this treatment on all body parts that are in
10828 articles that are read in groups that have names that match one of the
10829 regexps in the list.
10832 A list where the first element is not a string:
10834 The list is evaluated recursively. The first element of the list is a
10835 predicate. The following predicates are recognized: @code{or},
10836 @code{and}, @code{not} and @code{typep}. Here's an example:
10840 (typep "text/x-vcard"))
10844 @code{mime}: Do this treatment if the value of @code{gnus-show-mime}' is
10849 You may have noticed that the word @dfn{part} is used here. This refers
10850 to the fact that some messages are @sc{mime} multipart articles that may
10851 be divided into several parts. Articles that are not multiparts are
10852 considered to contain just a single part.
10854 @vindex gnus-article-treat-types
10855 Are the treatments applied to all sorts of multipart parts? Yes, if you
10856 want to, but by default, only @samp{text/plain} parts are given the
10857 treatment. This is controlled by the @code{gnus-article-treat-types}
10858 variable, which is a list of regular expressions that are matched to the
10859 type of the part. This variable is ignored if the value of the
10860 controlling variable is a predicate list, as described above.
10862 The following treatment options are available. The easiest way to
10863 customize this is to examine the @code{gnus-article-treat} customization
10864 group. Values in parenthesis are suggested sensible values. Others are
10865 possible but those listed are probably sufficient for most people.
10868 @item gnus-treat-buttonize (t, integer)
10869 @item gnus-treat-buttonize-head (head)
10871 @xref{Article Buttons}.
10873 @item gnus-treat-capitalize-sentences (t, integer)
10874 @item gnus-treat-overstrike (t, integer)
10875 @item gnus-treat-strip-cr (t, integer)
10876 @item gnus-treat-strip-headers-in-body (t, integer)
10877 @item gnus-treat-strip-leading-blank-lines (t, integer)
10878 @item gnus-treat-strip-multiple-blank-lines (t, integer)
10879 @item gnus-treat-strip-pem (t, last, integer)
10880 @item gnus-treat-strip-trailing-blank-lines (t, last, integer)
10881 @item gnus-treat-unsplit-urls (t, integer)
10882 @item gnus-treat-wash-html (t, integer)
10883 @item gnus-treat-decode-article-as-default-mime-charset (t, integer)
10885 @xref{Article Washing}.
10887 @item gnus-treat-date-english (head)
10888 @item gnus-treat-date-iso8601 (head)
10889 @item gnus-treat-date-lapsed (head)
10890 @item gnus-treat-date-local (head)
10891 @item gnus-treat-date-original (head)
10892 @item gnus-treat-date-user-defined (head)
10893 @item gnus-treat-date-ut (head)
10895 @xref{Article Date}.
10897 @item gnus-treat-from-picon (head)
10898 @item gnus-treat-mail-picon (head)
10899 @item gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon (head)
10903 @item gnus-treat-display-smileys (t, integer)
10905 @item gnus-treat-body-boundary (head)
10907 @vindex gnus-body-boundary-delimiter
10908 Adds a delimiter between header and body, the string used as delimiter
10909 is controlled by @code{gnus-body-boundary-delimiter}.
10913 @item gnus-treat-display-xface (head)
10917 @item gnus-treat-emphasize (t, head, integer)
10918 @item gnus-treat-fill-article (t, integer)
10919 @item gnus-treat-fill-long-lines (t, integer)
10920 @item gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers (head)
10921 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation (t, integer)
10922 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation-maybe (t, integer)
10923 @item gnus-treat-hide-headers (head)
10924 @item gnus-treat-hide-signature (t, last)
10925 @item gnus-treat-strip-banner (t, last)
10926 @item gnus-treat-strip-list-identifiers (head)
10928 @xref{Article Hiding}.
10930 @item gnus-treat-highlight-citation (t, integer)
10931 @item gnus-treat-highlight-headers (head)
10932 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature (t, last, integer)
10934 @xref{Article Highlighting}.
10936 @item gnus-treat-play-sounds
10937 @item gnus-treat-translate
10938 @item gnus-treat-x-pgp-sig (head)
10940 @item gnus-treat-unfold-headers (head)
10941 @item gnus-treat-fold-headers (head)
10942 @item gnus-treat-fold-newsgroups (head)
10943 @item gnus-treat-leading-whitespace (head)
10945 @xref{Article Header}.
10950 @vindex gnus-part-display-hook
10951 You can, of course, write your own functions to be called from
10952 @code{gnus-part-display-hook}. The functions are called narrowed to the
10953 part, and you can do anything you like, pretty much. There is no
10954 information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can change
10958 @node Article Keymap
10959 @section Article Keymap
10961 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
10962 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
10963 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
10964 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
10967 A few additional keystrokes are available:
10972 @kindex SPACE (Article)
10973 @findex gnus-article-next-page
10974 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
10975 This is exactly the same as @kbd{h SPACE h}.
10978 @kindex DEL (Article)
10979 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
10980 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
10981 This is exactly the same as @kbd{h DEL h}.
10984 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
10985 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
10986 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
10987 @kbd{C-c ^}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
10988 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
10991 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
10992 @findex gnus-article-mail
10993 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
10994 given a prefix, include the mail.
10997 @kindex s (Article)
10998 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
10999 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
11000 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
11003 @kindex ? (Article)
11004 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
11005 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
11006 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
11009 @kindex TAB (Article)
11010 @findex gnus-article-next-button
11011 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
11012 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
11015 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
11016 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
11017 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
11020 @kindex R (Article)
11021 @findex gnus-article-reply-with-original
11022 Send a reply to the current article and yank the current article
11023 (@code{gnus-article-reply-with-original}). If given a prefix, make a
11024 wide reply. If the region is active, only yank the text in the
11028 @kindex F (Article)
11029 @findex gnus-article-followup-with-original
11030 Send a followup to the current article and yank the current article
11031 (@code{gnus-article-followup-with-original}). If given a prefix, make
11032 a wide reply. If the region is active, only yank the text in the
11040 @section Misc Article
11044 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
11045 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
11046 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
11047 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
11050 @vindex gnus-article-decode-hook
11051 @item gnus-article-decode-hook
11053 Hook used to decode @sc{mime} articles. The default value is
11054 @code{(article-decode-charset article-decode-encoded-words)}
11056 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
11057 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
11058 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
11059 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
11060 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
11061 the contents of the article buffer.
11063 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
11064 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
11065 Hook called in article mode buffers.
11067 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
11068 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
11069 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
11070 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
11072 @vindex gnus-article-over-scroll
11073 @item gnus-article-over-scroll
11074 If non-@code{nil}, allow scrolling the article buffer even when there
11075 no more new text to scroll in. The default is @code{nil}.
11077 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
11078 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
11079 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
11080 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
11081 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with two
11087 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
11088 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
11089 performed. The characters and their meaning:
11094 Displayed when cited text may be hidden in the article buffer.
11097 Displayed when headers are hidden in the article buffer.
11100 Displayed when article is digitally signed or encrypted, and Gnus has
11101 hidden the security headers. (N.B. does not tell anything about
11102 security status, i.e. good or bad signature.)
11105 Displayed when the signature has been hidden in the Article buffer.
11108 Displayed when Gnus has treated overstrike characters in the article buffer.
11111 Displayed when Gnus has treated emphasised strings in the article buffer.
11116 The number of @sc{mime} parts in the article.
11120 @vindex gnus-break-pages
11122 @item gnus-break-pages
11123 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
11124 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
11125 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
11126 paging will not be done.
11128 @item gnus-page-delimiter
11129 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
11130 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
11134 @cindex internationalized domain names
11135 @vindex gnus-use-idna
11136 @item gnus-use-idna
11137 This variable controls whether Gnus performs IDNA decoding of
11138 internationalized domain names inside @sc{From:}, @sc{To:} and
11139 @sc{Cc:} headers. This requires GNU Libidn
11140 (@url{http://www.gnu.org/software/libidn/}, and this variable is only
11141 enabled if you have installed it.
11146 @node Composing Messages
11147 @chapter Composing Messages
11148 @cindex composing messages
11151 @cindex sending mail
11156 @cindex using s/mime
11157 @cindex using smime
11159 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
11160 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
11161 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the
11162 article by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Overview, message,
11163 Message Manual}. Where the message will be posted/mailed to depends
11164 on your setup (@pxref{Posting Server}).
11167 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
11168 * Posting Server:: What server should you post and mail via?
11169 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
11170 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
11171 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
11172 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
11173 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
11174 * Signing and encrypting:: How to compose secure messages.
11177 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
11178 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
11184 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
11187 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
11188 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
11189 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
11190 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched. If
11191 @code{nil} include all headers.
11193 @item gnus-add-to-list
11194 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
11195 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
11196 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
11198 @item gnus-confirm-mail-reply-to-news
11199 @vindex gnus-confirm-mail-reply-to-news
11200 This can also be a function receiving the group name as the only
11201 parameter which should return non-@code{nil} if a confirmation is
11202 needed, or a regular expression matching group names, where
11203 confirmation is should be asked for.
11205 If you find yourself never wanting to reply to mail, but occasionally
11206 press R anyway, this variable might be for you.
11208 @item gnus-confirm-treat-mail-like-news
11209 @vindex gnus-confirm-treat-mail-like-news
11210 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus also requests confirmation according to
11211 @code{gnus-confirm-mail-reply-to-news} when replying to mail. This is
11212 useful for treating mailing lists like newsgroups.
11217 @node Posting Server
11218 @section Posting Server
11220 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
11221 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
11223 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
11225 It can be quite complicated.
11227 @vindex gnus-post-method
11228 When posting news, Message usually invokes @code{message-send-news}
11229 (@pxref{News Variables, , News Variables, message, Message Manual}).
11230 Normally, Gnus will post using the same select method as you're
11231 reading from (which might be convenient if you're reading lots of
11232 groups from different private servers). However. If the server
11233 you're reading from doesn't allow posting, just reading, you probably
11234 want to use some other server to post your (extremely intelligent and
11235 fabulously interesting) articles. You can then set the
11236 @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
11239 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
11242 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
11243 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
11244 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
11245 the ``current'' server, to get back the default behavior, for posting.
11247 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
11248 gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
11250 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
11251 If that's the case, gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
11254 Finally, if you want to always post using the native select method,
11255 you can set this variable to @code{native}.
11257 When sending mail, Message invokes @code{message-send-mail-function}.
11258 The default function, @code{message-send-mail-with-sendmail}, pipes
11259 your article to the @code{sendmail} binary for further queuing and
11260 sending. When your local system is not configured for sending mail
11261 using @code{sendmail}, and you have access to a remote @sc{smtp}
11262 server, you can set @code{message-send-mail-function} to
11263 @code{smtpmail-send-it} and make sure to setup the @code{smtpmail}
11264 package correctly. An example:
11267 (setq message-send-mail-function 'smtpmail-send-it
11268 smtpmail-default-smtp-server "YOUR SMTP HOST")
11269 ;; The following variable needs to be set because of the FLIM version of
11270 ;; smtpmail.el. Which smtpmail.el is used depends on the `load-path'.
11271 (setq smtp-default-smtp-server "YOUR SMTP HOST")
11274 To the thing similar to this, there is @code{message-smtpmail-send-it}.
11275 It is useful if your ISP requires the POP-before-SMTP authentication.
11276 See the documentation for the function @code{mail-source-touch-pop}.
11278 Other possible choices for @code{message-send-mail-function} includes
11279 @code{message-send-mail-with-mh}, @code{message-send-mail-with-qmail},
11280 and @code{feedmail-send-it}.
11282 @node Mail and Post
11283 @section Mail and Post
11285 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
11289 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
11290 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
11291 @cindex mailing lists
11293 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
11294 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
11295 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
11296 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
11297 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
11298 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
11299 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
11300 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
11301 still a pain, though.
11303 @item gnus-user-agent
11304 @vindex gnus-user-agent
11307 This variable controls which information should be exposed in the
11308 User-Agent header. It can be one of the symbols @code{gnus} (show only
11309 Gnus version), @code{emacs-gnus} (show only Emacs and Gnus versions),
11310 @code{emacs-gnus-config} (same as @code{emacs-gnus} plus system
11311 configuration), @code{emacs-gnus-type} (same as @code{emacs-gnus} plus
11312 system type) or a custom string. If you set it to a string, be sure to
11313 use a valid format, see RFC 2616."
11317 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
11318 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
11319 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
11322 @findex ispell-message
11324 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
11327 If you want to change the @code{ispell} dictionary based on what group
11328 you're in, you could say something like the following:
11331 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
11335 "^de\\." (gnus-group-real-name gnus-newsgroup-name))
11336 (ispell-change-dictionary "deutsch"))
11338 (ispell-change-dictionary "english")))))
11341 Modify to suit your needs.
11344 @node Archived Messages
11345 @section Archived Messages
11346 @cindex archived messages
11347 @cindex sent messages
11349 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
11350 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
11351 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
11352 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
11355 For archiving interesting messages in a group you read, see the
11356 @kbd{B c} (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}) command (@pxref{Mail
11359 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
11360 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server gnus is to
11361 use to store sent messages. The default is:
11364 (nnfolder "archive"
11365 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
11366 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
11367 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
11368 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
11371 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
11372 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likable select method
11373 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
11374 directory chosen, you could say something like:
11377 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
11378 '(nnfolder "archive"
11379 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
11380 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
11381 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
11384 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
11386 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
11387 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
11388 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
11390 This variable can be used to do the following:
11395 Messages will be saved in that group.
11397 Note that you can include a select method in the group name, then the
11398 message will not be stored in the select method given by
11399 @code{gnus-message-archive-method}, but in the select method specified
11400 by the group name, instead. Suppose @code{gnus-message-archive-method}
11401 has the default value shown above. Then setting
11402 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{"foo"} means that outgoing
11403 messages are stored in @samp{nnfolder+archive:foo}, but if you use the
11404 value @code{"nnml:foo"}, then outgoing messages will be stored in
11408 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
11410 an alist of regexps, functions and forms
11411 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
11414 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
11419 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
11421 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
11424 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
11426 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
11429 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
11431 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
11432 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
11433 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
11434 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
11437 More complex stuff:
11439 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
11440 '((if (message-news-p)
11445 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
11446 messages in one file per month:
11449 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
11450 '((if (message-news-p)
11452 (concat "mail." (format-time-string "%Y-%m")))))
11455 @c (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
11456 @c use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
11458 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
11459 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
11460 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
11461 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
11462 gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
11463 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
11464 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
11465 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
11466 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
11467 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
11469 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
11470 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
11471 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
11472 this will disable archiving.
11475 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
11476 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
11477 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
11478 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
11479 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
11482 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
11483 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
11484 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
11487 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
11488 but the latter is the preferred method.
11490 @item gnus-gcc-mark-as-read
11491 @vindex gnus-gcc-mark-as-read
11492 If non-@code{nil}, automatically mark @code{Gcc} articles as read.
11494 @item gnus-gcc-externalize-attachments
11495 @vindex gnus-gcc-externalize-attachments
11496 If @code{nil}, attach files as normal parts in Gcc copies; if a regexp
11497 and matches the Gcc group name, attach files as external parts; if it is
11498 @code{all}, attach local files as external parts; if it is other
11499 non-@code{nil}, the behavior is the same as @code{all}, but it may be
11500 changed in the future.
11505 @node Posting Styles
11506 @section Posting Styles
11507 @cindex posting styles
11510 All them variables, they make my head swim.
11512 So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
11513 on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
11514 and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
11517 @vindex gnus-posting-styles
11518 One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
11519 variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
11520 came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
11521 a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
11526 (signature "Peace and happiness")
11527 (organization "What me?"))
11529 (signature "Death to everybody"))
11530 ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
11531 (organization "Emacs is it")))
11534 As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
11535 @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
11536 ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
11537 over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
11538 applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
11539 the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
11540 @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
11541 signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
11543 The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
11544 string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
11545 If it is the form @code{(header @var{match} @var{regexp})}, then Gnus
11546 will look in the original article for a header whose name is
11547 @var{match} and compare that @var{regexp}. @var{match} and
11548 @var{regexp} are strings. (There original article is the one you are
11549 replying or following up to. If you are not composing a reply or a
11550 followup, then there is nothing to match against.) If the
11551 @code{match} is a function symbol, that function will be called with
11552 no arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the variable will be
11553 referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be @code{eval}ed. In
11554 any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value, then the style is
11555 said to @dfn{match}.
11557 Each style may contain an arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
11558 attribute consists of a @code{(@var{name} @var{value})} pair. The
11559 attribute name can be one of @code{signature}, @code{signature-file},
11560 @code{x-face-file}, @code{address} (overriding
11561 @code{user-mail-address}), @code{name} (overriding
11562 @code{(user-full-name)}) or @code{body}. The attribute name can also
11563 be a string or a symbol. In that case, this will be used as a header
11564 name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the article; if
11565 the value is @code{nil}, the header name will be removed. If the
11566 attribute name is @code{eval}, the form is evaluated, and the result
11569 The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function with
11570 zero arguments (the return value will be used), a variable (its value
11571 will be used) or a list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value
11572 will be used). The functions and sexps are called/@code{eval}ed in the
11573 message buffer that is being set up. The headers of the current article
11574 are available through the @code{message-reply-headers} variable, which
11575 is a vector of the following headers: number subject from date id
11576 references chars lines xref extra.
11578 @vindex message-reply-headers
11580 If you wish to check whether the message you are about to compose is
11581 meant to be a news article or a mail message, you can check the values
11582 of the @code{message-news-p} and @code{message-mail-p} functions.
11584 @findex message-mail-p
11585 @findex message-news-p
11587 So here's a new example:
11590 (setq gnus-posting-styles
11592 (signature-file "~/.signature")
11594 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
11595 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
11597 (signature my-funny-signature-randomizer))
11598 ((equal (system-name) "gnarly") ;; A form
11599 (signature my-quote-randomizer))
11600 (message-news-p ;; A function symbol
11601 (signature my-news-signature))
11602 (window-system ;; A value symbol
11603 ("X-Window-System" (format "%s" window-system)))
11604 ;; If I'm replying to Larsi, set the Organization header.
11605 ((header "from" "larsi.*org")
11606 (Organization "Somewhere, Inc."))
11607 ((posting-from-work-p) ;; A user defined function
11608 (signature-file "~/.work-signature")
11609 (address "user@@bar.foo")
11610 (body "You are fired.\n\nSincerely, your boss.")
11611 (organization "Important Work, Inc"))
11613 (From (save-excursion
11614 (set-buffer gnus-article-buffer)
11615 (message-fetch-field "to"))))
11617 (signature-file "~/.mail-signature"))))
11620 The @samp{nnml:.*} rule means that you use the @code{To} address as the
11621 @code{From} address in all your outgoing replies, which might be handy
11622 if you fill many roles.
11624 Setting the @code{gnus-named-posting-styles} variable will make
11625 posting-styles allow to have distinctive names. You can specify an
11626 arbitrary posting-style when article posting with @kbd{S P} in the
11627 summary buffer. @code{gnus-named-posting-styles} is an alist which maps
11628 the names to styles. Once a posting-style is added to the alist, we can
11629 import it from @code{gnus-posting-styles}. If an attribute whose name
11630 is @code{import} is found, Gnus will look for the attribute value in
11631 @code{gnus-named-posting-styles} and expand it in place.
11636 (setq gnus-named-posting-styles
11638 (signature-file "~/.signature")
11640 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
11641 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
11644 (organization "The Church of Emacs"))))
11647 The posting-style named "Emacs" will inherit all the attributes from
11648 "Default" except @code{organization}.
11655 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
11656 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
11657 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
11658 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
11659 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
11661 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
11662 some sort using the gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
11663 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
11664 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
11665 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
11669 @vindex nndraft-directory
11670 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
11671 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
11672 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
11673 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
11674 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
11675 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
11677 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
11678 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
11679 unsubscribe it. The special properties of the draft group comes from
11680 a group property (@pxref{Group Parameters}), and if lost the group
11681 behaves like any other group. This means the commands below will not
11682 be available. To restore the special properties of the group, the
11683 simplest way is to kill the group, using @kbd{C-k}, and restart
11684 Gnus. The group is automatically created again with the
11685 correct parameters. The content of the group is not lost.
11687 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
11688 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
11689 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
11690 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
11691 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
11692 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
11693 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
11694 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
11695 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
11696 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
11697 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
11698 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
11699 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
11700 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
11702 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
11703 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
11704 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
11706 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
11707 @kindex D e (Draft)
11708 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
11709 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
11710 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
11712 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
11715 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
11716 @kindex D s (Draft)
11717 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
11718 @kindex D S (Draft)
11719 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
11720 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
11721 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
11722 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
11723 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
11726 @findex gnus-draft-toggle-sending
11727 @kindex D t (Draft)
11728 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
11729 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
11730 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
11733 @node Rejected Articles
11734 @section Rejected Articles
11735 @cindex rejected articles
11737 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
11738 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
11739 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
11740 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
11742 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of gnus.
11743 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
11744 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
11745 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So gnus saves these
11746 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
11748 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
11749 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
11750 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
11752 @node Signing and encrypting
11753 @section Signing and encrypting
11755 @cindex using s/mime
11756 @cindex using smime
11758 Gnus can digitally sign and encrypt your messages, using vanilla PGP
11759 format or @sc{pgp/mime} or @sc{s/mime}. For decoding such messages,
11760 see the @code{mm-verify-option} and @code{mm-decrypt-option} options
11761 (@pxref{Security}).
11763 @vindex gnus-message-replysign
11764 @vindex gnus-message-replyencrypt
11765 @vindex gnus-message-replysignencrypted
11766 Often, you would like to sign replies to people who send you signed
11767 messages. Even more often, you might want to encrypt messages which
11768 are in reply to encrypted messages. Gnus offers
11769 @code{gnus-message-replysign} to enable the former, and
11770 @code{gnus-message-replyencrypt} for the latter. In addition, setting
11771 @code{gnus-message-replysignencrypted} (on by default) will sign
11772 automatically encrypted messages.
11774 Instructing MML to perform security operations on a @sc{mime} part is
11775 done using the @kbd{C-c C-m s} key map for signing and the @kbd{C-c
11776 C-m c} key map for encryption, as follows.
11781 @kindex C-c C-m s s
11782 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-smime
11784 Digitally sign current message using @sc{s/mime}.
11787 @kindex C-c C-m s o
11788 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-pgp
11790 Digitally sign current message using PGP.
11793 @kindex C-c C-m s p
11794 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-pgp
11796 Digitally sign current message using @sc{pgp/mime}.
11799 @kindex C-c C-m c s
11800 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-smime
11802 Digitally encrypt current message using @sc{s/mime}.
11805 @kindex C-c C-m c o
11806 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-pgp
11808 Digitally encrypt current message using PGP.
11811 @kindex C-c C-m c p
11812 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-pgpmime
11814 Digitally encrypt current message using @sc{pgp/mime}.
11817 @kindex C-c C-m C-n
11818 @findex mml-unsecure-message
11819 Remove security related MML tags from message.
11823 @xref{Security, ,Security, message, Message Manual}, for more information.
11825 @node Select Methods
11826 @chapter Select Methods
11827 @cindex foreign groups
11828 @cindex select methods
11830 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
11831 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
11832 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
11833 personal mail group.
11835 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
11836 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
11837 list where the first element says what back end to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
11838 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
11839 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
11840 value may have special meaning for the back end in question.
11842 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
11843 we do just that (@pxref{Server Buffer}).
11845 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the back end will recognize the
11848 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
11849 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
11850 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
11851 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
11852 back end just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
11854 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
11857 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
11858 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
11859 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
11860 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
11861 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
11862 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
11863 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
11864 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
11868 @node Server Buffer
11869 @section Server Buffer
11871 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
11872 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
11873 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
11874 one back end or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
11875 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
11876 back end represents a virtual server.
11878 For instance, the @code{nntp} back end may be used to connect to several
11879 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
11880 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which back end to
11881 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
11883 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
11884 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
11885 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
11886 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
11887 Anyway, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
11888 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
11889 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
11891 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
11892 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
11895 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
11896 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
11897 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
11898 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
11899 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
11900 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
11901 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
11904 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
11905 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
11908 @node Server Buffer Format
11909 @subsection Server Buffer Format
11910 @cindex server buffer format
11912 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
11913 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
11914 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
11915 variable, with some simple extensions:
11920 How the news is fetched---the back end name.
11923 The name of this server.
11926 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
11929 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
11932 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
11933 The mode line can also be customized by using the
11934 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
11935 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
11945 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
11948 @node Server Commands
11949 @subsection Server Commands
11950 @cindex server commands
11956 @findex gnus-server-add-server
11957 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
11961 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
11962 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
11965 @kindex SPACE (Server)
11966 @findex gnus-server-read-server
11967 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
11971 @findex gnus-server-exit
11972 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
11976 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
11977 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
11981 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
11982 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
11986 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
11987 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
11991 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
11992 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
11996 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
11997 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
11998 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
12003 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
12004 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
12005 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
12006 a mail back end that has gotten out of sync.
12011 @node Example Methods
12012 @subsection Example Methods
12014 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
12017 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
12020 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
12026 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
12027 back end, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
12030 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
12031 @code{(@var{variable} @var{form})} pairs.
12033 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
12034 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
12038 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
12041 You should read the documentation to each back end to find out what
12042 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
12044 @code{nnmh} is a mail back end that reads a spool-like structure. Say
12045 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
12046 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
12050 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
12053 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
12056 Here's the method for a public spool:
12060 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
12061 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
12067 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
12068 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
12069 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
12070 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
12071 should probably look something like this:
12075 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet)
12076 (nntp-via-address "the.firewall.machine")
12077 (nntp-address "the.real.nntp.host")
12078 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
12081 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
12082 compressed connection over the modem line, you could add the following
12083 configuration to the example above:
12086 (nntp-via-rlogin-command "ssh")
12089 See also @code{nntp-via-rlogin-command-switches}.
12091 If you're behind a firewall, but have direct access to the outside world
12092 through a wrapper command like "runsocks", you could open a socksified
12093 telnet connection to the news server as follows:
12097 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
12098 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-telnet)
12099 (nntp-address "the.news.server")
12100 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
12103 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
12104 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
12105 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
12106 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
12109 @node Creating a Virtual Server
12110 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
12112 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
12113 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
12115 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
12116 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
12117 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
12119 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
12121 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
12122 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
12123 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
12124 will contain the following:
12134 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
12135 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
12136 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
12139 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
12140 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
12141 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
12144 @node Server Variables
12145 @subsection Server Variables
12146 @cindex server variables
12147 @cindex server parameters
12149 One sticky point when defining variables (both on back ends and in Emacs
12150 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
12151 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
12152 change the ``base'' variable after the variables have been loaded, you
12153 won't change the ``derived'' variables.
12155 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
12156 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
12157 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
12158 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
12159 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
12160 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
12161 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
12162 variables for each back end, see each back end's section later in this
12163 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
12167 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
12168 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
12169 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
12172 Server variables are often called @dfn{server parameters}.
12174 @node Servers and Methods
12175 @subsection Servers and Methods
12177 Wherever you would normally use a select method
12178 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
12179 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
12180 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
12184 @node Unavailable Servers
12185 @subsection Unavailable Servers
12187 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
12188 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
12189 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
12190 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
12191 actually the case or not.
12193 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
12194 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
12195 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
12196 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
12197 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
12198 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
12199 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
12200 it will regard that server as ``down''.
12202 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
12203 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
12205 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{Server Buffer}) and poke it
12206 with the following commands:
12212 @findex gnus-server-open-server
12213 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
12214 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
12218 @findex gnus-server-close-server
12219 Close the connection (if any) to the server
12220 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
12224 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
12225 Mark the current server as unreachable
12226 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
12229 @kindex M-o (Server)
12230 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
12231 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
12232 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
12235 @kindex M-c (Server)
12236 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
12237 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
12238 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
12242 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
12243 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
12244 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
12248 @findex gnus-server-offline-server
12249 Set server status to offline (@code{gnus-server-offline-server}).
12255 @section Getting News
12256 @cindex reading news
12257 @cindex news back ends
12259 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
12260 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
12261 or it can read from a local spool.
12264 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
12265 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
12273 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
12274 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
12275 server as the, uhm, address.
12277 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
12278 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
12279 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
12280 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
12282 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
12283 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
12284 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
12286 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
12291 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
12292 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
12293 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
12295 @cindex authentification
12296 @cindex nntp authentification
12297 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
12298 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
12299 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
12300 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
12301 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
12302 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
12303 present in this hook.
12305 @item nntp-authinfo-function
12306 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
12307 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
12308 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
12309 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
12310 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
12311 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
12312 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
12313 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
12314 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
12315 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
12316 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
12320 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
12323 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs.
12325 The valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password},
12326 @samp{default}. In addition Gnus introduces two new tokens, not present
12327 in the original @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp} syntax, namely @samp{port} and
12328 @samp{force}. (This is the only way the @file{.authinfo} file format
12329 deviates from the @file{.netrc} file format.) @samp{port} is used to
12330 indicate what port on the server the credentials apply to and
12331 @samp{force} is explained below.
12335 Here's an example file:
12338 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
12339 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
12342 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
12343 have to be first, for instance.
12345 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
12346 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
12347 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
12348 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
12349 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
12350 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
12351 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
12353 You can also add @samp{default} lines that will apply to all servers
12354 that don't have matching @samp{machine} lines.
12360 This will force sending @samp{AUTHINFO} commands to all servers not
12361 previously mentioned.
12363 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
12365 @item nntp-server-action-alist
12366 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
12367 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
12368 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
12369 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
12372 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
12373 '(("innd" (ding))))
12376 You probably don't want to do that, though.
12378 The default value is
12381 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
12382 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook
12383 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
12386 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
12387 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
12389 @item nntp-maximum-request
12390 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
12391 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this back end
12392 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
12393 speed things up, the back end sends lots of these commands without
12394 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
12395 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
12396 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
12398 @item nntp-connection-timeout
12399 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
12400 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
12401 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
12402 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
12403 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
12404 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
12405 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} back end should wait for a
12406 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
12407 no timeouts are done.
12409 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
12410 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
12411 @c @cindex PPP connections
12412 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
12413 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
12414 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
12415 @c changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
12416 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
12417 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
12418 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
12419 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
12420 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
12421 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
12423 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
12424 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
12425 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
12426 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
12427 @c described above.
12429 @item nntp-server-hook
12430 @vindex nntp-server-hook
12431 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
12434 @item nntp-buggy-select
12435 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
12436 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
12438 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
12439 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
12440 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
12441 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
12444 @item nntp-xover-commands
12445 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
12448 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
12449 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
12453 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
12454 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
12455 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
12456 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
12457 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
12458 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
12459 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
12460 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
12461 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
12462 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
12463 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
12465 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
12466 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
12467 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
12469 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
12470 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
12471 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
12472 server closes connection.
12474 @item nntp-record-commands
12475 @vindex nntp-record-commands
12476 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
12477 @sc{nntp} server (along with a timestamp) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
12478 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@sc{nntp} connection
12479 that doesn't seem to work.
12481 @item nntp-open-connection-function
12482 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
12483 It is possible to customize how the connection to the nntp server will
12484 be opened. If you specify an @code{nntp-open-connection-function}
12485 parameter, Gnus will use that function to establish the connection.
12486 Five pre-made functions are supplied. These functions can be grouped in
12487 two categories: direct connection functions (three pre-made), and
12488 indirect ones (two pre-made).
12490 @item nntp-prepare-post-hook
12491 @vindex nntp-prepare-post-hook
12492 A hook run just before posting an article. If there is no
12493 @code{Message-ID} header in the article and the news server provides the
12494 recommended ID, it will be added to the article before running this
12495 hook. It is useful to make @code{Cancel-Lock} headers even if you
12496 inhibit Gnus to add a @code{Message-ID} header, you could say:
12499 (add-hook 'nntp-prepare-post-hook 'canlock-insert-header)
12502 Note that not all servers support the recommended ID. This works for
12503 INN versions 2.3.0 and later, for instance.
12505 @item nntp-read-timeout
12506 @vindex nntp-read-timeout
12507 How long nntp should wait between checking for the end of output.
12508 Shorter values mean quicker response, but is more CPU intensive. The
12509 default is 0.1 seconds. If you have a slow line to the server (and
12510 don't like to see Emacs eat your available CPU power), you might set
12513 @item nntp-list-options
12514 @vindex nntp-list-options
12515 List of newsgroup name used for a option of the LIST command to restrict
12516 the listing output to only the specified newsgroups. Each newsgroup name
12517 can be a shell-style wildcard, for instance, @dfn{fj.*}, @dfn{japan.*},
12518 etc. Fortunately, if the server can accept such a option, it will
12519 probably make gnus run faster. You may use it as a server variable as
12523 (setq gnus-select-method
12524 '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"
12525 (nntp-list-options ("fj.*" "japan.*"))))
12528 @item nntp-options-subscribe
12529 @vindex nntp-options-subscribe
12530 Regexp matching the newsgroup names which will be subscribed
12531 unconditionally. Use @dfn{ } instead of @dfn{$} for a regexp string.
12532 It may be effective as well as @code{nntp-list-options} even though the
12533 server could not accept a shell-style wildcard as a option of the LIST
12534 command. You may use it as a server variable as follows:
12537 (setq gnus-select-method
12538 '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"
12539 (nntp-options-subscribe "^fj\\.\\|^japan\\.")))
12542 @item nntp-options-not-subscribe
12543 @vindex nntp-options-not-subscribe
12544 Regexp matching the newsgroup names which will not be subscribed
12545 unconditionally. Use @dfn{ } instead of @dfn{$} for a regexp string.
12546 It may be effective as well as @code{nntp-list-options} even though the
12547 server could not accept a shell-style wildcard as a option of the LIST
12548 command. You may use it as a server variable as follows:
12551 (setq gnus-select-method
12552 '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"
12553 (nntp-options-not-subscribe "\\.binaries\\.")))
12558 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
12559 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
12560 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
12564 @node Direct Functions
12565 @subsubsection Direct Functions
12566 @cindex direct connection functions
12568 These functions are called direct because they open a direct connection
12569 between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server. The behavior of these
12570 functions is also affected by commonly understood variables
12571 (@pxref{Common Variables}).
12574 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
12575 @item nntp-open-network-stream
12576 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
12579 @findex nntp-open-tls-stream
12580 @item nntp-open-tls-stream
12581 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use
12582 this you must have GNUTLS installed (see
12583 @uref{http://www.gnu.org/software/gnutls/}). You then define a server
12587 ;; "nntps" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
12588 ;; however, gnutls-cli -p doesn't like named ports.
12590 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
12591 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-tls-stream)
12592 (nntp-port-number )
12593 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
12596 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
12597 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
12598 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use this
12599 you must have OpenSSL (@uref{http://www.openssl.org}) or SSLeay
12600 installed (@uref{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}. You then
12601 define a server as follows:
12604 ;; "snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
12605 ;; however, openssl s_client -port doesn't like named ports.
12607 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
12608 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
12609 (nntp-port-number 563)
12610 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
12613 @findex nntp-open-telnet-stream
12614 @item nntp-open-telnet-stream
12615 Opens a connection to an @sc{nntp} server by simply @samp{telnet}'ing
12616 it. You might wonder why this function exists, since we have the
12617 default @code{nntp-open-network-stream} which would do the job. (One
12618 of) the reason(s) is that if you are behind a firewall but have direct
12619 connections to the outside world thanks to a command wrapper like
12620 @code{runsocks}, you can use it like this:
12624 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
12625 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-telnet-stream)
12626 (nntp-address "the.news.server"))
12629 With the default method, you would need to wrap your whole Emacs
12630 session, which is not a good idea.
12634 @node Indirect Functions
12635 @subsubsection Indirect Functions
12636 @cindex indirect connection functions
12638 These functions are called indirect because they connect to an
12639 intermediate host before actually connecting to the @sc{nntp} server.
12640 All of these functions and related variables are also said to belong to
12641 the ``via'' family of connection: they're all prefixed with ``via'' to make
12642 things cleaner. The behavior of these functions is also affected by
12643 commonly understood variables (@pxref{Common Variables}).
12646 @item nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
12647 @findex nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
12648 Does an @samp{rlogin} on a remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet}
12649 to the real @sc{nntp} server from there. This is useful for instance if
12650 you need to connect to a firewall machine first.
12652 @code{nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet}-specific variables:
12655 @item nntp-via-rlogin-command
12656 @vindex nntp-via-rlogin-command
12657 Command used to log in on the intermediate host. The default is
12658 @samp{rsh}, but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
12660 @item nntp-via-rlogin-command-switches
12661 @vindex nntp-via-rlogin-command-switches
12662 List of strings to be used as the switches to
12663 @code{nntp-via-rlogin-command}. The default is @code{nil}. If you use
12664 @samp{ssh} for @code{nntp-via-rlogin-command}, you may set this to
12665 @samp{("-C")} in order to compress all data connections, otherwise set
12666 this to @samp{("-t" "-e" "none")} or @samp{("-C" "-t" "-e" "none")} if
12667 the telnet command requires a pseudo-tty allocation on an intermediate
12671 @item nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
12672 @findex nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
12673 Does essentially the same, but uses @samp{telnet} instead of
12674 @samp{rlogin} to connect to the intermediate host.
12676 @code{nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet}-specific variables:
12679 @item nntp-via-telnet-command
12680 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-command
12681 Command used to @code{telnet} the intermediate host. The default is
12684 @item nntp-via-telnet-switches
12685 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-switches
12686 List of strings to be used as the switches to the
12687 @code{nntp-via-telnet-command} command. The default is @samp{("-8")}.
12689 @item nntp-via-user-password
12690 @vindex nntp-via-user-password
12691 Password to use when logging in on the intermediate host.
12693 @item nntp-via-envuser
12694 @vindex nntp-via-envuser
12695 If non-@code{nil}, the intermediate @code{telnet} session (client and
12696 server both) will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for
12697 login name. This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
12699 @item nntp-via-shell-prompt
12700 @vindex nntp-via-shell-prompt
12701 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the intermediate host. The default
12702 is @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
12709 Here are some additional variables that are understood by all the above
12714 @item nntp-via-user-name
12715 @vindex nntp-via-user-name
12716 User name to use when connecting to the intermediate host.
12718 @item nntp-via-address
12719 @vindex nntp-via-address
12720 Address of the intermediate host to connect to.
12725 @node Common Variables
12726 @subsubsection Common Variables
12728 The following variables affect the behavior of all, or several of the
12729 pre-made connection functions. When not specified, all functions are
12734 @item nntp-pre-command
12735 @vindex nntp-pre-command
12736 A command wrapper to use when connecting through a non native
12737 connection function (all except @code{nntp-open-network-stream},
12738 @code{nntp-open-tls-stream}, and @code{nntp-open-ssl-stream}. This is
12739 where you would put a @samp{SOCKS} wrapper for instance.
12742 @vindex nntp-address
12743 The address of the @sc{nntp} server.
12745 @item nntp-port-number
12746 @vindex nntp-port-number
12747 Port number to connect to the @sc{nntp} server. The default is
12748 @samp{nntp}. If you use @sc{nntp} over @sc{tls}/@sc{ssl}, you may
12749 want to use integer ports rather than named ports (i.e, use @samp{563}
12750 instead of @samp{snews} or @samp{nntps}), because external TLS/SSL
12751 tools may not work with named ports.
12753 @item nntp-end-of-line
12754 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
12755 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
12756 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
12757 using a non native connection function.
12759 @item nntp-telnet-command
12760 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
12761 Command to use when connecting to the @sc{nntp} server through
12762 @samp{telnet}. This is NOT for an intermediate host. This is just for
12763 the real @sc{nntp} server. The default is @samp{telnet}.
12765 @item nntp-telnet-switches
12766 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
12767 A list of switches to pass to @code{nntp-telnet-command}. The default
12774 @subsection News Spool
12778 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
12779 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
12780 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
12783 Anyway, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
12784 anything else) as the address.
12786 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
12787 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
12788 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
12789 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
12793 @item nnspool-inews-program
12794 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
12795 Program used to post an article.
12797 @item nnspool-inews-switches
12798 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
12799 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
12801 @item nnspool-spool-directory
12802 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
12803 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
12804 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
12806 @item nnspool-nov-directory
12807 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
12808 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
12809 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
12811 @item nnspool-lib-dir
12812 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
12813 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
12815 @item nnspool-active-file
12816 @vindex nnspool-active-file
12817 The name of the active file.
12819 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
12820 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
12821 The name of the group descriptions file.
12823 @item nnspool-history-file
12824 @vindex nnspool-history-file
12825 The name of the news history file.
12827 @item nnspool-active-times-file
12828 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
12829 The name of the active date file.
12831 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
12832 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
12833 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
12836 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
12837 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
12839 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
12840 relevant portion from the overview file. If @code{nil},
12841 @code{nnspool} will load the entire file into a buffer and process it
12848 @section Getting Mail
12849 @cindex reading mail
12852 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
12856 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
12857 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
12858 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
12859 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
12860 * Mail Back End Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
12861 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
12862 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
12863 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
12864 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
12865 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
12866 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
12867 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail back ends for reading other files.
12868 * Choosing a Mail Back End:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
12872 @node Mail in a Newsreader
12873 @subsection Mail in a Newsreader
12875 If you are used to traditional mail readers, but have decided to switch
12876 to reading mail with Gnus, you may find yourself experiencing something
12877 of a culture shock.
12879 Gnus does not behave like traditional mail readers. If you want to make
12880 it behave that way, you can, but it's an uphill battle.
12882 Gnus, by default, handles all its groups using the same approach. This
12883 approach is very newsreaderly---you enter a group, see the new/unread
12884 messages, and when you read the messages, they get marked as read, and
12885 you don't see them any more. (Unless you explicitly ask for them.)
12887 In particular, you do not do anything explicitly to delete messages.
12889 Does this mean that all the messages that have been marked as read are
12890 deleted? How awful!
12892 But, no, it means that old messages are @dfn{expired} according to some
12893 scheme or other. For news messages, the expire process is controlled by
12894 the news administrator; for mail, the expire process is controlled by
12895 you. The expire process for mail is covered in depth in @pxref{Expiring
12898 What many Gnus users find, after using it a while for both news and
12899 mail, is that the transport mechanism has very little to do with how
12900 they want to treat a message.
12902 Many people subscribe to several mailing lists. These are transported
12903 via @sc{smtp}, and are therefore mail. But we might go for weeks without
12904 answering, or even reading these messages very carefully. We may not
12905 need to save them because if we should need to read one again, they are
12906 archived somewhere else.
12908 Some people have local news groups which have only a handful of readers.
12909 These are transported via @sc{nntp}, and are therefore news. But we may need
12910 to read and answer a large fraction of the messages very carefully in
12911 order to do our work. And there may not be an archive, so we may need
12912 to save the interesting messages the same way we would personal mail.
12914 The important distinction turns out to be not the transport mechanism,
12915 but other factors such as how interested we are in the subject matter,
12916 or how easy it is to retrieve the message if we need to read it again.
12918 Gnus provides many options for sorting mail into ``groups'' which behave
12919 like newsgroups, and for treating each group (whether mail or news)
12922 Some users never get comfortable using the Gnus (ahem) paradigm and wish
12923 that Gnus should grow up and be a male, er, mail reader. It is possible
12924 to whip Gnus into a more mailreaderly being, but, as said before, it's
12925 not easy. People who prefer proper mail readers should try @sc{vm}
12926 instead, which is an excellent, and proper, mail reader.
12928 I don't mean to scare anybody off, but I want to make it clear that you
12929 may be required to learn a new way of thinking about messages. After
12930 you've been subjected to The Gnus Way, you will come to love it. I can
12931 guarantee it. (At least the guy who sold me the Emacs Subliminal
12932 Brain-Washing Functions that I've put into Gnus did guarantee it. You
12933 Will Be Assimilated. You Love Gnus. You Love The Gnus Mail Way.
12937 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
12938 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
12940 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
12941 mail back end of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
12942 and things will happen automatically.
12944 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a ``one file per
12945 mail'' back end), you could put the following in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
12948 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
12951 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this back end will be queried for new
12952 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
12953 directory, which is @file{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
12954 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
12955 like any other group.
12957 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
12960 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12961 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12962 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
12966 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
12967 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
12968 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
12971 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
12972 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
12973 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Back End} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
12976 @node Splitting Mail
12977 @subsection Splitting Mail
12978 @cindex splitting mail
12979 @cindex mail splitting
12981 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
12982 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
12983 to be split into groups.
12986 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12987 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12988 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
12989 ("mail.other" "")))
12992 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
12993 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
12994 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
12995 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
12996 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
12997 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
12998 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
13001 ("list.\\1" "From:.* \\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
13004 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
13005 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
13006 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
13007 mail belongs in that group.
13009 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
13010 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{*} so that it matches any mails
13011 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
13012 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
13013 rule to make a match will ``win'', unless you have crossposting enabled.
13014 In that case, all matching rules will ``win''.)
13016 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
13017 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
13018 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
13019 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
13020 thinks should carry this mail message.
13022 Note that the mail back ends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
13023 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
13024 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
13025 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
13027 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
13028 The mail back ends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
13029 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
13030 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
13031 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{*}) group.
13033 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
13036 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
13037 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
13038 links. If that's the case for you, set
13039 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
13040 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
13042 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
13043 @kindex nnmail-split-history
13044 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
13045 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command. If you wish to see
13046 where re-spooling messages would put the messages, you can use
13047 @code{gnus-summary-respool-trace} and related commands (@pxref{Mail
13050 @vindex nnmail-split-header-length-limit
13051 Header lines longer than the value of
13052 @code{nnmail-split-header-length-limit} are excluded from the split
13055 @vindex nnmail-mail-splitting-charset
13056 @vindex nnmail-mail-splitting-decodes
13057 By default the splitting codes @sc{mime} decodes headers so you can
13058 match on non-ASCII strings. The @code{nnmail-mail-splitting-charset}
13059 variable specifies the default charset for decoding. The behaviour
13060 can be turned off completely by binding
13061 @code{nnmail-mail-splitting-decodes} to @code{nil}, which is useful if
13062 you want to match articles based on the raw header data.
13064 @vindex nnmail-resplit-incoming
13065 By default, splitting is performed on all incoming messages. If you
13066 specify a @code{directory} entry for the variable @code{mail-sources}
13067 @pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}, however, then splitting does
13068 @emph{not} happen by default. You can set the variable
13069 @code{nnmail-resplit-incoming} to a non-@code{nil} value to make
13070 splitting happen even in this case. (This variable has no effect on
13071 other kinds of entries.)
13073 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
13074 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
13075 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
13076 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
13077 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
13078 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
13079 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
13080 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
13081 month's rent money.
13085 @subsection Mail Sources
13087 Mail can be gotten from many different sources---the mail spool, from a
13088 POP mail server, from a procmail directory, or from a maildir, for
13092 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
13093 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
13094 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
13098 @node Mail Source Specifiers
13099 @subsubsection Mail Source Specifiers
13101 @cindex mail server
13104 @cindex mail source
13106 You tell Gnus how to fetch mail by setting @code{mail-sources}
13107 (@pxref{Fetching Mail}) to a @dfn{mail source specifier}.
13112 (pop :server "pop3.mailserver.com" :user "myname")
13115 As can be observed, a mail source specifier is a list where the first
13116 element is a @dfn{mail source type}, followed by an arbitrary number of
13117 @dfn{keywords}. Keywords that are not explicitly specified are given
13120 The following mail source types are available:
13124 Get mail from a single file; typically from the mail spool.
13130 The file name. Defaults to the value of the @code{MAIL}
13131 environment variable or the value of @code{rmail-spool-directory}
13132 (usually something like @file{/usr/mail/spool/user-name}).
13136 Script run before/after fetching mail.
13139 An example file mail source:
13142 (file :path "/usr/spool/mail/user-name")
13145 Or using the default file name:
13151 If the mail spool file is not located on the local machine, it's best to
13152 use POP or @sc{imap} or the like to fetch the mail. You can not use ange-ftp
13153 file names here---it has no way to lock the mail spool while moving the
13156 If it's impossible to set up a proper server, you can use ssh instead.
13160 '((file :prescript "ssh host bin/getmail >%t")))
13163 The @samp{getmail} script would look something like the following:
13167 # getmail - move mail from spool to stdout
13170 MOVEMAIL=/usr/lib/emacs/20.3/i386-redhat-linux/movemail
13172 rm -f $TMP; $MOVEMAIL $MAIL $TMP >/dev/null && cat $TMP
13175 Alter this script to fit find the @samp{movemail} you want to use.
13179 @vindex nnmail-scan-directory-mail-source-once
13180 Get mail from several files in a directory. This is typically used
13181 when you have procmail split the incoming mail into several files.
13182 That is, there is a one-to-one correspondence between files in that
13183 directory and groups, so that mail from the file @file{foo.bar.spool}
13184 will be put in the group @code{foo.bar}. (You can change the suffix
13185 to be used instead of @code{.spool}.) Setting
13186 @code{nnmail-scan-directory-mail-source-once} to non-@code{nil} forces
13187 Gnus to scan the mail source only once. This is particularly useful
13188 if you want to scan mail groups at a specified level.
13190 @vindex nnmail-resplit-incoming
13191 There is also the variable @code{nnmail-resplit-incoming}, if you set
13192 that to a non-@code{nil} value, then the normal splitting process is
13193 applied to all the files from the directory, @ref{Splitting Mail}.
13199 The name of the directory where the files are. There is no default
13203 Only files ending with this suffix are used. The default is
13207 Only files that have this predicate return non-@code{nil} are returned.
13208 The default is @code{identity}. This is used as an additional
13209 filter---only files that have the right suffix @emph{and} satisfy this
13210 predicate are considered.
13214 Script run before/after fetching mail.
13218 An example directory mail source:
13221 (directory :path "/home/user-name/procmail-dir/"
13226 Get mail from a POP server.
13232 The name of the POP server. The default is taken from the
13233 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
13236 The port number of the POP server. This can be a number (eg,
13237 @samp{:port 1234}) or a string (eg, @samp{:port "pop3"}). If it is a
13238 string, it should be a service name as listed in @file{/etc/services} on
13239 Unix systems. The default is @samp{"pop3"}. On some systems you might
13240 need to specify it as @samp{"pop-3"} instead.
13243 The user name to give to the POP server. The default is the login
13247 The password to give to the POP server. If not specified, the user is
13251 The program to use to fetch mail from the POP server. This should be
13252 a @code{format}-like string. Here's an example:
13255 fetchmail %u@@%s -P %p %t
13258 The valid format specifier characters are:
13262 The name of the file the mail is to be moved to. This must always be
13263 included in this string.
13266 The name of the server.
13269 The port number of the server.
13272 The user name to use.
13275 The password to use.
13278 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
13279 corresponding keywords.
13282 A script to be run before fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
13283 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
13286 A script to be run after fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
13287 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
13290 The function to use to fetch mail from the POP server. The function is
13291 called with one parameter---the name of the file where the mail should
13294 @item :authentication
13295 This can be either the symbol @code{password} or the symbol @code{apop}
13296 and says what authentication scheme to use. The default is
13300 What stream to use for connecting to the server, this can be the symbol
13301 @code{ssl}, the symbol @code{tls} or others. The default is @code{nil}
13302 and use insecure connections. Note that for SSL/TLS, you need external
13303 programs and libraries:
13307 @dfn{ssl:} Connect through SSL@. Requires OpenSSL (the program
13308 @samp{openssl}) or SSLeay (@samp{s_client}) as well as the external
13309 library @samp{ssl.el}.
13311 @dfn{starttls:} Connect via the STARTTLS extension (similar to SSL)@.
13312 Requires the external library @samp{starttls.el} and program
13317 Non-@code{nil} if mail is to be left on the server and UIDL used for
13318 message retrieval. The default is @code{nil}.
13322 If the @code{:program} and @code{:function} keywords aren't specified,
13323 @code{pop3-movemail} will be used.
13325 Here are some examples. Fetch from the default POP server, using the
13326 default user name, and default fetcher:
13332 Fetch from a named server with a named user and password:
13335 (pop :server "my.pop.server"
13336 :user "user-name" :password "secret")
13339 Use @samp{movemail} to move the mail:
13342 (pop :program "movemail po:%u %t %p")
13346 Get mail from a maildir. This is a type of mailbox that is supported by
13347 at least qmail and postfix, where each file in a special directory
13348 contains exactly one mail.
13354 The name of the directory where the mails are stored. The default is
13355 taken from the @code{MAILDIR} environment variable or
13358 The subdirectories of the Maildir. The default is
13359 @samp{("new" "cur")}.
13361 @c If you sometimes look at your mail through a pop3 daemon before fetching
13362 @c them with Gnus, you may also have to fetch your mails from the
13363 @c @code{cur} directory inside the maildir, like in the first example
13366 You can also get mails from remote hosts (because maildirs don't suffer
13367 from locking problems).
13371 Two example maildir mail sources:
13374 (maildir :path "/home/user-name/Maildir/"
13375 :subdirs ("cur" "new"))
13379 (maildir :path "/user@@remotehost.org:~/Maildir/"
13384 Get mail from a @sc{imap} server. If you don't want to use @sc{imap}
13385 as intended, as a network mail reading protocol (ie with nnimap), for
13386 some reason or other, Gnus let you treat it similar to a POP server
13387 and fetches articles from a given @sc{imap} mailbox. @xref{IMAP}, for
13390 Note that for the Kerberos, GSSAPI, TLS/SSL and STARTTLS support you
13391 may need external programs and libraries, @xref{IMAP}.
13397 The name of the @sc{imap} server. The default is taken from the
13398 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
13401 The port number of the @sc{imap} server. The default is @samp{143}, or
13402 @samp{993} for TLS/SSL connections.
13405 The user name to give to the @sc{imap} server. The default is the login
13409 The password to give to the @sc{imap} server. If not specified, the user is
13413 What stream to use for connecting to the server, this is one of the
13414 symbols in @code{imap-stream-alist}. Right now, this means
13415 @samp{gssapi}, @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{starttls}, @samp{tls},
13416 @samp{ssl}, @samp{shell} or the default @samp{network}.
13418 @item :authentication
13419 Which authenticator to use for authenticating to the server, this is
13420 one of the symbols in @code{imap-authenticator-alist}. Right now,
13421 this means @samp{gssapi}, @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{digest-md5},
13422 @samp{cram-md5}, @samp{anonymous} or the default @samp{login}.
13425 When using the `shell' :stream, the contents of this variable is
13426 mapped into the @code{imap-shell-program} variable. This should be a
13427 @code{format}-like string (or list of strings). Here's an example:
13433 The valid format specifier characters are:
13437 The name of the server.
13440 User name from @code{imap-default-user}.
13443 The port number of the server.
13446 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
13447 corresponding keywords.
13450 The name of the mailbox to get mail from. The default is @samp{INBOX}
13451 which normally is the mailbox which receive incoming mail.
13454 The predicate used to find articles to fetch. The default, @samp{UNSEEN
13455 UNDELETED}, is probably the best choice for most people, but if you
13456 sometimes peek in your mailbox with a @sc{imap} client and mark some
13457 articles as read (or; SEEN) you might want to set this to @samp{1:*}.
13458 Then all articles in the mailbox is fetched, no matter what. For a
13459 complete list of predicates, see RFC 2060 section 6.4.4.
13462 How to flag fetched articles on the server, the default @samp{\Deleted}
13463 will mark them as deleted, an alternative would be @samp{\Seen} which
13464 would simply mark them as read. These are the two most likely choices,
13465 but more flags are defined in RFC 2060 section 2.3.2.
13468 If non-@code{nil}, don't remove all articles marked as deleted in the
13469 mailbox after finishing the fetch.
13473 An example @sc{imap} mail source:
13476 (imap :server "mail.mycorp.com"
13478 :fetchflag "\\Seen")
13482 Get mail from a webmail server, such as @uref{www.hotmail.com},
13483 @uref{webmail.netscape.com}, @uref{www.netaddress.com},
13484 @uref{mail.yahoo..com}.
13486 NOTE: Webmail largely depends cookies. A "one-line-cookie" patch is
13487 required for url "4.0pre.46".
13489 WARNING: Mails may be lost. NO WARRANTY.
13495 The type of the webmail server. The default is @code{hotmail}. The
13496 alternatives are @code{netscape}, @code{netaddress}, @code{my-deja}.
13499 The user name to give to the webmail server. The default is the login
13503 The password to give to the webmail server. If not specified, the user is
13507 If non-@code{nil}, only fetch unread articles and don't move them to
13508 trash folder after finishing the fetch.
13512 An example webmail source:
13515 (webmail :subtype 'hotmail
13517 :password "secret")
13522 @item Common Keywords
13523 Common keywords can be used in any type of mail source.
13529 If non-@code{nil}, fetch the mail even when Gnus is unplugged. If you
13530 use directory source to get mail, you can specify it as in this
13535 '((directory :path "/home/pavel/.Spool/"
13540 Gnus will then fetch your mail even when you are unplugged. This is
13541 useful when you use local mail and news.
13546 @subsubsection Function Interface
13548 Some of the above keywords specify a Lisp function to be executed.
13549 For each keyword @code{:foo}, the Lisp variable @code{foo} is bound to
13550 the value of the keyword while the function is executing. For example,
13551 consider the following mail-source setting:
13554 (setq mail-sources '((pop :user "jrl"
13555 :server "pophost" :function fetchfunc)))
13558 While the function @code{fetchfunc} is executing, the symbol @code{user}
13559 is bound to @code{"jrl"}, and the symbol @code{server} is bound to
13560 @code{"pophost"}. The symbols @code{port}, @code{password},
13561 @code{program}, @code{prescript}, @code{postscript}, @code{function},
13562 and @code{authentication} are also bound (to their default values).
13564 See above for a list of keywords for each type of mail source.
13567 @node Mail Source Customization
13568 @subsubsection Mail Source Customization
13570 The following is a list of variables that influence how the mail is
13571 fetched. You would normally not need to set or change any of these
13575 @item mail-source-crash-box
13576 @vindex mail-source-crash-box
13577 File where mail will be stored while processing it. The default is
13578 @file{~/.emacs-mail-crash-box}.
13580 @item mail-source-delete-incoming
13581 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
13582 If non-@code{nil}, delete incoming files after handling them. If
13583 @code{t}, delete the files immediately, if @code{nil}, never delete any
13584 files. If a positive number, delete files older than number of days
13585 (This will only happen, when reveiving new mail). You may also set
13586 @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} to @code{nil} and call
13587 @code{mail-source-delete-old-incoming} from a hook or interactively.
13589 @item mail-source-delete-old-incoming-confirm
13590 @vindex mail-source-delete-old-incoming-confirm
13591 If non-@code{nil}, ask for for confirmation before deleting old incoming
13592 files. This variable only applies when
13593 @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} is a positive number.
13595 @item mail-source-ignore-errors
13596 @vindex mail-source-ignore-errors
13597 If non-@code{nil}, ignore errors when reading mail from a mail source.
13599 @item mail-source-directory
13600 @vindex mail-source-directory
13601 Directory where files (if any) will be stored. The default is
13602 @file{~/Mail/}. At present, the only thing this is used for is to say
13603 where the incoming files will be stored if the previous variable is
13606 @item mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
13607 @vindex mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
13608 Prefix for file name for storing incoming mail. The default is
13609 @file{Incoming}, in which case files will end up with names like
13610 @file{Incoming30630D_} or @file{Incoming298602ZD}. This is really only
13611 relevant if @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} is @code{nil}.
13613 @item mail-source-default-file-modes
13614 @vindex mail-source-default-file-modes
13615 All new mail files will get this file mode. The default is 384.
13617 @item mail-source-movemail-program
13618 @vindex mail-source-movemail-program
13619 If non-@code{nil}, name of program for fetching new mail. If
13620 @code{nil}, @code{movemail} in @var{exec-directory}.
13625 @node Fetching Mail
13626 @subsubsection Fetching Mail
13628 @vindex mail-sources
13629 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
13630 The way to actually tell Gnus where to get new mail from is to set
13631 @code{mail-sources} to a list of mail source specifiers
13632 (@pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}).
13634 If this variable (and the obsolescent @code{nnmail-spool-file}) is
13635 @code{nil}, the mail back ends will never attempt to fetch mail by
13638 If you want to fetch mail both from your local spool as well as a POP
13639 mail server, you'd say something like:
13644 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
13645 :password "secret")))
13648 Or, if you don't want to use any of the keyword defaults:
13652 '((file :path "/var/spool/mail/user-name")
13653 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
13656 :password "secret")))
13660 When you use a mail back end, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
13661 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
13662 mail if you're not using a mail back end---you have to do a lot of magic
13663 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
13664 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
13665 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
13669 @node Mail Back End Variables
13670 @subsection Mail Back End Variables
13672 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
13676 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
13677 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
13678 The mail back ends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
13679 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
13681 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
13682 @item nnmail-split-hook
13683 @findex gnus-article-decode-encoded-words
13684 @findex RFC 1522 decoding
13685 @findex RFC 2047 decoding
13686 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
13687 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
13688 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
13689 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
13690 in the buffer will show up in any files.
13691 @code{gnus-article-decode-encoded-words} is one likely function to add
13694 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
13695 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
13696 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
13697 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
13698 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
13699 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
13700 starting to handle the new mail) and
13701 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
13702 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
13703 default file modes the new mail files get:
13706 (add-hook 'nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
13707 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
13709 (add-hook 'nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
13710 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
13713 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
13714 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
13715 If non-@code{nil}, the mail back ends will use long file and directory
13716 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
13717 (assuming use of @code{nnml} back end) or files (assuming use of
13718 @code{nnfolder} back end) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
13719 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
13721 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
13722 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
13723 @findex delete-file
13724 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
13726 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
13727 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
13728 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
13729 the back end (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
13730 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
13732 @item nnmail-cache-ignore-groups
13733 @vindex nnmail-cache-ignore-groups
13734 This can be a regular expression or a list of regular expressions.
13735 Group names that match any of the regular expressions will never be
13736 recorded in the @code{Message-ID} cache.
13738 This can be useful, for example, when using Fancy Splitting
13739 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}) together with the function
13740 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent}.
13745 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
13746 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
13747 @cindex mail splitting
13748 @cindex fancy mail splitting
13750 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
13751 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
13752 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
13753 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
13754 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
13755 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
13757 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
13760 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
13761 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
13762 ;; from real errors.
13763 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
13765 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
13766 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
13767 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
13768 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
13769 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
13770 ;; Other mailing lists...
13771 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
13772 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
13773 ;; Both lists below have the same suffix, so prevent
13774 ;; cross-posting to mkpkg.list of messages posted only to
13775 ;; the bugs- list, but allow cross-posting when the
13776 ;; message was really cross-posted.
13777 (any "bugs-mypackage@@somewhere" "mypkg.bugs")
13778 (any "mypackage@@somewhere\" - "bugs-mypackage" "mypkg.list")
13780 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
13781 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
13785 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
13786 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
13787 the five possible split syntaxes:
13792 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group
13793 name. Normal regexp match expansion will be done. See below for
13797 @code{(@var{field} @var{value} @code{[-} @var{restrict}
13798 @code{[@dots{}]}@code{]} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, the
13799 first element of which is a string, then store the message as
13800 specified by @var{split}, if header @var{field} (a regexp) contains
13801 @var{value} (also a regexp). If @var{restrict} (yet another regexp)
13802 matches some string after @var{field} and before the end of the
13803 matched @var{value}, the @var{split} is ignored. If none of the
13804 @var{restrict} clauses match, @var{split} is processed.
13807 @code{(| @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
13808 element is @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each @var{split} until
13809 one of them matches. A @var{split} is said to match if it will cause
13810 the mail message to be stored in one or more groups.
13813 @code{(& @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
13814 element is @code{&}, then process all @var{split}s in the list.
13817 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
13818 (i.e., delete) this message. Use with extreme caution.
13821 @code{(: @var{function} @var{arg1} @var{arg2} @dots{})}: If the split is
13822 a list, and the first element is @code{:}, then the second element will
13823 be called as a function with @var{args} given as arguments. The
13824 function should return a @var{split}.
13827 For instance, the following function could be used to split based on the
13828 body of the messages:
13831 (defun split-on-body ()
13833 (set-buffer " *nnmail incoming*")
13834 (goto-char (point-min))
13835 (when (re-search-forward "Some.*string" nil t)
13839 The @samp{" *nnmail incoming*"} is narrowed to the message in question
13840 when the @code{:} function is run.
13843 @code{(! @var{func} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, and the
13844 first element is @code{!}, then @var{split} will be processed, and
13845 @var{func} will be called as a function with the result of @var{split}
13846 as argument. @var{func} should return a split.
13849 @code{nil}: If the split is @code{nil}, it is ignored.
13853 In these splits, @var{field} must match a complete field name.
13854 @var{value} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
13855 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
13856 field names or words. In other words, all @var{value}'s are wrapped in
13857 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
13859 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
13860 @var{field} and @var{value} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
13861 are expanded as specified by the variable
13862 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
13863 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
13866 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
13867 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
13868 when all this splitting is performed.
13870 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
13871 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
13872 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
13875 (any "debian-\\b\\(\\w+\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
13878 In this example, messages sent to @samp{debian-foo@@lists.debian.org}
13879 will be filed in @samp{mail.debian.foo}.
13881 If the string contains the element @samp{\&}, then the previously
13882 matched string will be substituted. Similarly, the elements @samp{\\1}
13883 up to @samp{\\9} will be substituted with the text matched by the
13884 groupings 1 through 9.
13886 @findex nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent
13887 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} is a function which allows you to
13888 split followups into the same groups their parents are in. Sometimes
13889 you can't make splitting rules for all your mail. For example, your
13890 boss might send you personal mail regarding different projects you are
13891 working on, and as you can't tell your boss to put a distinguishing
13892 string into the subject line, you have to resort to manually moving the
13893 messages into the right group. With this function, you only have to do
13894 it once per thread.
13896 To use this feature, you have to set @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates}
13897 and @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} to a non-@code{nil}
13898 value. And then you can include @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent}
13899 using the colon feature, like so:
13901 (setq nnmail-treat-duplicates 'warn ; or 'delete
13902 nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids t
13904 '(| (: nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent)
13905 ;; other splits go here
13909 This feature works as follows: when @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} is
13910 non-@code{nil}, Gnus records the message id of every message it sees
13911 in the file specified by the variable
13912 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, together with the group it is in
13913 (the group is omitted for non-mail messages). When mail splitting is
13914 invoked, the function @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} then looks
13915 at the References (and In-Reply-To) header of each message to split
13916 and searches the file specified by @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}
13917 for the message ids. When it has found a parent, it returns the
13918 corresponding group name unless the group name matches the regexp
13919 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent-ignore-groups}. It is
13920 recommended that you set @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length} to a
13921 somewhat higher number than the default so that the message ids are
13922 still in the cache. (A value of 5000 appears to create a file some
13923 300 kBytes in size.)
13924 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
13925 When @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus
13926 also records the message ids of moved articles, so that the followup
13927 messages goes into the new group.
13929 Also see the variable @code{nnmail-cache-ignore-groups} if you don't
13930 want certain groups to be recorded in the cache. For example, if all
13931 outgoing messages are written to an `outgoing' group, you could set
13932 @code{nnmail-cache-ignore-groups} to match that group name.
13933 Otherwise, answers to all your messages would end up in the
13937 @node Group Mail Splitting
13938 @subsection Group Mail Splitting
13939 @cindex mail splitting
13940 @cindex group mail splitting
13942 @findex gnus-group-split
13943 If you subscribe to dozens of mailing lists but you don't want to
13944 maintain mail splitting rules manually, group mail splitting is for you.
13945 You just have to set @var{to-list} and/or @var{to-address} in group
13946 parameters or group customization and set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to
13947 @code{gnus-group-split}. This splitting function will scan all groups
13948 for those parameters and split mail accordingly, i.e., messages posted
13949 from or to the addresses specified in the parameters @var{to-list} or
13950 @var{to-address} of a mail group will be stored in that group.
13952 Sometimes, mailing lists have multiple addresses, and you may want mail
13953 splitting to recognize them all: just set the @var{extra-aliases} group
13954 parameter to the list of additional addresses and it's done. If you'd
13955 rather use a regular expression, set @var{split-regexp}.
13957 All these parameters in a group will be used to create an
13958 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split, in which the @var{field} is @samp{any},
13959 the @var{value} is a single regular expression that matches
13960 @var{to-list}, @var{to-address}, all of @var{extra-aliases} and all
13961 matches of @var{split-regexp}, and the @var{split} is the name of the
13962 group. @var{restrict}s are also supported: just set the
13963 @var{split-exclude} parameter to a list of regular expressions.
13965 If you can't get the right split to be generated using all these
13966 parameters, or you just need something fancier, you can set the
13967 parameter @var{split-spec} to an @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split. In
13968 this case, all other aforementioned parameters will be ignored by
13969 @code{gnus-group-split}. In particular, @var{split-spec} may be set to
13970 @code{nil}, in which case the group will be ignored by
13971 @code{gnus-group-split}.
13973 @vindex gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group
13974 @code{gnus-group-split} will do cross-posting on all groups that match,
13975 by defining a single @code{&} fancy split containing one split for each
13976 group. If a message doesn't match any split, it will be stored in the
13977 group named in @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}, unless
13978 some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all}, in which case
13979 that group is used as the catch-all group. Even though this variable is
13980 often used just to name a group, it may also be set to an arbitrarily
13981 complex fancy split (after all, a group name is a fancy split), and this
13982 may be useful to split mail that doesn't go to any mailing list to
13983 personal mail folders. Note that this fancy split is added as the last
13984 element of a @code{|} split list that also contains a @code{&} split
13985 with the rules extracted from group parameters.
13987 It's time for an example. Assume the following group parameters have
13992 ((to-address . "bar@@femail.com")
13993 (split-regexp . ".*@@femail\\.com"))
13995 ((to-list . "foo@@nowhere.gov")
13996 (extra-aliases "foo@@localhost" "foo-redist@@home")
13997 (split-exclude "bugs-foo" "rambling-foo")
13998 (admin-address . "foo-request@@nowhere.gov"))
14000 ((split-spec . catch-all))
14003 Setting @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{gnus-group-split} will
14004 behave as if @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been selected and variable
14005 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been set as follows:
14008 (| (& (any "\\(bar@@femail\\.com\\|.*@@femail\\.com\\)" "mail.bar")
14009 (any "\\(foo@@nowhere\\.gov\\|foo@@localhost\\|foo-redist@@home\\)"
14010 - "bugs-foo" - "rambling-foo" "mail.foo"))
14014 @findex gnus-group-split-fancy
14015 If you'd rather not use group splitting for all your mail groups, you
14016 may use it for only some of them, by using @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
14020 (: gnus-group-split-fancy GROUPS NO-CROSSPOST CATCH-ALL)
14023 @var{groups} may be a regular expression or a list of group names whose
14024 parameters will be scanned to generate the output split.
14025 @var{no-crosspost} can be used to disable cross-posting; in this case, a
14026 single @code{|} split will be output. @var{catch-all} is the fallback
14027 fancy split, used like @var{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}.
14028 If @var{catch-all} is @code{nil}, or if @var{split-regexp} matches the
14029 empty string in any selected group, no catch-all split will be issued.
14030 Otherwise, if some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all},
14031 this group will override the value of the @var{catch-all} argument.
14033 @findex gnus-group-split-setup
14034 Unfortunately, scanning all groups and their parameters can be quite
14035 slow, especially considering that it has to be done for every message.
14036 But don't despair! The function @code{gnus-group-split-setup} can be
14037 used to enable @code{gnus-group-split} in a much more efficient way. It
14038 sets @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy} and sets
14039 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} to the split produced by
14040 @code{gnus-group-split-fancy}. Thus, the group parameters are only
14041 scanned once, no matter how many messages are split.
14043 @findex gnus-group-split-update
14044 However, if you change group parameters, you'd have to update
14045 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} manually. You can do it by running
14046 @code{gnus-group-split-update}. If you'd rather have it updated
14047 automatically, just tell @code{gnus-group-split-setup} to do it for
14048 you. For example, add to your @file{~/.gnus.el}:
14051 (gnus-group-split-setup AUTO-UPDATE CATCH-ALL)
14054 If @var{auto-update} is non-@code{nil}, @code{gnus-group-split-update}
14055 will be added to @code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook}, so you won't ever
14056 have to worry about updating @code{nnmail-split-fancy} again. If you
14057 don't omit @var{catch-all} (it's optional, equivalent to @code{nil}),
14058 @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group} will be set to its
14061 @vindex gnus-group-split-updated-hook
14062 Because you may want to change @code{nnmail-split-fancy} after it is set
14063 by @code{gnus-group-split-update}, this function will run
14064 @code{gnus-group-split-updated-hook} just before finishing.
14066 @node Incorporating Old Mail
14067 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
14068 @cindex incorporating old mail
14069 @cindex import old mail
14071 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
14072 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
14073 back ends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
14076 Doing so can be quite easy.
14078 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
14079 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
14080 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
14081 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
14082 your @code{nnml} groups.
14088 Go to the group buffer.
14091 Type @kbd{G f} and give the file name to the mbox file when prompted to create an
14092 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
14095 Type @kbd{SPACE} to enter the newly created group.
14098 Type @kbd{M P b} to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
14099 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
14102 Type @kbd{B r} to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
14103 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
14106 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
14107 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
14108 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
14109 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
14110 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
14112 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
14113 back end to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
14114 using the new mail back end.
14117 @node Expiring Mail
14118 @subsection Expiring Mail
14119 @cindex article expiry
14121 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
14122 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
14123 different approach to mail reading.
14125 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
14126 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
14127 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
14128 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
14129 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
14130 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
14133 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
14134 articles as @dfn{expirable}. (With the default keybindings, this means
14135 that you have to type @kbd{E}.) This does not mean that the articles
14136 will disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
14137 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
14138 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
14139 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
14140 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
14141 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
14143 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Gnus provides
14144 two features, called `auto-expire' and `total-expire', that can help you
14145 with this. In a nutshell, `auto-expire' means that Gnus hits @kbd{E}
14146 for you when you select an article. And `total-expire' means that Gnus
14147 considers all articles as expirable that are read. So, in addition to
14148 the articles marked @samp{E}, also the articles marked @samp{r},
14149 @samp{R}, @samp{O}, @samp{K}, @samp{Y} and so on are considered
14152 When should either auto-expire or total-expire be used? Most people
14153 who are subscribed to mailing lists split each list into its own group
14154 and then turn on auto-expire or total-expire for those groups.
14155 (@xref{Splitting Mail}, for more information on splitting each list
14156 into its own group.)
14158 Which one is better, auto-expire or total-expire? It's not easy to
14159 answer. Generally speaking, auto-expire is probably faster. Another
14160 advantage of auto-expire is that you get more marks to work with: for
14161 the articles that are supposed to stick around, you can still choose
14162 between tick and dormant and read marks. But with total-expire, you
14163 only have dormant and ticked to choose from. The advantage of
14164 total-expire is that it works well with adaptive scoring @pxref{Adaptive
14165 Scoring}. Auto-expire works with normal scoring but not with adaptive
14168 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
14169 Groups that match the regular expression
14170 @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will have all articles that you
14171 read marked as expirable automatically. All articles marked as
14172 expirable have an @samp{E} in the first column in the summary buffer.
14174 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
14175 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
14176 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
14177 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
14178 @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
14180 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
14182 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
14183 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
14184 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
14187 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
14188 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
14189 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
14190 articles expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
14191 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
14193 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
14194 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
14197 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
14198 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
14201 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
14202 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
14204 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
14205 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
14206 don't really mix very well.
14208 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
14209 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
14210 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
14211 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
14214 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
14215 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
14216 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
14217 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
14220 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
14222 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
14224 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
14226 ((string= group "mail.junk")
14228 ((string= group "important")
14234 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
14235 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
14237 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
14238 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
14239 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
14242 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
14243 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
14245 @vindex nnmail-expiry-target
14246 The normal action taken when expiring articles is to delete them.
14247 However, in some circumstances it might make more sense to move them
14248 to other groups instead of deleting them. The variable
14249 @code{nnmail-expiry-target} (and the @code{expiry-target} group
14250 parameter) controls this. The variable supplies a default value for
14251 all groups, which can be overridden for specific groups by the group
14252 parameter. default value is @code{delete}, but this can also be a
14253 string (which should be the name of the group the message should be
14254 moved to), or a function (which will be called in a buffer narrowed to
14255 the message in question, and with the name of the group being moved
14256 from as its parameter) which should return a target -- either a group
14257 name or @code{delete}.
14259 Here's an example for specifying a group name:
14261 (setq nnmail-expiry-target "nnml:expired")
14264 @findex nnmail-fancy-expiry-target
14265 @vindex nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets
14266 Gnus provides a function @code{nnmail-fancy-expiry-target} which will
14267 expire mail to groups according to the variable
14268 @code{nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets}. Here's an example:
14271 (setq nnmail-expiry-target 'nnmail-fancy-expiry-target
14272 nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets
14273 '((to-from "boss" "nnfolder:Work")
14274 ("subject" "IMPORTANT" "nnfolder:IMPORTANT.%Y.%b")
14275 ("from" ".*" "nnfolder:Archive-%Y")))
14278 With this setup, any mail that has @code{IMPORTANT} in its Subject
14279 header and was sent in the year @code{YYYY} and month @code{MMM}, will
14280 get expired to the group @code{nnfolder:IMPORTANT.YYYY.MMM}. If its
14281 From or To header contains the string @code{boss}, it will get expired
14282 to @code{nnfolder:Work}. All other mail will get expired to
14283 @code{nnfolder:Archive-YYYY}.
14285 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
14286 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
14287 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
14288 easier for procmail users.
14290 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
14291 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
14292 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
14293 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
14294 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
14295 caution. Even more dangerous is the
14296 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
14297 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
14298 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
14299 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
14300 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
14301 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
14302 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
14305 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
14307 @vindex gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire
14308 If @code{gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire} is non-@code{nil}, user marking
14309 commands will not mark an article as expirable, even if the group has
14310 auto-expire turned on.
14314 @subsection Washing Mail
14315 @cindex mail washing
14316 @cindex list server brain damage
14317 @cindex incoming mail treatment
14319 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
14320 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC 822 doesn't explicitly
14321 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
14322 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
14323 Yes, but RFC 822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
14324 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
14326 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
14327 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
14328 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
14331 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
14332 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
14333 storing the mail to disk. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
14334 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
14337 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
14338 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
14339 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
14340 grand, sweeping gestures. It is called in a buffer that contains all
14341 the new, incoming mail. Functions to be used include:
14344 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
14345 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
14346 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
14347 Emacs running on MS machines.
14351 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
14352 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
14353 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
14354 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
14357 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
14358 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
14359 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
14360 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
14362 (Note that this function works on both the header on the body of all
14363 messages, so it is a potentially dangerous function to use (if a body
14364 of a message contains something that looks like a header line). So
14365 rather than fix the bug, it is of course the right solution to make it
14366 into a feature by documenting it.)
14368 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
14369 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
14370 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
14371 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
14372 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
14373 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
14374 also be a list of regexp. @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} may not contain
14377 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
14378 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
14381 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
14382 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
14385 This can also be done non-destructively with
14386 @code{gnus-list-identifiers}, @xref{Article Hiding}.
14388 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
14389 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
14390 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
14392 @item nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
14393 @findex nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
14395 Eudora produces broken @code{References} headers, but OK
14396 @code{In-Reply-To} headers. This function will get rid of the
14397 @code{References} headers.
14401 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
14402 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
14403 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
14407 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
14408 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
14409 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
14416 @subsection Duplicates
14418 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
14419 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
14420 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
14421 @cindex duplicate mails
14422 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
14423 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
14424 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
14425 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
14426 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
14427 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
14428 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
14429 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
14430 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
14431 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
14432 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
14433 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
14434 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
14436 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
14437 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
14438 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
14439 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
14441 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
14444 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
14445 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
14449 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
14450 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
14451 ("gnus-warning" "duplicat\\(e\\|ion\\) of message" "duplicate")
14452 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
14453 (any mail "mail.misc")
14460 (setq nnmail-split-methods
14461 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:.*duplicate")
14466 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
14467 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
14468 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
14469 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
14470 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
14473 @node Not Reading Mail
14474 @subsection Not Reading Mail
14476 If you start using any of the mail back ends, they have the annoying
14477 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
14478 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
14480 If you set @code{mail-sources} and @code{nnmail-spool-file} to
14481 @code{nil}, none of the back ends will ever attempt to read incoming
14482 mail, which should help.
14484 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
14485 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
14486 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
14487 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
14488 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
14489 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
14490 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old Rmail
14491 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All back ends have
14492 variables called back-end-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
14493 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
14494 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
14496 All the mail back ends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
14497 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
14501 @node Choosing a Mail Back End
14502 @subsection Choosing a Mail Back End
14504 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
14505 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
14506 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
14508 There are six different mail back ends in the standard Gnus, and more
14509 back ends are available separately. The mail back end most people use
14510 (because it is possibly the fastest) is @code{nnml} (@pxref{Mail
14514 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
14515 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the Rmail Babyl format.
14516 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
14517 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like back end.
14518 * Maildir:: Another one-file-per-message format.
14519 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
14520 * Comparing Mail Back Ends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
14524 @node Unix Mail Box
14525 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
14527 @cindex unix mail box
14529 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
14530 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
14531 The @dfn{nnmbox} back end will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
14532 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
14533 which group it belongs in.
14535 Virtual server settings:
14538 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
14539 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
14540 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory. Default is
14543 @item nnmbox-active-file
14544 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
14545 The name of the active file for the mail box. Default is
14546 @file{~/.mbox-active}.
14548 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
14549 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
14550 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
14551 into groups. Default is @code{t}.
14556 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
14560 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
14561 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
14562 The @dfn{nnbabyl} back end will use a Babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{Rmail
14563 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each
14564 mail article to say which group it belongs in.
14566 Virtual server settings:
14569 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
14570 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
14571 The name of the Rmail mbox file. The default is @file{~/RMAIL}
14573 @item nnbabyl-active-file
14574 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
14575 The name of the active file for the rmail box. The default is
14576 @file{~/.rmail-active}
14578 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
14579 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
14580 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail. Default is
14586 @subsubsection Mail Spool
14588 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
14590 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
14591 format. It should be used with some caution.
14593 @vindex nnml-directory
14594 If you use this back end, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
14595 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
14596 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
14597 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
14599 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
14602 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
14603 in your account, you should not use this back end. As each mail gets its
14604 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
14605 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
14606 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
14607 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
14608 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
14609 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
14611 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest back end when it comes to article
14612 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
14613 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it possibly the
14614 fastest back end when it comes to reading mail.
14616 @cindex self contained nnml servers
14618 When the marks file is used (which it is by default), @code{nnml}
14619 servers have the property that you may backup them using @code{tar} or
14620 similar, and later be able to restore them into Gnus (by adding the
14621 proper @code{nnml} server) and have all your marks be preserved. Marks
14622 for a group is usually stored in the @code{.marks} file (but see
14623 @code{nnml-marks-file-name}) within each @code{nnml} group's directory.
14624 Individual @code{nnml} groups are also possible to backup, use @kbd{G m}
14625 to restore the group (after restoring the backup into the nnml
14628 If for some reason you believe your @file{.marks} files are screwed
14629 up, you can just delete them all. Gnus will then correctly regenerate
14630 them next time it starts.
14632 Virtual server settings:
14635 @item nnml-directory
14636 @vindex nnml-directory
14637 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory. The
14638 default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default value
14641 @item nnml-active-file
14642 @vindex nnml-active-file
14643 The active file for the @code{nnml} server. The default is
14644 @file{~/Mail/active}.
14646 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
14647 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
14648 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
14649 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups}.
14651 @item nnml-get-new-mail
14652 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
14653 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail. The default is
14656 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
14657 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
14658 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{nov} files. The
14659 default is @code{nil}.
14661 @item nnml-nov-file-name
14662 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
14663 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
14665 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
14666 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
14667 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
14669 @item nnml-marks-is-evil
14670 @vindex nnml-marks-is-evil
14671 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{marks} files. The
14672 default is @code{nil}.
14674 @item nnml-marks-file-name
14675 @vindex nnml-marks-file-name
14676 The name of the @dfn{marks} files. The default is @file{.marks}.
14678 @item nnml-use-compressed-files
14679 @vindex nnml-use-compressed-files
14680 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will allow using compressed message
14685 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
14686 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
14687 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
14688 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
14689 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
14690 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
14691 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
14696 @subsubsection MH Spool
14698 @cindex mh-e mail spool
14700 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
14701 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file or marks file.
14702 This makes @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower back end than @code{nnml},
14703 but it also makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
14705 Virtual server settings:
14708 @item nnmh-directory
14709 @vindex nnmh-directory
14710 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory. The
14711 default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
14714 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
14715 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
14716 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail. The default is
14720 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
14721 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
14722 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
14723 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
14724 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
14725 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
14726 to set this variable to @code{t}. The default is @code{nil}.
14731 @subsubsection Maildir
14735 @code{nnmaildir} stores mail in the maildir format, with each maildir
14736 corresponding to a group in Gnus. This format is documented here:
14737 @uref{http://cr.yp.to/proto/maildir.html} and here:
14738 @uref{http://www.qmail.org/man/man5/maildir.html}. nnmaildir also
14739 stores extra information in the @file{.nnmaildir/} directory within a
14742 Maildir format was designed to allow concurrent deliveries and
14743 reading, without needing locks. With other backends, you would have
14744 your mail delivered to a spool of some kind, and then you would
14745 configure Gnus to split mail from that spool into your groups. You
14746 can still do that with nnmaildir, but the more common configuration is
14747 to have your mail delivered directly to the maildirs that appear as
14750 nnmaildir is designed to be perfectly reliable: @kbd{C-g} will never
14751 corrupt its data in memory, and @code{SIGKILL} will never corrupt its
14752 data in the filesystem.
14754 nnmaildir stores article marks and NOV data in each maildir. So you
14755 can copy a whole maildir from one Gnus setup to another, and you will
14758 Virtual server settings:
14762 For each of your nnmaildir servers (it's very unlikely that you'd need
14763 more than one), you need to create a directory and populate it with
14764 maildirs or symlinks to maildirs (and nothing else; do not choose a
14765 directory already used for other purposes). Each maildir will be
14766 represented in Gnus as a newsgroup on that server; the filename of the
14767 symlink will be the name of the group. Any filenames in the directory
14768 starting with `.' are ignored. The directory is scanned when you
14769 first start Gnus, and each time you type @kbd{g} in the group buffer;
14770 if any maildirs have been removed or added, nnmaildir notices at these
14773 The value of the @code{directory} parameter should be a Lisp form
14774 which is processed by @code{eval} and @code{expand-file-name} to get
14775 the path of the directory for this server. The form is @code{eval}ed
14776 only when the server is opened; the resulting string is used until the
14777 server is closed. (If you don't know about forms and @code{eval},
14778 don't worry - a simple string will work.) This parameter is not
14779 optional; you must specify it. I don't recommend using
14780 @code{"~/Mail"} or a subdirectory of it; several other parts of Gnus
14781 use that directory by default for various things, and may get confused
14782 if nnmaildir uses it too. @code{"~/.nnmaildir"} is a typical value.
14784 @item target-prefix
14785 This should be a Lisp form which is processed by @code{eval} and
14786 @code{expand-file-name}. The form is @code{eval}ed only when the
14787 server is opened; the resulting string is used until the server is
14790 When you create a group on an nnmaildir server, the maildir is created
14791 with @code{target-prefix} prepended to its name, and a symlink
14792 pointing to that maildir is created, named with the plain group name.
14793 So if @code{directory} is @code{"~/.nnmaildir"} and
14794 @code{target-prefix} is @code{"../maildirs/"}, then when you create
14795 the group @code{foo}, nnmaildir will create
14796 @file{~/.nnmaildir/../maildirs/foo} as a maildir, and will create
14797 @file{~/.nnmaildir/foo} as a symlink pointing to
14798 @file{../maildirs/foo}.
14800 You can set @code{target-prefix} to a string without any slashes to
14801 create both maildirs and symlinks in the same @code{directory}; in
14802 this case, any maildirs found in @code{directory} whose names start
14803 with @code{target-prefix} will not be listed as groups (but the
14804 symlinks pointing to them will be).
14806 As a special case, if @code{target-prefix} is @code{""} (the default),
14807 then when you create a group, the maildir will be created in
14808 @code{directory} without a corresponding symlink. Beware that you
14809 cannot use @code{gnus-group-delete-group} on such groups without the
14810 @code{force} argument.
14812 @item directory-files
14813 This should be a function with the same interface as
14814 @code{directory-files} (such as @code{directory-files} itself). It is
14815 used to scan the server's @code{directory} for maildirs. This
14816 parameter is optional; the default is
14817 @code{nnheader-directory-files-safe} if
14818 @code{nnheader-directory-files-is-safe} is @code{nil}, and
14819 @code{directory-files} otherwise.
14820 (@code{nnheader-directory-files-is-safe} is checked only once when the
14821 server is opened; if you want to check it each time the directory is
14822 scanned, you'll have to provide your own function that does that.)
14825 If non-@code{nil}, then after scanning for new mail in the group
14826 maildirs themselves as usual, this server will also incorporate mail
14827 the conventional Gnus way, from @code{mail-sources} according to
14828 @code{nnmail-split-methods} or @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. The default
14829 value is @code{nil}.
14831 Do @emph{not} use the same maildir both in @code{mail-sources} and as
14832 an nnmaildir group. The results might happen to be useful, but that
14833 would be by chance, not by design, and the results might be different
14834 in the future. If your split rules create new groups, remember to
14835 supply a @code{create-directory} server parameter.
14838 @subsubsection Group parameters
14840 nnmaildir uses several group parameters. It's safe to ignore all
14841 this; the default behavior for nnmaildir is the same as the default
14842 behavior for other mail backends: articles are deleted after one week,
14843 etc. Except for the expiry parameters, all this functionality is
14844 unique to nnmaildir, so you can ignore it if you're just trying to
14845 duplicate the behavior you already have with another backend.
14847 If the value of any of these parameters is a vector, the first element
14848 is evaluated as a Lisp form and the result is used, rather than the
14849 original value. If the value is not a vector, the value itself is
14850 evaluated as a Lisp form. (This is why these parameters use names
14851 different from those of other, similar parameters supported by other
14852 backends: they have different, though similar, meanings.) (For
14853 numbers, strings, @code{nil}, and @code{t}, you can ignore the
14854 @code{eval} business again; for other values, remember to use an extra
14855 quote and wrap the value in a vector when appropriate.)
14859 An integer specifying the minimum age, in seconds, of an article before
14860 it will be expired, or the symbol @code{never} to specify that
14861 articles should never be expired. If this parameter is not set,
14862 nnmaildir falls back to the usual
14863 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait}(@code{-function}) variables (overridable by
14864 the @code{expiry-wait}(@code{-function}) group parameters. If you
14865 wanted a value of 3 days, you could use something like @code{[(* 3 24
14866 60 60)]}; nnmaildir will evaluate the form and use the result. An
14867 article's age is measured starting from the article file's
14868 modification time. Normally, this is the same as the article's
14869 delivery time, but editing an article makes it younger. Moving an
14870 article (other than via expiry) may also make an article younger.
14873 If this is set to a string (a full Gnus group name, like
14874 @code{"backend+server.address.string:group.name"}), and if it is not
14875 the name of the same group that the parameter belongs to, then
14876 articles will be moved to the specified group during expiry before
14877 being deleted. @emph{If this is set to an nnmaildir group, the
14878 article will be just as old in the destination group as it was in the
14879 source group.} So be careful with @code{expire-age} in the
14880 destination group. If this is set to the name of the same group that
14881 the parameter belongs to, then the article is not expired at all. If
14882 you use the vector form, the first element is evaluated once for each
14883 article. So that form can refer to
14884 @code{nnmaildir-article-file-name}, etc., to decide where to put the
14885 article. @emph{If this parameter is not set, nnmaildir does not fall
14886 back to the @code{expiry-target} group parameter or the
14887 @code{nnmail-expiry-target} variable.}
14890 If this is set to @code{t}, nnmaildir will treat the articles in this
14891 maildir as read-only. This means: articles are not renamed from
14892 @file{new/} into @file{cur/}; articles are only found in @file{new/},
14893 not @file{cur/}; articles are never deleted; articles cannot be
14894 edited. @file{new/} is expected to be a symlink to the @file{new/}
14895 directory of another maildir - e.g., a system-wide mailbox containing
14896 a mailing list of common interest. Everything in the maildir outside
14897 @file{new/} is @emph{not} treated as read-only, so for a shared
14898 mailbox, you do still need to set up your own maildir (or have write
14899 permission to the shared mailbox); your maildir just won't contain
14900 extra copies of the articles.
14902 @item directory-files
14903 A function with the same interface as @code{directory-files}. It is
14904 used to scan the directories in the maildir corresponding to this
14905 group to find articles. The default is the function specified by the
14906 server's @code{directory-files} parameter.
14908 @item distrust-Lines:
14909 If non-@code{nil}, nnmaildir will always count the lines of an
14910 article, rather than use the @code{Lines:} header field. If
14911 @code{nil}, the header field will be used if present.
14914 A list of mark symbols, such as
14915 @code{['(read expire)]}. Whenever Gnus asks nnmaildir for
14916 article marks, nnmaildir will say that all articles have these
14917 marks, regardless of whether the marks stored in the filesystem
14918 say so. This is a proof-of-concept feature that will probably be
14919 removed eventually; it ought to be done in Gnus proper, or
14920 abandoned if it's not worthwhile.
14923 A list of mark symbols, such as @code{['(tick expire)]}. Whenever
14924 Gnus asks nnmaildir for article marks, nnmaildir will say that no
14925 articles have these marks, regardless of whether the marks stored in
14926 the filesystem say so. @code{never-marks} overrides
14927 @code{always-marks}. This is a proof-of-concept feature that will
14928 probably be removed eventually; it ought to be done in Gnus proper, or
14929 abandoned if it's not worthwhile.
14931 @item nov-cache-size
14932 An integer specifying the size of the NOV memory cache. To speed
14933 things up, nnmaildir keeps NOV data in memory for a limited number of
14934 articles in each group. (This is probably not worthwhile, and will
14935 probably be removed in the future.) This parameter's value is noticed
14936 only the first time a group is seen after the server is opened - i.e.,
14937 when you first start Gnus, typically. The NOV cache is never resized
14938 until the server is closed and reopened. The default is an estimate
14939 of the number of articles that would be displayed in the summary
14940 buffer: a count of articles that are either marked with @code{tick} or
14941 not marked with @code{read}, plus a little extra.
14944 @subsubsection Article identification
14945 Articles are stored in the @file{cur/} subdirectory of each maildir.
14946 Each article file is named like @code{uniq:info}, where @code{uniq}
14947 contains no colons. nnmaildir ignores, but preserves, the
14948 @code{:info} part. (Other maildir readers typically use this part of
14949 the filename to store marks.) The @code{uniq} part uniquely
14950 identifies the article, and is used in various places in the
14951 @file{.nnmaildir/} subdirectory of the maildir to store information
14952 about the corresponding article. The full pathname of an article is
14953 available in the variable @code{nnmaildir-article-file-name} after you
14954 request the article in the summary buffer.
14956 @subsubsection NOV data
14957 An article identified by @code{uniq} has its NOV data (used to
14958 generate lines in the summary buffer) stored in
14959 @code{.nnmaildir/nov/uniq}. There is no
14960 @code{nnmaildir-generate-nov-databases} function. (There isn't much
14961 need for it - an article's NOV data is updated automatically when the
14962 article or @code{nnmail-extra-headers} has changed.) You can force
14963 nnmaildir to regenerate the NOV data for a single article simply by
14964 deleting the corresponding NOV file, but @emph{beware}: this will also
14965 cause nnmaildir to assign a new article number for this article, which
14966 may cause trouble with @code{seen} marks, the Agent, and the cache.
14968 @subsubsection Article marks
14969 An article identified by @code{uniq} is considered to have the mark
14970 @code{flag} when the file @file{.nnmaildir/marks/flag/uniq} exists.
14971 When Gnus asks nnmaildir for a group's marks, nnmaildir looks for such
14972 files and reports the set of marks it finds. When Gnus asks nnmaildir
14973 to store a new set of marks, nnmaildir creates and deletes the
14974 corresponding files as needed. (Actually, rather than create a new
14975 file for each mark, it just creates hard links to
14976 @file{.nnmaildir/markfile}, to save inodes.)
14978 You can invent new marks by creating a new directory in
14979 @file{.nnmaildir/marks/}. You can tar up a maildir and remove it from
14980 your server, untar it later, and keep your marks. You can add and
14981 remove marks yourself by creating and deleting mark files. If you do
14982 this while Gnus is running and your nnmaildir server is open, it's
14983 best to exit all summary buffers for nnmaildir groups and type @kbd{s}
14984 in the group buffer first, and to type @kbd{g} or @kbd{M-g} in the
14985 group buffer afterwards. Otherwise, Gnus might not pick up the
14986 changes, and might undo them.
14990 @subsubsection Mail Folders
14992 @cindex mbox folders
14993 @cindex mail folders
14995 @code{nnfolder} is a back end for storing each mail group in a separate
14996 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
14997 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
15000 @cindex self contained nnfolder servers
15002 When the marks file is used (which it is by default), @code{nnfolder}
15003 servers have the property that you may backup them using @code{tar} or
15004 similar, and later be able to restore them into Gnus (by adding the
15005 proper @code{nnfolder} server) and have all your marks be preserved.
15006 Marks for a group is usually stored in a file named as the mbox file
15007 with @code{.mrk} concatenated to it (but see
15008 @code{nnfolder-marks-file-suffix}) within the @code{nnfolder} directory.
15009 Individual @code{nnfolder} groups are also possible to backup, use
15010 @kbd{G m} to restore the group (after restoring the backup into the
15011 @code{nnfolder} directory).
15013 Virtual server settings:
15016 @item nnfolder-directory
15017 @vindex nnfolder-directory
15018 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
15019 The default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
15022 @item nnfolder-active-file
15023 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
15024 The name of the active file. The default is @file{~/Mail/active}.
15026 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
15027 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
15028 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
15029 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups}
15031 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
15032 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
15033 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail. The default
15036 @item nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
15037 @vindex nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
15038 @cindex backup files
15039 Hook run before saving the folders. Note that Emacs does the normal
15040 backup renaming of files even with the @code{nnfolder} buffers. If you
15041 wish to switch this off, you could say something like the following in
15042 your @file{.emacs} file:
15045 (defun turn-off-backup ()
15046 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
15048 (add-hook 'nnfolder-save-buffer-hook 'turn-off-backup)
15051 @item nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
15052 @vindex nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
15053 Hook run in a buffer narrowed to the message that is to be deleted.
15054 This function can be used to copy the message to somewhere else, or to
15055 extract some information from it before removing it.
15057 @item nnfolder-nov-is-evil
15058 @vindex nnfolder-nov-is-evil
15059 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{nov} files. The
15060 default is @code{nil}.
15062 @item nnfolder-nov-file-suffix
15063 @vindex nnfolder-nov-file-suffix
15064 The extension for @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.nov}.
15066 @item nnfolder-nov-directory
15067 @vindex nnfolder-nov-directory
15068 The directory where the @sc{nov} files should be stored. If
15069 @code{nil}, @code{nnfolder-directory} is used.
15071 @item nnfolder-marks-is-evil
15072 @vindex nnfolder-marks-is-evil
15073 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{marks} files. The
15074 default is @code{nil}.
15076 @item nnfolder-marks-file-suffix
15077 @vindex nnfolder-marks-file-suffix
15078 The extension for @sc{marks} files. The default is @file{.mrk}.
15080 @item nnfolder-marks-directory
15081 @vindex nnfolder-marks-directory
15082 The directory where the @sc{marks} files should be stored. If
15083 @code{nil}, @code{nnfolder-directory} is used.
15088 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
15089 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
15090 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
15091 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
15092 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
15093 @code{nnfolder-directory}. This only works if you use long file names,
15096 @node Comparing Mail Back Ends
15097 @subsubsection Comparing Mail Back Ends
15099 First, just for terminology, the @dfn{back end} is the common word for a
15100 low-level access method---a transport, if you will, by which something
15101 is acquired. The sense is that one's mail has to come from somewhere,
15102 and so selection of a suitable back end is required in order to get that
15103 mail within spitting distance of Gnus.
15105 The same concept exists for Usenet itself: Though access to articles is
15106 typically done by @sc{nntp} these days, once upon a midnight dreary, everyone
15107 in the world got at Usenet by running a reader on the machine where the
15108 articles lay (the machine which today we call an @sc{nntp} server), and
15109 access was by the reader stepping into the articles' directory spool
15110 area directly. One can still select between either the @code{nntp} or
15111 @code{nnspool} back ends, to select between these methods, if one happens
15112 actually to live on the server (or can see its spool directly, anyway,
15115 The goal in selecting a mail back end is to pick one which
15116 simultaneously represents a suitable way of dealing with the original
15117 format plus leaving mail in a form that is convenient to use in the
15118 future. Here are some high and low points on each:
15123 UNIX systems have historically had a single, very common, and well-
15124 defined format. All messages arrive in a single @dfn{spool file}, and
15125 they are delineated by a line whose regular expression matches
15126 @samp{^From_}. (My notational use of @samp{_} is to indicate a space,
15127 to make it clear in this instance that this is not the RFC-specified
15128 @samp{From:} header.) Because Emacs and therefore Gnus emanate
15129 historically from the Unix environment, it is simplest if one does not
15130 mess a great deal with the original mailbox format, so if one chooses
15131 this back end, Gnus' primary activity in getting mail from the real spool
15132 area to Gnus' preferred directory is simply to copy it, with no
15133 (appreciable) format change in the process. It is the ``dumbest'' way
15134 to move mail into availability in the Gnus environment. This makes it
15135 fast to move into place, but slow to parse, when Gnus has to look at
15140 Once upon a time, there was the DEC-10 and DEC-20, running operating
15141 systems called TOPS and related things, and the usual (only?) mail
15142 reading environment was a thing called Babyl. I don't know what format
15143 was used for mail landing on the system, but Babyl had its own internal
15144 format to which mail was converted, primarily involving creating a
15145 spool-file-like entity with a scheme for inserting Babyl-specific
15146 headers and status bits above the top of each message in the file.
15147 Rmail was Emacs' first mail reader, it was written by Richard Stallman,
15148 and Stallman came out of that TOPS/Babyl environment, so he wrote Rmail
15149 to understand the mail files folks already had in existence. Gnus (and
15150 VM, for that matter) continue to support this format because it's
15151 perceived as having some good qualities in those mailer-specific
15152 headers/status bits stuff. Rmail itself still exists as well, of
15153 course, and is still maintained by Stallman.
15155 Both of the above forms leave your mail in a single file on your
15156 file system, and they must parse that entire file each time you take a
15161 @code{nnml} is the back end which smells the most as though you were
15162 actually operating with an @code{nnspool}-accessed Usenet system. (In
15163 fact, I believe @code{nnml} actually derived from @code{nnspool} code,
15164 lo these years ago.) One's mail is taken from the original spool file,
15165 and is then cut up into individual message files, 1:1. It maintains a
15166 Usenet-style active file (analogous to what one finds in an INN- or
15167 CNews-based news system in (for instance) @file{/var/lib/news/active},
15168 or what is returned via the @samp{NNTP LIST} verb) and also creates
15169 @dfn{overview} files for efficient group entry, as has been defined for
15170 @sc{nntp} servers for some years now. It is slower in mail-splitting,
15171 due to the creation of lots of files, updates to the @code{nnml} active
15172 file, and additions to overview files on a per-message basis, but it is
15173 extremely fast on access because of what amounts to the indexing support
15174 provided by the active file and overviews.
15176 @code{nnml} costs @dfn{inodes} in a big way; that is, it soaks up the
15177 resource which defines available places in the file system to put new
15178 files. Sysadmins take a dim view of heavy inode occupation within
15179 tight, shared file systems. But if you live on a personal machine where
15180 the file system is your own and space is not at a premium, @code{nnml}
15183 It is also problematic using this back end if you are living in a
15184 FAT16-based Windows world, since much space will be wasted on all these
15189 The Rand MH mail-reading system has been around UNIX systems for a very
15190 long time; it operates by splitting one's spool file of messages into
15191 individual files, but with little or no indexing support -- @code{nnmh}
15192 is considered to be semantically equivalent to ``@code{nnml} without
15193 active file or overviews''. This is arguably the worst choice, because
15194 one gets the slowness of individual file creation married to the
15195 slowness of access parsing when learning what's new in one's groups.
15199 Basically the effect of @code{nnfolder} is @code{nnmbox} (the first
15200 method described above) on a per-group basis. That is, @code{nnmbox}
15201 itself puts @emph{all} one's mail in one file; @code{nnfolder} provides a
15202 little bit of optimization to this so that each of one's mail groups has
15203 a Unix mail box file. It's faster than @code{nnmbox} because each group
15204 can be parsed separately, and still provides the simple Unix mail box
15205 format requiring minimal effort in moving the mail around. In addition,
15206 it maintains an ``active'' file making it much faster for Gnus to figure
15207 out how many messages there are in each separate group.
15209 If you have groups that are expected to have a massive amount of
15210 messages, @code{nnfolder} is not the best choice, but if you receive
15211 only a moderate amount of mail, @code{nnfolder} is probably the most
15212 friendly mail back end all over.
15216 For configuring expiry and other things, @code{nnmaildir} uses
15217 incompatible group parameters, slightly different from those of other
15220 @code{nnmaildir} is largely similar to @code{nnml}, with some notable
15221 differences. Each message is stored in a separate file, but the
15222 filename is unrelated to the article number in Gnus. @code{nnmaildir}
15223 also stores the equivalent of @code{nnml}'s overview files in one file
15224 per article, so it uses about twice as many inodes as @code{nnml}. (Use
15225 @code{df -i} to see how plentiful your inode supply is.) If this slows
15226 you down or takes up very much space, consider switching to ReiserFS
15227 (@uref{http://www.namesys.com/}) or another non-block-structured
15230 Since maildirs don't require locking for delivery, the maildirs you use
15231 as groups can also be the maildirs your mail is directly delivered to.
15232 This means you can skip Gnus's mail splitting if your mail is already
15233 organized into different mailboxes during delivery. A @code{directory}
15234 entry in @code{mail-sources} would have a similar effect, but would
15235 require one set of mailboxes for spooling deliveries (in mbox format,
15236 thus damaging message bodies), and another set to be used as groups (in
15237 whatever format you like). A maildir has a built-in spool, in the
15238 @code{new/} subdirectory. Beware that currently, mail moved from
15239 @code{new/} to @code{cur/} instead of via mail splitting will not
15240 undergo treatment such as duplicate checking.
15242 @code{nnmaildir} stores article marks for a given group in the
15243 corresponding maildir, in a way designed so that it's easy to manipulate
15244 them from outside Gnus. You can tar up a maildir, unpack it somewhere
15245 else, and still have your marks. @code{nnml} also stores marks, but
15246 it's not as easy to work with them from outside Gnus as with
15249 @code{nnmaildir} uses a significant amount of memory to speed things up.
15250 (It keeps in memory some of the things that @code{nnml} stores in files
15251 and that @code{nnmh} repeatedly parses out of message files.) If this
15252 is a problem for you, you can set the @code{nov-cache-size} group
15253 parameter to something small (0 would probably not work, but 1 probably
15254 would) to make it use less memory. This caching will probably be
15255 removed in the future.
15257 Startup is likely to be slower with @code{nnmaildir} than with other
15258 back ends. Everything else is likely to be faster, depending in part
15259 on your file system.
15261 @code{nnmaildir} does not use @code{nnoo}, so you cannot use @code{nnoo}
15262 to write an @code{nnmaildir}-derived back end.
15267 @node Browsing the Web
15268 @section Browsing the Web
15270 @cindex browsing the web
15274 Web-based discussion forums are getting more and more popular. On many
15275 subjects, the web-based forums have become the most important forums,
15276 eclipsing the importance of mailing lists and news groups. The reason
15277 is easy to understand---they are friendly to new users; you just point
15278 and click, and there's the discussion. With mailing lists, you have to
15279 go through a cumbersome subscription procedure, and most people don't
15280 even know what a news group is.
15282 The problem with this scenario is that web browsers are not very good at
15283 being newsreaders. They do not keep track of what articles you've read;
15284 they do not allow you to score on subjects you're interested in; they do
15285 not allow off-line browsing; they require you to click around and drive
15286 you mad in the end.
15288 So---if web browsers suck at reading discussion forums, why not use Gnus
15291 Gnus has been getting a bit of a collection of back ends for providing
15292 interfaces to these sources.
15296 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
15297 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
15298 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
15299 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
15300 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
15301 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
15304 All the web sources require Emacs/w3 and the url library to work.
15306 The main caveat with all these web sources is that they probably won't
15307 work for a very long time. Gleaning information from the @sc{html} data
15308 is guesswork at best, and when the layout is altered, the Gnus back end
15309 will fail. If you have reasonably new versions of these back ends,
15310 though, you should be ok.
15312 One thing all these Web methods have in common is that the Web sources
15313 are often down, unavailable or just plain too slow to be fun. In those
15314 cases, it makes a lot of sense to let the Gnus Agent (@pxref{Gnus
15315 Unplugged}) handle downloading articles, and then you can read them at
15316 leisure from your local disk. No more World Wide Wait for you.
15318 @node Archiving Mail
15319 @subsection Archiving Mail
15320 @cindex archiving mail
15321 @cindex backup of mail
15323 Some of the back ends, notably @code{nnml}, @code{nnfolder}, and
15324 @code{nnmaildir}, now actually store the article marks with each group.
15325 For these servers, archiving and restoring a group while preserving
15326 marks is fairly simple.
15328 (Preserving the group level and group parameters as well still
15329 requires ritual dancing and sacrifices to the @file{.newsrc.eld} deity
15332 To archive an entire @code{nnml}, @code{nnfolder}, or @code{nnmaildir}
15333 server, take a recursive copy of the server directory. There is no need
15334 to shut down Gnus, so archiving may be invoked by @code{cron} or
15335 similar. You restore the data by restoring the directory tree, and
15336 adding a server definition pointing to that directory in Gnus. The
15337 @ref{Article Backlog}, @ref{Asynchronous Fetching} and other things
15338 might interfere with overwriting data, so you may want to shut down Gnus
15339 before you restore the data.
15341 It is also possible to archive individual @code{nnml},
15342 @code{nnfolder}, or @code{nnmaildir} groups, while preserving marks.
15343 For @code{nnml} or @code{nnmaildir}, you copy all files in the group's
15344 directory. For @code{nnfolder} you need to copy both the base folder
15345 file itself (@file{FOO}, say), and the marks file (@file{FOO.mrk} in
15346 this example). Restoring the group is done with @kbd{G m} from the Group
15347 buffer. The last step makes Gnus notice the new directory.
15348 @code{nnmaildir} notices the new directory automatically, so @kbd{G m}
15349 is unnecessary in that case.
15352 @subsection Web Searches
15357 @cindex Usenet searches
15358 @cindex searching the Usenet
15360 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
15361 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
15362 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
15363 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
15364 searches without having to use a browser.
15366 The @code{nnweb} back end allows an easy interface to the mighty search
15367 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
15368 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
15369 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
15370 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
15372 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
15373 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
15374 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
15375 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
15376 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
15377 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
15378 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
15379 engines (Google, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
15380 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
15381 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
15384 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
15385 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
15386 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
15387 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
15388 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
15389 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
15391 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
15392 to use @code{nnweb}.
15394 Virtual server variables:
15399 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
15400 are @code{google}, @code{dejanews}, and @code{gmane}. Note that
15401 @code{dejanews} is an alias to @code{google}.
15404 @vindex nnweb-search
15405 The search string to feed to the search engine.
15407 @item nnweb-max-hits
15408 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
15409 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
15412 @item nnweb-type-definition
15413 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
15414 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
15415 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
15420 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
15424 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
15427 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
15430 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
15434 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
15441 @subsection Slashdot
15445 Slashdot (@uref{http://slashdot.org/}) is a popular news site, with
15446 lively discussion following the news articles. @code{nnslashdot} will
15447 let you read this forum in a convenient manner.
15449 The easiest way to read this source is to put something like the
15450 following in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
15453 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
15454 '((nnslashdot "")))
15457 This will make Gnus query the @code{nnslashdot} back end for new comments
15458 and groups. The @kbd{F} command will subscribe each new news article as
15459 a new Gnus group, and you can read the comments by entering these
15460 groups. (Note that the default subscription method is to subscribe new
15461 groups as zombies. Other methods are available (@pxref{Subscription
15464 If you want to remove an old @code{nnslashdot} group, the @kbd{G DEL}
15465 command is the most handy tool (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
15467 When following up to @code{nnslashdot} comments (or posting new
15468 comments), some light @sc{html}izations will be performed. In
15469 particular, text quoted with @samp{> } will be quoted with
15470 @code{blockquote} instead, and signatures will have @code{br} added to
15471 the end of each line. Other than that, you can just write @sc{html}
15472 directly into the message buffer. Note that Slashdot filters out some
15475 The following variables can be altered to change its behavior:
15478 @item nnslashdot-threaded
15479 Whether @code{nnslashdot} should display threaded groups or not. The
15480 default is @code{t}. To be able to display threads, @code{nnslashdot}
15481 has to retrieve absolutely all comments in a group upon entry. If a
15482 threaded display is not required, @code{nnslashdot} will only retrieve
15483 the comments that are actually wanted by the user. Threading is nicer,
15484 but much, much slower than unthreaded.
15486 @item nnslashdot-login-name
15487 @vindex nnslashdot-login-name
15488 The login name to use when posting.
15490 @item nnslashdot-password
15491 @vindex nnslashdot-password
15492 The password to use when posting.
15494 @item nnslashdot-directory
15495 @vindex nnslashdot-directory
15496 Where @code{nnslashdot} will store its files. The default is
15497 @file{~/News/slashdot/}.
15499 @item nnslashdot-active-url
15500 @vindex nnslashdot-active-url
15501 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the information on
15502 news articles and comments. The default is
15503 @samp{http://slashdot.org/search.pl?section=&min=%d}.
15505 @item nnslashdot-comments-url
15506 @vindex nnslashdot-comments-url
15507 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch comments. The
15509 @samp{http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=%s&threshold=%d&commentsort=%d&mode=flat&startat=%d}.
15511 @item nnslashdot-article-url
15512 @vindex nnslashdot-article-url
15513 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the news article. The
15515 @samp{http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=%s&mode=nocomment}.
15517 @item nnslashdot-threshold
15518 @vindex nnslashdot-threshold
15519 The score threshold. The default is -1.
15521 @item nnslashdot-group-number
15522 @vindex nnslashdot-group-number
15523 The number of old groups, in addition to the ten latest, to keep
15524 updated. The default is 0.
15531 @subsection Ultimate
15533 @cindex Ultimate Bulletin Board
15535 The Ultimate Bulletin Board (@uref{http://www.ultimatebb.com/}) is
15536 probably the most popular Web bulletin board system used. It has a
15537 quite regular and nice interface, and it's possible to get the
15538 information Gnus needs to keep groups updated.
15540 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnultimate} is to say
15541 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnultimate RET
15542 http://www.tcj.com/messboard/ubbcgi/ RET}. (Substitute the @sc{url}
15543 (not including @samp{Ultimate.cgi} or the like at the end) for a forum
15544 you're interested in; there's quite a list of them on the Ultimate web
15545 site.) Then subscribe to the groups you're interested in from the
15546 server buffer, and read them from the group buffer.
15548 The following @code{nnultimate} variables can be altered:
15551 @item nnultimate-directory
15552 @vindex nnultimate-directory
15553 The directory where @code{nnultimate} stores its files. The default is
15554 @file{~/News/ultimate/}.
15559 @subsection Web Archive
15561 @cindex Web Archive
15563 Some mailing lists only have archives on Web servers, such as
15564 @uref{http://www.egroups.com/} and
15565 @uref{http://www.mail-archive.com/}. It has a quite regular and nice
15566 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
15569 @findex gnus-group-make-warchive-group
15570 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnwarchive} is to say
15571 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{M-x
15572 gnus-group-make-warchive-group RET an_egroup RET egroups RET
15573 www.egroups.com RET your@@email.address RET}. (Substitute the
15574 @sc{an_egroup} with the mailing list you subscribed, the
15575 @sc{your@@email.address} with your email address.), or to browse the
15576 back end by @kbd{B nnwarchive RET mail-archive RET}.
15578 The following @code{nnwarchive} variables can be altered:
15581 @item nnwarchive-directory
15582 @vindex nnwarchive-directory
15583 The directory where @code{nnwarchive} stores its files. The default is
15584 @file{~/News/warchive/}.
15586 @item nnwarchive-login
15587 @vindex nnwarchive-login
15588 The account name on the web server.
15590 @item nnwarchive-passwd
15591 @vindex nnwarchive-passwd
15592 The password for your account on the web server.
15600 Some sites have RDF site summary (RSS)
15601 @uref{http://purl.org/rss/1.0/spec}. It has a quite regular and nice
15602 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
15605 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnrss} is to say something
15606 like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnrss RET RET}, then
15609 The following @code{nnrss} variables can be altered:
15612 @item nnrss-directory
15613 @vindex nnrss-directory
15614 The directory where @code{nnrss} stores its files. The default is
15615 @file{~/News/rss/}.
15619 The following code may be helpful, if you want to show the description in
15620 the summary buffer.
15623 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-description-field)
15624 (setq gnus-summary-line-format "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-15,15f%]%) %s%uX\n")
15626 (defun gnus-user-format-function-X (header)
15628 (assq nnrss-description-field (mail-header-extra header))))
15629 (if descr (concat "\n\t" (cdr descr)) "")))
15632 The following code may be useful to open an nnrss url directly from the
15635 (require 'browse-url)
15637 (defun browse-nnrss-url( arg )
15639 (let ((url (assq nnrss-url-field
15642 (assq (gnus-summary-article-number)
15643 gnus-newsgroup-data))))))
15646 (browse-url (cdr url))
15647 (gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward 1))
15648 (gnus-summary-scroll-up arg))))
15650 (eval-after-load "gnus"
15651 #'(define-key gnus-summary-mode-map
15652 (kbd "<RET>") 'browse-nnrss-url))
15653 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-url-field)
15656 @node Customizing w3
15657 @subsection Customizing w3
15663 Gnus uses the url library to fetch web pages and Emacs/w3 to display web
15664 pages. Emacs/w3 is documented in its own manual, but there are some
15665 things that may be more relevant for Gnus users.
15667 For instance, a common question is how to make Emacs/w3 follow links
15668 using the @code{browse-url} functions (which will call some external web
15669 browser like Netscape). Here's one way:
15672 (eval-after-load "w3"
15674 (fset 'w3-fetch-orig (symbol-function 'w3-fetch))
15675 (defun w3-fetch (&optional url target)
15676 (interactive (list (w3-read-url-with-default)))
15677 (if (eq major-mode 'gnus-article-mode)
15679 (w3-fetch-orig url target)))))
15682 Put that in your @file{.emacs} file, and hitting links in w3-rendered
15683 @sc{html} in the Gnus article buffers will use @code{browse-url} to
15692 @sc{imap} is a network protocol for reading mail (or news, or @dots{}),
15693 think of it as a modernized @sc{nntp}. Connecting to a @sc{imap}
15694 server is much similar to connecting to a news server, you just
15695 specify the network address of the server.
15697 @sc{imap} has two properties. First, @sc{imap} can do everything that
15698 POP can, it can hence be viewed as a POP++. Secondly, @sc{imap} is a
15699 mail storage protocol, similar to @sc{nntp} being a news storage
15700 protocol -- however, @sc{imap} offers more features than @sc{nntp}
15701 because news is more or less read-only whereas mail is read-write.
15703 If you want to use @sc{imap} as a POP++, use an imap entry in
15704 @code{mail-sources}. With this, Gnus will fetch mails from the
15705 @sc{imap} server and store them on the local disk. This is not the
15706 usage described in this section--@xref{Mail Sources}.
15708 If you want to use @sc{imap} as a mail storage protocol, use an nnimap
15709 entry in @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods}. With this, Gnus will
15710 manipulate mails stored on the @sc{imap} server. This is the kind of
15711 usage explained in this section.
15713 A server configuration in @file{~/.gnus.el} with a few @sc{imap} servers
15714 might look something like the following. (Note that for TLS/SSL, you
15715 need external programs and libraries, see below.)
15718 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
15719 '((nnimap "simpleserver") ; no special configuration
15720 ; perhaps a ssh port forwarded server:
15722 (nnimap-address "localhost")
15723 (nnimap-server-port 1430))
15724 ; a UW server running on localhost
15726 (nnimap-server-port 143)
15727 (nnimap-address "localhost")
15728 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "mail/*")))
15729 ; anonymous public cyrus server:
15730 (nnimap "cyrus.andrew.cmu.edu"
15731 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous)
15732 (nnimap-list-pattern "archive.*")
15733 (nnimap-stream network))
15734 ; a ssl server on a non-standard port:
15736 (nnimap-address "vic20.somewhere.com")
15737 (nnimap-server-port 9930)
15738 (nnimap-stream ssl))))
15741 After defining the new server, you can subscribe to groups on the
15742 server using normal Gnus commands such as @kbd{U} in the Group Buffer
15743 (@pxref{Subscription Commands}) or via the Server Buffer
15744 (@pxref{Server Buffer}).
15746 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nnimap}
15751 @item nnimap-address
15752 @vindex nnimap-address
15754 The address of the remote @sc{imap} server. Defaults to the virtual
15755 server name if not specified.
15757 @item nnimap-server-port
15758 @vindex nnimap-server-port
15759 Port on server to contact. Defaults to port 143, or 993 for TLS/SSL.
15761 Note that this should be an integer, example server specification:
15764 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
15765 (nnimap-server-port 4711))
15768 @item nnimap-list-pattern
15769 @vindex nnimap-list-pattern
15770 String or list of strings of mailboxes to limit available groups to.
15771 This is used when the server has very many mailboxes and you're only
15772 interested in a few -- some servers export your home directory via
15773 @sc{imap}, you'll probably want to limit the mailboxes to those in
15774 @file{~/Mail/*} then.
15776 The string can also be a cons of REFERENCE and the string as above, what
15777 REFERENCE is used for is server specific, but on the University of
15778 Washington server it's a directory that will be concatenated with the
15781 Example server specification:
15784 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
15785 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "Mail/*" "alt.sex.*"
15786 ("~friend/Mail/" . "list/*"))))
15789 @item nnimap-stream
15790 @vindex nnimap-stream
15791 The type of stream used to connect to your server. By default, nnimap
15792 will detect and automatically use all of the below, with the exception
15793 of TLS/SSL. (@sc{imap} over TLS/SSL is being replaced by STARTTLS, which
15794 can be automatically detected, but it's not widely deployed yet.)
15796 Example server specification:
15799 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
15800 (nnimap-stream ssl))
15803 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-stream} is a symbol!
15807 @dfn{gssapi:} Connect with GSSAPI (usually Kerberos 5). Requires the
15808 @samp{gsasl} or @samp{imtest} program.
15810 @dfn{kerberos4:} Connect with Kerberos 4. Requires the @samp{imtest} program.
15812 @dfn{starttls:} Connect via the STARTTLS extension (similar to
15813 TLS/SSL). Requires the external library @samp{starttls.el} and program
15816 @dfn{tls:} Connect through TLS. Requires GNUTLS (the program
15817 @samp{gnutls-cli}).
15819 @dfn{ssl:} Connect through SSL. Requires OpenSSL (the program
15820 @samp{openssl}) or SSLeay (@samp{s_client}).
15822 @dfn{shell:} Use a shell command to start @sc{imap} connection.
15824 @dfn{network:} Plain, TCP/IP network connection.
15827 @vindex imap-kerberos4-program
15828 The @samp{imtest} program is shipped with Cyrus IMAPD. If you're
15829 using @samp{imtest} from Cyrus IMAPD < 2.0.14 (which includes version
15830 1.5.x and 1.6.x) you need to frob @code{imap-process-connection-type}
15831 to make @code{imap.el} use a pty instead of a pipe when communicating
15832 with @samp{imtest}. You will then suffer from a line length
15833 restrictions on @sc{imap} commands, which might make Gnus seem to hang
15834 indefinitely if you have many articles in a mailbox. The variable
15835 @code{imap-kerberos4-program} contain parameters to pass to the imtest
15838 For TLS connection, the @code{gnutls-cli} program from GNUTLS is
15839 needed. It is available from
15840 @uref{http://www.gnu.org/software/gnutls/}.
15842 @vindex imap-gssapi-program
15843 This parameter specifies a list of command lines that invoke a GSSAPI
15844 authenticated IMAP stream in a subshell. They are tried sequentially
15845 until a connection is made, or the list has been exhausted. By
15846 default, @samp{gsasl} from GNU SASL, available from
15847 @uref{http://www.gnu.org/software/gsasl/}, and the @samp{imtest}
15848 program from Cyrus IMAPD (see @code{imap-kerberos4-program}), are
15851 @vindex imap-ssl-program
15852 For SSL connections, the OpenSSL program is available from
15853 @uref{http://www.openssl.org/}. OpenSSL was formerly known as SSLeay,
15854 and nnimap support it too - although the most recent versions of
15855 SSLeay, 0.9.x, are known to have serious bugs making it
15856 useless. Earlier versions, especially 0.8.x, of SSLeay are known to
15857 work. The variable @code{imap-ssl-program} contain parameters to pass
15860 @vindex imap-shell-program
15861 @vindex imap-shell-host
15862 For @sc{imap} connections using the @code{shell} stream, the variable
15863 @code{imap-shell-program} specify what program to call.
15865 @item nnimap-authenticator
15866 @vindex nnimap-authenticator
15868 The authenticator used to connect to the server. By default, nnimap
15869 will use the most secure authenticator your server is capable of.
15871 Example server specification:
15874 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
15875 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous))
15878 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-authenticator} is a symbol!
15882 @dfn{gssapi:} GSSAPI (usually kerberos 5) authentication. Requires
15883 external program @code{gsasl} or @code{imtest}.
15885 @dfn{kerberos4:} Kerberos 4 authentication. Requires external program
15888 @dfn{digest-md5:} Encrypted username/password via DIGEST-MD5. Requires
15889 external library @code{digest-md5.el}.
15891 @dfn{cram-md5:} Encrypted username/password via CRAM-MD5.
15893 @dfn{login:} Plain-text username/password via LOGIN.
15895 @dfn{anonymous:} Login as `anonymous', supplying your email address as password.
15898 @item nnimap-expunge-on-close
15900 @vindex nnimap-expunge-on-close
15901 Unlike Parmenides the @sc{imap} designers has decided that things that
15902 doesn't exist actually does exist. More specifically, @sc{imap} has
15903 this concept of marking articles @code{Deleted} which doesn't actually
15904 delete them, and this (marking them @code{Deleted}, that is) is what
15905 nnimap does when you delete a article in Gnus (with @kbd{B DEL} or
15908 Since the articles aren't really removed when we mark them with the
15909 @code{Deleted} flag we'll need a way to actually delete them. Feel like
15910 running in circles yet?
15912 Traditionally, nnimap has removed all articles marked as @code{Deleted}
15913 when closing a mailbox but this is now configurable by this server
15916 The possible options are:
15921 The default behavior, delete all articles marked as ``Deleted'' when
15924 Never actually delete articles. Currently there is no way of showing
15925 the articles marked for deletion in nnimap, but other @sc{imap} clients
15926 may allow you to do this. If you ever want to run the EXPUNGE command
15927 manually, @xref{Expunging mailboxes}.
15929 When closing mailboxes, nnimap will ask if you wish to expunge deleted
15934 @item nnimap-importantize-dormant
15935 @vindex nnimap-importantize-dormant
15937 If non-@code{nil} (the default), marks dormant articles as ticked (as
15938 well), for other @sc{imap} clients. Within Gnus, dormant articles will
15939 naturally still (only) be marked as dormant. This is to make dormant
15940 articles stand out, just like ticked articles, in other @sc{imap}
15941 clients. (In other words, Gnus has two ``Tick'' marks and @sc{imap}
15944 Probably the only reason for frobing this would be if you're trying
15945 enable per-user persistant dormant flags, using something like:
15948 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-flag-alist)
15949 (format "gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
15950 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-predicate-alist)
15951 (format "KEYWORD gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
15954 In this case, you would not want the per-user dormant flag showing up
15955 as ticked for other users.
15957 @item nnimap-expunge-search-string
15959 @vindex nnimap-expunge-search-string
15961 This variable contain the @sc{imap} search command sent to server when
15962 searching for articles eligible for expiring. The default is
15963 @code{"UID %s NOT SINCE %s"}, where the first @code{%s} is replaced by
15964 UID set and the second @code{%s} is replaced by a date.
15966 Probably the only useful value to change this to is
15967 @code{"UID %s NOT SENTSINCE %s"}, which makes nnimap use the Date: in
15968 messages instead of the internal article date. See section 6.4.4 of
15969 RFC 2060 for more information on valid strings.
15971 @item nnimap-authinfo-file
15972 @vindex nnimap-authinfo-file
15974 A file containing credentials used to log in on servers. The format is
15975 (almost) the same as the @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file. See the
15976 variable @code{nntp-authinfo-file} for exact syntax; also see
15982 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
15983 * Expiring in IMAP:: Expiring mail with nnimap.
15984 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
15985 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a ``compress mailbox'' button.
15986 * A note on namespaces:: How to (not) use IMAP namespace in Gnus.
15991 @node Splitting in IMAP
15992 @subsection Splitting in IMAP
15993 @cindex splitting imap mail
15995 Splitting is something Gnus users has loved and used for years, and now
15996 the rest of the world is catching up. Yeah, dream on, not many
15997 @sc{imap} server has server side splitting and those that have splitting
15998 seem to use some non-standard protocol. This means that @sc{imap}
15999 support for Gnus has to do it's own splitting.
16003 Here are the variables of interest:
16007 @item nnimap-split-crosspost
16008 @cindex splitting, crosspost
16010 @vindex nnimap-split-crosspost
16012 If non-@code{nil}, do crossposting if several split methods match the
16013 mail. If @code{nil}, the first match in @code{nnimap-split-rule}
16014 found will be used.
16016 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-crosspost}.
16018 @item nnimap-split-inbox
16019 @cindex splitting, inbox
16021 @vindex nnimap-split-inbox
16023 A string or a list of strings that gives the name(s) of @sc{imap}
16024 mailboxes to split from. Defaults to @code{nil}, which means that
16025 splitting is disabled!
16028 (setq nnimap-split-inbox
16029 '("INBOX" ("~/friend/Mail" . "lists/*") "lists.imap"))
16032 No nnmail equivalent.
16034 @item nnimap-split-rule
16035 @cindex Splitting, rules
16036 @vindex nnimap-split-rule
16038 New mail found in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be split according to
16041 This variable contains a list of lists, where the first element in the
16042 sublist gives the name of the @sc{imap} mailbox to move articles
16043 matching the regexp in the second element in the sublist. Got that?
16044 Neither did I, we need examples.
16047 (setq nnimap-split-rule
16049 "^Sender: owner-nnimap@@vic20.globalcom.se")
16050 ("INBOX.junk" "^Subject:.*MAKE MONEY")
16051 ("INBOX.private" "")))
16054 This will put all articles from the nnimap mailing list into mailbox
16055 INBOX.nnimap, all articles containing MAKE MONEY in the Subject: line
16056 into INBOX.junk and everything else in INBOX.private.
16058 The first string may contain `\\1' forms, like the ones used by
16059 replace-match to insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For
16063 ("INBOX.lists.\\1" "^Sender: owner-\\([a-z-]+\\)@@")
16066 The first element can also be the symbol @code{junk} to indicate that
16067 matching messages should simply be deleted. Use with care.
16069 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
16070 called with the first element of the rule as the argument, in a buffer
16071 containing the headers of the article. It should return a
16072 non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the mail belongs in that group.
16074 Nnmail users might recollect that the last regexp had to be empty to
16075 match all articles (like in the example above). This is not required in
16076 nnimap. Articles not matching any of the regexps will not be moved out
16077 of your inbox. (This might affect performance if you keep lots of
16078 unread articles in your inbox, since the splitting code would go over
16079 them every time you fetch new mail.)
16081 These rules are processed from the beginning of the alist toward the
16082 end. The first rule to make a match will ``win'', unless you have
16083 crossposting enabled. In that case, all matching rules will ``win''.
16085 This variable can also have a function as its value, the function will
16086 be called with the headers narrowed and should return a group where it
16087 thinks the article should be split to. See @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
16089 The splitting code tries to create mailboxes if it needs to.
16091 To allow for different split rules on different virtual servers, and
16092 even different split rules in different inboxes on the same server,
16093 the syntax of this variable have been extended along the lines of:
16096 (setq nnimap-split-rule
16097 '(("my1server" (".*" (("ding" "ding@@gnus.org")
16098 ("junk" "From:.*Simon")))
16099 ("my2server" ("INBOX" nnimap-split-fancy))
16100 ("my[34]server" (".*" (("private" "To:.*Simon")
16101 ("junk" my-junk-func)))))
16104 The virtual server name is in fact a regexp, so that the same rules
16105 may apply to several servers. In the example, the servers
16106 @code{my3server} and @code{my4server} both use the same rules.
16107 Similarly, the inbox string is also a regexp. The actual splitting
16108 rules are as before, either a function, or a list with group/regexp or
16109 group/function elements.
16111 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
16113 @item nnimap-split-predicate
16115 @vindex nnimap-split-predicate
16117 Mail matching this predicate in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be
16118 split, it is a string and the default is @samp{UNSEEN UNDELETED}.
16120 This might be useful if you use another @sc{imap} client to read mail in
16121 your inbox but would like Gnus to split all articles in the inbox
16122 regardless of readedness. Then you might change this to
16125 @item nnimap-split-fancy
16126 @cindex splitting, fancy
16127 @findex nnimap-split-fancy
16128 @vindex nnimap-split-fancy
16130 It's possible to set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
16131 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} if you want to use fancy
16132 splitting. @xref{Fancy Mail Splitting}.
16134 However, to be able to have different fancy split rules for nnmail and
16135 nnimap back ends you can set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
16136 @code{nnimap-split-fancy} and define the nnimap specific fancy split
16137 rule in @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
16142 (setq nnimap-split-rule 'nnimap-split-fancy
16143 nnimap-split-fancy ...)
16146 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-fancy}.
16148 @item nnimap-split-download-body
16149 @findex nnimap-split-download-body
16150 @vindex nnimap-split-download-body
16152 Set to non-@code{nil} to download entire articles during splitting.
16153 This is generally not required, and will slow things down
16154 considerably. You may need it if you want to use an advanced
16155 splitting function that analyses the body to split the article.
16159 @node Expiring in IMAP
16160 @subsection Expiring in IMAP
16161 @cindex expiring imap mail
16163 Even though @code{nnimap} is not a proper @code{nnmail} derived back
16164 end, it supports most features in regular expiring (@pxref{Expiring
16165 Mail}). Unlike splitting in IMAP (@pxref{Splitting in IMAP}) it do
16166 not clone the @code{nnmail} variables (i.e., creating
16167 @var{nnimap-expiry-wait}) but reuse the @code{nnmail} variables. What
16168 follows below are the variables used by the @code{nnimap} expiry
16171 A note on how the expire mark is stored on the @sc{imap} server is
16172 appropriate here as well. The expire mark is translated into a
16173 @code{imap} client specific mark, @code{gnus-expire}, and stored on the
16174 message. This means that likely only Gnus will understand and treat
16175 the @code{gnus-expire} mark properly, although other clients may allow
16176 you to view client specific flags on the message. It also means that
16177 your server must support permanent storage of client specific flags on
16178 messages. Most do, fortunately.
16182 @item nnmail-expiry-wait
16183 @item nnmail-expiry-wait-function
16185 These variables are fully supported. The expire value can be a
16186 number, the symbol @code{immediate} or @code{never}.
16188 @item nnmail-expiry-target
16190 This variable is supported, and internally implemented by calling the
16191 @code{nnmail} functions that handle this. It contains an optimization
16192 that if the destination is a IMAP group on the same server, the
16193 article is copied instead of appended (that is, uploaded again).
16197 @node Editing IMAP ACLs
16198 @subsection Editing IMAP ACLs
16199 @cindex editing imap acls
16200 @cindex Access Control Lists
16201 @cindex Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
16203 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-edit-acl
16205 ACL stands for Access Control List. ACLs are used in @sc{imap} for
16206 limiting (or enabling) other users access to your mail boxes. Not all
16207 @sc{imap} servers support this, this function will give an error if it
16210 To edit a ACL for a mailbox, type @kbd{G l}
16211 (@code{gnus-group-edit-nnimap-acl}) and you'll be presented with a ACL
16212 editing window with detailed instructions.
16214 Some possible uses:
16218 Giving ``anyone'' the ``lrs'' rights (lookup, read, keep seen/unseen flags)
16219 on your mailing list mailboxes enables other users on the same server to
16220 follow the list without subscribing to it.
16222 At least with the Cyrus server, you are required to give the user
16223 ``anyone'' posting ("p") capabilities to have ``plussing'' work (that is,
16224 mail sent to user+mailbox@@domain ending up in the @sc{imap} mailbox
16228 @node Expunging mailboxes
16229 @subsection Expunging mailboxes
16233 @cindex Manual expunging
16235 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-expunge
16237 If you're using the @code{never} setting of @code{nnimap-expunge-on-close},
16238 you may want the option of expunging all deleted articles in a mailbox
16239 manually. This is exactly what @kbd{G x} does.
16241 Currently there is no way of showing deleted articles, you can just
16244 @node A note on namespaces
16245 @subsection A note on namespaces
16246 @cindex IMAP namespace
16249 The IMAP protocol has a concept called namespaces, described by the
16250 following text in the RFC:
16253 5.1.2. Mailbox Namespace Naming Convention
16255 By convention, the first hierarchical element of any mailbox name
16256 which begins with "#" identifies the "namespace" of the remainder of
16257 the name. This makes it possible to disambiguate between different
16258 types of mailbox stores, each of which have their own namespaces.
16260 For example, implementations which offer access to USENET
16261 newsgroups MAY use the "#news" namespace to partition the USENET
16262 newsgroup namespace from that of other mailboxes. Thus, the
16263 comp.mail.misc newsgroup would have an mailbox name of
16264 "#news.comp.mail.misc", and the name "comp.mail.misc" could refer
16265 to a different object (e.g. a user's private mailbox).
16268 While there is nothing in this text that warrants concern for the IMAP
16269 implementation in Gnus, some servers use namespace prefixes in a way
16270 that does not work with how Gnus uses mailbox names.
16272 Specifically, University of Washington's IMAP server uses mailbox
16273 names like @code{#driver.mbx/read-mail} which are valid only in the
16274 @sc{create} and @sc{append} commands. After the mailbox is created
16275 (or a messages is appended to a mailbox), it must be accessed without
16276 the namespace prefix, i.e. @code{read-mail}. Since Gnus do not make it
16277 possible for the user to guarantee that user entered mailbox names
16278 will only be used with the CREATE and APPEND commands, you should
16279 simply not use the namespace prefixed mailbox names in Gnus.
16281 See the UoW @sc{imapd} documentation for the @code{#driver.*/} prefix
16282 for more information on how to use the prefixes. They are a power
16283 tool and should be used only if you are sure what the effects are.
16285 @node Other Sources
16286 @section Other Sources
16288 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
16289 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
16293 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
16294 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
16295 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
16296 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
16297 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
16301 @node Directory Groups
16302 @subsection Directory Groups
16304 @cindex directory groups
16306 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
16307 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
16310 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
16311 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
16312 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
16313 back end to read directories. Big deal.
16315 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
16316 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
16317 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
16318 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
16319 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
16321 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
16323 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' back end---you can't delete or expire
16324 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
16325 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
16326 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
16329 @node Anything Groups
16330 @subsection Anything Groups
16333 From the @code{nndir} back end (which reads a single spool-like
16334 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
16335 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
16338 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
16339 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
16340 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
16341 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're forgetting.
16342 @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it snoops each
16343 file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e., the first
16344 few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head. If this is
16345 just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source file),
16346 @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It will use
16347 file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
16350 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
16351 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
16352 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
16353 in the article buffer, just as usual.
16355 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
16356 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
16357 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
16358 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
16360 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
16361 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
16362 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
16363 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
16364 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
16365 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
16366 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
16367 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
16372 @item nneething-map-file-directory
16373 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
16374 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
16375 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
16377 @item nneething-exclude-files
16378 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
16379 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
16380 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
16382 @item nneething-include-files
16383 @vindex nneething-include-files
16384 Regexp saying what files to include in the group. If this variable is
16385 non-@code{nil}, only files matching this regexp will be included.
16387 @item nneething-map-file
16388 @vindex nneething-map-file
16389 Name of the map files.
16393 @node Document Groups
16394 @subsection Document Groups
16396 @cindex documentation group
16399 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
16400 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
16407 The Babyl (Rmail) mail box.
16412 The standard Unix mbox file.
16414 @cindex MMDF mail box
16416 The MMDF mail box format.
16419 Several news articles appended into a file.
16422 @cindex rnews batch files
16423 The rnews batch transport format.
16424 @cindex forwarded messages
16427 Forwarded articles.
16430 Netscape mail boxes.
16433 @sc{mime} multipart messages.
16435 @item standard-digest
16436 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
16439 A @sc{mime} digest of messages.
16441 @item lanl-gov-announce
16442 Announcement messages from LANL Gov Announce.
16444 @item rfc822-forward
16445 A message forwarded according to RFC822.
16448 The Outlook mail box.
16451 The Outlook Express dbx mail box.
16454 A bounce message from the Exim MTA.
16457 A message forwarded according to informal rules.
16460 An RFC934-forwarded message.
16466 A digest of Clarinet brief news items.
16469 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
16475 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
16476 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
16477 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
16480 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
16481 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
16482 group. And that's it.
16484 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
16485 new & spiffy Gnus mail back end, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
16486 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
16487 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
16488 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
16489 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
16490 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
16491 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
16492 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
16493 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
16495 Virtual server variables:
16498 @item nndoc-article-type
16499 @vindex nndoc-article-type
16500 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
16501 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
16502 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts}, @code{standard-digest},
16503 @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs}, @code{nsmail}, @code{outlook},
16504 @code{oe-dbx}, @code{mailman}, and @code{mail-in-mail} or @code{guess}.
16506 @item nndoc-post-type
16507 @vindex nndoc-post-type
16508 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
16509 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
16514 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
16518 @node Document Server Internals
16519 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
16521 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
16522 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
16523 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
16524 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
16526 First, here's an example document type definition:
16530 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
16531 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
16534 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
16535 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
16536 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
16537 types can be defined with very few settings:
16540 @item first-article
16541 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
16542 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
16545 @item article-begin
16546 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
16547 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
16549 @item head-begin-function
16550 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
16553 @item nndoc-head-begin
16554 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
16557 @item nndoc-head-end
16558 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
16559 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
16561 @item body-begin-function
16562 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
16566 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
16569 @item body-end-function
16570 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
16574 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
16577 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
16578 regexp will be totally ignored.
16582 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
16583 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
16584 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
16585 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
16586 something that's palatable for Gnus:
16589 @item prepare-body-function
16590 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
16591 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
16592 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
16594 @item article-transform-function
16595 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
16596 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
16597 body of the article.
16599 @item generate-head-function
16600 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
16601 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
16602 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
16603 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
16607 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
16612 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
16613 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
16614 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
16615 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
16616 (head-end . "^ ?$")
16617 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
16618 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
16619 (subtype digest guess))
16622 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
16623 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
16624 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
16625 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
16626 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
16628 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
16629 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first
16630 is the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says
16631 where in the document type definition alist to put this definition.
16632 The alist is traversed sequentially, and @code{nndoc-TYPE-type-p} is
16633 called for a given type @code{TYPE}. So @code{nndoc-mmdf-type-p} is
16634 called to see whether a document is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on.
16635 These type predicates should return @code{nil} if the document is not
16636 of the correct type; @code{t} if it is of the correct type; and a
16637 number if the document might be of the correct type. A high number
16638 means high probability; a low number means low probability with
16639 @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
16647 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
16648 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
16649 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
16651 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
16652 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
16653 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
16656 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something that's a bit
16657 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
16658 that interested in doing things properly.
16660 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
16661 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
16664 First some terminology:
16669 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
16670 get news and/or mail from.
16673 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
16674 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
16677 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
16681 @item message packets
16682 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
16683 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
16684 default, where @var{x} is a number.
16686 @item response packets
16687 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
16688 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
16689 default, where @var{x} is a number.
16699 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
16700 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
16701 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
16702 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
16705 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
16708 You put the packet in your home directory.
16711 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} back end as
16712 the native or secondary server.
16715 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
16716 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
16719 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
16723 You transfer this packet to the server.
16726 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
16729 You then repeat until you die.
16733 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
16734 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
16737 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
16738 * SOUP Groups:: A back end for reading @sc{soup} packets.
16739 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
16743 @node SOUP Commands
16744 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
16746 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
16750 @kindex G s b (Group)
16751 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
16752 Pack all unread articles in the current group
16753 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
16754 process/prefix convention.
16757 @kindex G s w (Group)
16758 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
16759 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
16762 @kindex G s s (Group)
16763 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
16764 Send all replies from the replies packet
16765 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
16768 @kindex G s p (Group)
16769 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
16770 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
16773 @kindex G s r (Group)
16774 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
16775 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
16778 @kindex O s (Summary)
16779 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
16780 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
16781 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
16782 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
16787 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
16792 @item gnus-soup-directory
16793 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
16794 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
16795 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
16797 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
16798 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
16799 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
16800 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
16802 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
16803 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
16804 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
16805 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
16807 @item gnus-soup-packer
16808 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
16809 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
16810 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
16812 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
16813 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
16814 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
16815 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
16817 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
16818 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
16819 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
16821 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
16822 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
16823 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
16824 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
16830 @subsubsection SOUP Groups
16833 @code{nnsoup} is the back end for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
16834 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
16835 you can read them at leisure.
16837 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
16841 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
16842 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
16843 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
16844 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
16846 @item nnsoup-directory
16847 @vindex nnsoup-directory
16848 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
16849 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
16851 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
16852 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
16853 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
16854 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/}.
16856 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
16857 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
16858 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
16859 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
16860 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
16862 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
16863 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
16864 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
16865 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
16867 @item nnsoup-active-file
16868 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
16869 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
16870 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
16871 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
16872 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
16874 @item nnsoup-packer
16875 @vindex nnsoup-packer
16876 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
16877 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
16879 @item nnsoup-unpacker
16880 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
16881 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
16882 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
16884 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
16885 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
16886 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
16889 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
16890 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
16891 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
16894 @item nnsoup-always-save
16895 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
16896 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
16902 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
16904 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
16905 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
16906 more for that to happen.
16908 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
16909 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
16910 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
16913 In specific, this is what it does:
16916 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
16917 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
16920 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
16921 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
16922 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
16925 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
16926 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
16927 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
16930 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
16931 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
16932 The @code{nngateway} back end provides the interface.
16934 Note that you can't read anything from this back end---it can only be
16940 @item nngateway-address
16941 @vindex nngateway-address
16942 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
16944 @item nngateway-header-transformation
16945 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
16946 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
16947 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
16948 transformation should be called, and defaults to
16949 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
16950 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
16953 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
16954 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
16955 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
16958 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
16961 will get this @code{To} header inserted:
16964 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
16967 The following pre-defined functions exist:
16969 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
16972 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
16973 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
16974 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
16976 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
16978 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
16979 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
16980 @code{nngateway-address}.
16985 (setq gnus-post-method
16987 "mail2news@@replay.com"
16988 (nngateway-header-transformation
16989 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
16997 So, to use this, simply say something like:
17000 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
17005 @node Combined Groups
17006 @section Combined Groups
17008 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
17012 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
17013 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
17017 @node Virtual Groups
17018 @subsection Virtual Groups
17020 @cindex virtual groups
17021 @cindex merging groups
17023 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
17026 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
17027 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
17028 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
17030 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
17031 regexp to match component groups.
17033 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
17034 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
17035 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it
17036 came. (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be
17037 shown in the virtual group.). To create an empty virtual group, run
17038 @kbd{G V} (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}) in the group buffer
17039 and edit the method regexp with @kbd{M-e}
17040 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method})
17042 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
17043 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
17046 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
17049 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
17050 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
17052 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
17053 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
17054 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
17055 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
17058 "^nntp\\+server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
17061 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
17062 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
17063 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
17065 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
17066 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
17067 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
17068 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
17069 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
17071 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
17072 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
17073 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
17075 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
17076 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
17077 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
17078 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
17079 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
17080 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
17081 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
17082 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
17083 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
17084 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
17085 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
17087 @code{nnvirtual} can have both mail and news groups as component groups.
17088 When responding to articles in @code{nnvirtual} groups, @code{nnvirtual}
17089 has to ask the back end of the component group the article comes from
17090 whether it is a news or mail back end. However, when you do a @kbd{^},
17091 there is typically no sure way for the component back end to know this,
17092 and in that case @code{nnvirtual} tells Gnus that the article came from a
17093 not-news back end. (Just to be on the safe side.)
17095 @kbd{C-c C-n} in the message buffer will insert the @code{Newsgroups}
17096 line from the article you respond to in these cases.
17098 @code{nnvirtual} groups do not inherit anything but articles and marks
17099 from component groups---group parameters, for instance, are not
17103 @node Kibozed Groups
17104 @subsection Kibozed Groups
17108 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
17109 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a back end that will do this for
17110 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
17111 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
17113 @kindex G k (Group)
17114 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
17117 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
17118 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
17119 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
17120 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
17122 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
17123 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
17124 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
17126 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
17127 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
17128 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
17129 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
17130 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
17131 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
17132 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
17133 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
17135 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
17136 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
17137 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
17138 Stranger things have happened.
17140 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
17141 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
17143 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
17144 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
17145 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
17146 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
17147 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
17148 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
17150 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
17151 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
17154 @node Gnus Unplugged
17155 @section Gnus Unplugged
17160 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
17162 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
17163 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
17164 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
17165 read news. Believe it or not.
17167 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
17168 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
17169 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
17170 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
17171 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
17173 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
17174 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
17175 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
17176 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
17177 reading news on a machine.
17179 Setting up Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple. In
17180 fact, you don't even have to configure anything.
17182 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
17185 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
17186 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
17187 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
17188 * Agent as Cache:: The Agent is a big cache too.
17189 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
17190 * Agent Regeneration:: How to recover from lost connections and other accidents.
17191 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
17192 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
17193 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
17194 * Example Setup:: An example @file{~/.gnus.el} file for offline people.
17195 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
17196 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
17201 @subsection Agent Basics
17203 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
17205 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
17206 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
17207 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
17208 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
17210 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
17211 connected to the net continuously.
17213 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
17214 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
17216 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
17221 @findex gnus-unplugged
17222 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
17223 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
17224 already fetched while in this mode.
17227 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
17228 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
17229 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged} and use @kbd{g} to check for new mail
17230 as usual. To check for new mail in unplugged mode, see (@pxref{Mail
17231 Source Specifiers}).
17234 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
17235 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{g}
17236 to check if there are any new news and then @kbd{J
17237 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
17238 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
17241 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
17242 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
17243 then you read the news offline.
17246 And then you go to step 2.
17249 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
17255 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
17256 back end, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
17257 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
17258 @kbd{J a} on the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
17259 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}), or @kbd{J r} on automatically
17260 added servers you do not wish to have covered by the Agent. By default,
17261 all @code{nntp} and @code{nnimap} groups in @code{gnus-select-method} and
17262 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} are agentized.
17266 Decide on download policy. It's fairly simple once you decide whether
17267 you are going to use agent categories, topic parameters, and/or group
17268 parameters to implement your policy. If you're new to gnus, it
17269 is probably best to start with a category @xref{Agent Categories}.
17271 Both topic parameters (@pxref{Topic Parameters}) and agent categories
17272 (@pxref{Agent Categories}) provide for setting a policy that applies
17273 to multiple groups. Which you use is entirely up to you. Topic
17274 parameters do override categories so, if you mix the two, you'll have
17275 to take that into account. If you have a few groups that deviate from
17276 your policy, you can use grou parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to
17280 Uhm@dots{} that's it.
17284 @node Agent Categories
17285 @subsection Agent Categories
17287 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
17288 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
17289 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
17290 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
17291 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
17292 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
17293 you're interested in the articles anyway.
17295 One of the more effective methods for controlling what is to be
17296 downloaded is to create a @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all)
17297 groups to this category. Groups that do not belong in any other
17298 category belong to the @code{default} category. Gnus has its own
17299 buffer for creating and managing categories.
17301 If you prefer, you can also use group parameters (@pxref{Group
17302 Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic Parameters}) for an
17303 alternative approach to controlling the agent. The only real
17304 difference is that categories are specific to the agent (so there is
17305 less to learn) while group and topic parameters include the kitchen
17308 Since you can set agent parameters in several different places we have
17309 a rule to decide which source to believe. This rule specifies that
17310 the parameter sources are checked in the following order: group
17311 parameters, topic parameters, agent category, and finally customizable
17312 variables. So you can mix all of these sources to produce a wide range
17313 of behavior, just don't blame me if you don't remember where you put
17317 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
17318 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
17319 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
17323 @node Category Syntax
17324 @subsubsection Category Syntax
17326 A category consists of a name, the list of groups belonging to the
17327 category, and a number of optional parameters that override the
17328 customizable variables. The complete list of agent parameters are
17332 @item gnus-agent-cat-name
17333 The name of the category.
17335 @item gnus-agent-cat-groups
17336 The list of groups that are in this category.
17338 @item gnus-agent-cat-predicate
17339 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
17340 are eligible for downloading; and
17342 @item gnus-agent-cat-score-file
17343 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
17344 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
17345 score} is not necessarily related to normal scores.)
17347 @item gnus-agent-cat-enable-expiration
17348 a boolean indicating whether the agent should expire old articles in
17349 this group. Most groups should be expired to conserve disk space. In
17350 fact, its probably safe to say that the gnus.* hierarchy contains the
17351 only groups that should not be expired.
17353 @item gnus-agent-cat-days-until-old
17354 an integer indicating the number of days that the agent should wait
17355 before deciding that a read article is safe to expire.
17357 @item gnus-agent-cat-low-score
17358 an integer that overrides the value of @code{gnus-agent-low-score}.
17360 @item gnus-agent-cat-high-score
17361 an integer that overrides the value of @code{gnus-agent-high-score}.
17363 @item gnus-agent-cat-length-when-short
17364 an integer that overrides the value of
17365 @code{gnus-agent-short-article}.
17367 @item gnus-agent-cat-length-when-long
17368 an integer that overrides the value of @code{gnus-agent-long-article}.
17371 The name of a category can not be changed once the category has been
17374 Each category maintains a list of groups that are exclusive members of
17375 that category. The exclusivity rule is automatically enforced, add a
17376 group to a new category and it is automatically removed from its old
17379 A predicate in its simplest form can be a single predicate such as
17380 @code{true} or @code{false}. These two will download every available
17381 article or nothing respectively. In the case of these two special
17382 predicates an additional score rule is superfluous.
17384 Predicates of @code{high} or @code{low} download articles in respect of
17385 their scores in relationship to @code{gnus-agent-high-score} and
17386 @code{gnus-agent-low-score} as described below.
17388 To gain even finer control of what is to be regarded eligible for
17389 download a predicate can consist of a number of predicates with logical
17390 operators sprinkled in between.
17392 Perhaps some examples are in order.
17394 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
17395 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
17401 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
17402 short (for some value of ``short'').
17404 Here's a more complex predicate:
17413 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
17414 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
17417 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
17418 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
17419 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
17421 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
17422 you want to do, you can write your own.
17424 When evaluating each of these predicates, the named constant will be
17425 bound to the value determined by calling
17426 @code{gnus-agent-find-parameter} on the appropriate parameter. For
17427 example, gnus-agent-short-article will be bound to
17428 @code{(gnus-agent-find-parameter group 'agent-short-article)}. This
17429 means that you can specify a predicate in your category then tune that
17430 predicate to individual groups.
17434 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
17435 lines; default 100.
17438 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
17439 lines; default 200.
17442 True iff the article has a download score less than
17443 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
17446 True iff the article has a download score greater than
17447 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
17450 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
17451 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
17452 checksum and sees whether articles match.
17461 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
17462 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
17463 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
17466 For example, you could decide that you don't want to download articles
17467 that were posted more than a certain number of days ago (e.g. posted
17468 more than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} ago) you might write a function
17469 something along the lines of the following:
17472 (defun my-article-old-p ()
17473 "Say whether an article is old."
17474 (< (time-to-days (date-to-time (mail-header-date gnus-headers)))
17475 (- (time-to-days (current-time)) gnus-agent-expire-days)))
17478 with the predicate then defined as:
17481 (not my-article-old-p)
17484 or you could append your predicate to the predefined
17485 @code{gnus-category-predicate-alist} in your @file{~/.gnus.el} or
17489 (require 'gnus-agent)
17490 (setq gnus-category-predicate-alist
17491 (append gnus-category-predicate-alist
17492 '((old . my-article-old-p))))
17495 and simply specify your predicate as:
17501 If/when using something like the above, be aware that there are many
17502 misconfigured systems/mailers out there and so an article's date is not
17503 always a reliable indication of when it was posted. Hell, some people
17504 just don't give a damn.
17506 The above predicates apply to @emph{all} the groups which belong to the
17507 category. However, if you wish to have a specific predicate for an
17508 individual group within a category, or you're just too lazy to set up a
17509 new category, you can enter a group's individual predicate in it's group
17510 parameters like so:
17513 (agent-predicate . short)
17516 This is the group/topic parameter equivalent of the agent category default.
17517 Note that when specifying a single word predicate like this, the
17518 @code{agent-predicate} specification must be in dotted pair notation.
17520 The equivalent of the longer example from above would be:
17523 (agent-predicate or high (and (not low) (not long)))
17526 The outer parenthesis required in the category specification are not
17527 entered here as, not being in dotted pair notation, the value of the
17528 predicate is assumed to be a list.
17531 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
17532 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
17533 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
17534 following headers can be scored on: @code{Subject}, @code{From},
17535 @code{Date}, @code{Message-ID}, @code{References}, @code{Chars},
17536 @code{Lines}, and @code{Xref}.
17538 As with predicates, the specification of the @code{download score rule}
17539 to use in respect of a group can be in either the category definition if
17540 it's to be applicable to all groups in therein, or a group's parameters
17541 if it's to be specific to that group.
17543 In both of these places the @code{download score rule} can take one of
17550 This has the same syntax as a normal gnus score file except only a
17551 subset of scoring keywords are available as mentioned above.
17557 Category specification
17561 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
17567 Group/Topic Parameter specification
17570 (agent-score ("from"
17571 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
17576 Again, note the omission of the outermost parenthesis here.
17582 These score files must @emph{only} contain the permitted scoring
17583 keywords stated above.
17589 Category specification
17592 ("~/News/agent.SCORE")
17598 ("~/News/agent.SCORE" "~/News/agent.group.SCORE")
17602 Group Parameter specification
17605 (agent-score "~/News/agent.SCORE")
17608 Additional score files can be specified as above. Need I say anything
17613 Use @code{normal} score files
17615 If you don't want to maintain two sets of scoring rules for a group, and
17616 your desired @code{downloading} criteria for a group are the same as your
17617 @code{reading} criteria then you can tell the agent to refer to your
17618 @code{normal} score files when deciding what to download.
17620 These directives in either the category definition or a group's
17621 parameters will cause the agent to read in all the applicable score
17622 files for a group, @emph{filtering out} those sections that do not
17623 relate to one of the permitted subset of scoring keywords.
17627 Category Specification
17634 Group Parameter specification
17637 (agent-score . file)
17642 @node Category Buffer
17643 @subsubsection Category Buffer
17645 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
17646 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
17647 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
17649 The following commands are available in this buffer:
17653 @kindex q (Category)
17654 @findex gnus-category-exit
17655 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
17658 @kindex e (Category)
17659 @findex gnus-category-customize-category
17660 Use a customization buffer to set all of the selected category's
17661 parameters at one time (@code{gnus-category-customize-category}).
17664 @kindex k (Category)
17665 @findex gnus-category-kill
17666 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
17669 @kindex c (Category)
17670 @findex gnus-category-copy
17671 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
17674 @kindex a (Category)
17675 @findex gnus-category-add
17676 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
17679 @kindex p (Category)
17680 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
17681 Edit the predicate of the current category
17682 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
17685 @kindex g (Category)
17686 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
17687 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
17688 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
17691 @kindex s (Category)
17692 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
17693 Edit the download score rule of the current category
17694 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
17697 @kindex l (Category)
17698 @findex gnus-category-list
17699 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
17703 @node Category Variables
17704 @subsubsection Category Variables
17707 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
17708 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
17709 Hook run in category buffers.
17711 @item gnus-category-line-format
17712 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
17713 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
17714 Variables}). Valid elements are:
17718 The name of the category.
17721 The number of groups in the category.
17724 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
17725 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
17726 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
17728 @item gnus-agent-short-article
17729 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
17730 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
17732 @item gnus-agent-long-article
17733 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
17734 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
17736 @item gnus-agent-low-score
17737 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
17738 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
17741 @item gnus-agent-high-score
17742 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
17743 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
17746 @item gnus-agent-expire-days
17747 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
17748 The number of days that a @samp{read} article must stay in the agent's
17749 local disk before becoming eligible for expiration (While the name is
17750 the same, this doesn't mean expiring the article on the server. It
17751 just means deleting the local copy of the article). What is also
17752 important to understand is that the counter starts with the time the
17753 article was written to the local disk and not the time the article was
17757 @item gnus-agent-enable-expiration
17758 @vindex gnus-agent-enable-expiration
17759 Determines whether articles in a group are, by default, expired or
17760 retained indefinitely. The default is @code{ENABLE} which means that
17761 you'll have to disable expiration when desired. On the other hand,
17762 you could set this to @code{DISABLE}. In that case, you would then
17763 have to enable expiration in selected groups.
17768 @node Agent Commands
17769 @subsection Agent Commands
17770 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-plugged
17771 @kindex J j (Agent)
17773 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
17774 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged}) command works in all modes, and
17775 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
17779 * Group Agent Commands:: Configure groups and fetch their contents.
17780 * Summary Agent Commands:: Manually select then fetch specific articles.
17781 * Server Agent Commands:: Select the servers that are supported by the agent.
17787 @node Group Agent Commands
17788 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
17792 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
17793 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
17794 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
17795 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
17798 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
17799 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
17800 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
17803 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
17804 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
17805 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
17806 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
17809 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
17810 @findex gnus-group-send-queue
17811 Send all sendable messages in the queue group
17812 (@code{gnus-group-send-queue}). @xref{Drafts}.
17815 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
17816 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
17817 Add the current group to an Agent category
17818 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}). This command understands the
17819 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
17822 @kindex J r (Agent Group)
17823 @findex gnus-agent-remove-group
17824 Remove the current group from its category, if any
17825 (@code{gnus-agent-remove-group}). This command understands the
17826 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
17829 @kindex J Y (Agent Group)
17830 @findex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
17831 Synchronize flags changed while unplugged with remote server, if any.
17837 @node Summary Agent Commands
17838 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
17842 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
17843 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
17844 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
17847 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
17848 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
17849 Remove the downloading mark from the article
17850 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
17854 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
17855 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
17856 Toggle whether to download the article
17857 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}). The dowload mark is @samp{%} by
17861 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
17862 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
17863 Mark all articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}) that are neither cached, downloaded, nor downloadable.
17866 @kindex J S (Agent Summary)
17867 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-group
17868 Download all eligible (See @pxref{Agent Categories}) articles in this group.
17869 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-group}).
17872 @kindex J s (Agent Summary)
17873 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-series
17874 Download all processable articles in this group.
17875 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-series}).
17878 @kindex J u (Agent Summary)
17879 @findex gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group
17880 Download all downloadable articles in the current group
17881 (@code{gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group}).
17886 @node Server Agent Commands
17887 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
17891 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
17892 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
17893 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
17894 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
17897 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
17898 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
17899 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
17900 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
17905 @node Agent as Cache
17906 @subsection Agent as Cache
17908 When Gnus is plugged, it is not efficient to download headers or
17909 articles from the server again, if they are already stored in the
17910 Agent. So, Gnus normally only downloads headers once, and stores them
17911 in the Agent. These headers are later used when generating the summary
17912 buffer, regardless of whether you are plugged or unplugged. Articles
17913 are not cached in the Agent by default though (that would potentially
17914 consume lots of disk space), but if you have already downloaded an
17915 article into the Agent, Gnus will not download the article from the
17916 server again but use the locally stored copy instead.
17918 If you so desire, you can configure the agent (see @code{gnus-agent-cache}
17919 @pxref{Agent Variables}) to always download headers and articles while
17920 plugged. Gnus will almost certainly be slower, but it will be kept
17921 synchronized with the server. That last point probably won't make any
17922 sense if you are using a nntp or nnimap backend.
17925 @subsection Agent Expiry
17927 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
17928 @findex gnus-agent-expire
17929 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire
17930 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire-group
17931 @findex gnus-agent-expire-group
17932 @cindex Agent expiry
17933 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
17936 The Agent backend, @code{nnagent}, doesn't handle expiry. Well, at
17937 least it doesn't handle it like other backends. Instead, there are
17938 special @code{gnus-agent-expire} and @code{gnus-agent-expire-group}
17939 commands that will expire all read articles that are older than
17940 @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} days. They can be run whenever you feel
17941 that you're running out of space. Neither are particularly fast or
17942 efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to interrupt them (with
17943 @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started one of them.
17945 Note that other functions, e.g. @code{gnus-request-expire-articles},
17946 might run @code{gnus-agent-expire} for you to keep the agent
17947 synchronized with the group.
17949 The agent parameter @code{agent-enable-expiration} may be used to
17950 prevent expiration in selected groups.
17952 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
17953 If @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, the agent
17954 expiration commands will expire all articles---unread, read, ticked
17955 and dormant. If @code{nil} (which is the default), only read articles
17956 are eligible for expiry, and unread, ticked and dormant articles will
17957 be kept indefinitely.
17959 If you find that some articles eligible for expiry are never expired,
17960 perhaps some Gnus Agent files are corrupted. There's are special
17961 commands, @code{gnus-agent-regenerate} and
17962 @code{gnus-agent-regenerate-group}, to fix possible problems.
17964 @node Agent Regeneration
17965 @subsection Agent Regeneration
17967 @cindex Agent Regeneration
17968 @cindex Gnus Agent Regeneration
17969 @cindex regeneration
17971 The local data structures used by @code{nnagent} may become corrupted
17972 due to certain exceptional conditions. When this happens,
17973 @code{nnagent} functionality may degrade or even fail. The solution
17974 to this problem is to repair the local data structures by removing all
17975 internal inconsistencies.
17977 For example, if your connection to your server is lost while
17978 downloaded articles into the agent, the local data structures will not
17979 know about articles successfully downloaded prior to the connection
17980 failure. Running @code{gnus-agent-regenerate} or
17981 @code{gnus-agent-regenerate-group} will update the data structures
17982 such that you don't need to download these articles a second time.
17984 @findex gnus-agent-regenerate
17985 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-regenerate
17986 The command @code{gnus-agent-regenerate} will perform
17987 @code{gnus-agent-regenerate-group} on every agentized group. While
17988 you can run @code{gnus-agent-regenerate} in any buffer, it is strongly
17989 recommended that you first close all summary buffers.
17991 @findex gnus-agent-regenerate-group
17992 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-regenerate-group
17993 The command @code{gnus-agent-regenerate-group} uses the local copies
17994 of individual articles to repair the local NOV(header) database. It
17995 then updates the internal data structures that document which articles
17996 are stored locally. An optional argument will mark articles in the
17999 @node Agent and IMAP
18000 @subsection Agent and IMAP
18002 The Agent works with any Gnus back end, including nnimap. However,
18003 since there are some conceptual differences between @sc{nntp} and
18004 @sc{imap}, this section (should) provide you with some information to
18005 make Gnus Agent work smoother as a @sc{imap} Disconnected Mode client.
18007 The first thing to keep in mind is that all flags (read, ticked, etc)
18008 are kept on the @sc{imap} server, rather than in @file{.newsrc} as is the
18009 case for nntp. Thus Gnus need to remember flag changes when
18010 disconnected, and synchronize these flags when you plug back in.
18012 Gnus keeps track of flag changes when reading nnimap groups under the
18013 Agent. When you plug back in, Gnus will check if you have any changed
18014 any flags and ask if you wish to synchronize these with the server.
18015 The behavior is customizable by @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags}.
18017 @vindex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
18018 If @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} is @code{nil}, the Agent will
18019 never automatically synchronize flags. If it is @code{ask}, which is
18020 the default, the Agent will check if you made any changes and if so
18021 ask if you wish to synchronize these when you re-connect. If it has
18022 any other value, all flags will be synchronized automatically.
18024 If you do not wish to synchronize flags automatically when you
18025 re-connect, you can do it manually with the
18026 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} command that is bound to @kbd{J Y}
18027 in the group buffer.
18029 Some things are currently not implemented in the Agent that you'd might
18030 expect from a disconnected @sc{imap} client, including:
18035 Copying/moving articles into nnimap groups when unplugged.
18038 Creating/deleting nnimap groups when unplugged.
18042 Technical note: the synchronization algorithm does not work by ``pushing''
18043 all local flags to the server, but rather incrementally update the
18044 server view of flags by changing only those flags that were changed by
18045 the user. Thus, if you set one flag on a article, quit the group and
18046 re-select the group and remove the flag; the flag will be set and
18047 removed from the server when you ``synchronize''. The queued flag
18048 operations can be found in the per-server @code{flags} file in the Agent
18049 directory. It's emptied when you synchronize flags.
18052 @node Outgoing Messages
18053 @subsection Outgoing Messages
18055 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
18056 stored in the draft group ``queue'' (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view
18057 them there after posting, and edit them at will.
18059 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
18060 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
18061 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
18062 messages in the draft group.
18066 @node Agent Variables
18067 @subsection Agent Variables
18070 @item gnus-agent-directory
18071 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
18072 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
18073 @file{~/News/agent/}.
18075 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
18076 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
18077 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
18078 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
18079 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
18082 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
18083 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
18084 Hook run when connecting to the network.
18086 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
18087 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
18088 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
18090 @item gnus-agent-fetched-hook
18091 @vindex gnus-agent-fetched-hook
18092 Hook run when finished fetching articles.
18094 @item gnus-agent-cache
18095 @vindex gnus-agent-cache
18096 Variable to control whether use the locally stored @sc{nov} and
18097 articles when plugged, e.g. essentially using the Agent as a cache.
18098 The default is non-@code{nil}, which means to use the Agent as a cache.
18100 @item gnus-agent-go-online
18101 @vindex gnus-agent-go-online
18102 If @code{gnus-agent-go-online} is @code{nil}, the Agent will never
18103 automatically switch offline servers into online status. If it is
18104 @code{ask}, the default, the Agent will ask if you wish to switch
18105 offline servers into online status when you re-connect. If it has any
18106 other value, all offline servers will be automatically switched into
18109 @item gnus-agent-mark-unread-after-downloaded
18110 @vindex gnus-agent-mark-unread-after-downloaded
18111 If @code{gnus-agent-mark-unread-after-downloaded} is non-@code{nil},
18112 mark articles as unread after downloading. This is usually a safe
18113 thing to do as the newly downloaded article has obviously not been
18114 read. The default is t.
18116 @item gnus-agent-consider-all-articles
18117 @vindex gnus-agent-consider-all-articles
18118 If @code{gnus-agent-consider-all-articles} is non-@code{nil}, the
18119 agent will fetch all missing headers. When @code{nil}, the agent will
18120 fetch only new headers. The default is @code{nil}.
18122 @item gnus-agent-max-fetch-size
18123 @vindex gnus-agent-max-fetch-size
18124 The agent fetches articles into a temporary buffer prior to parsing
18125 them into individual files. To avoid exceeding the max. buffer size,
18126 the agent alternates between fetching and parsing until all articles
18127 have been fetched. @code{gnus-agent-max-fetch-size} provides a size
18128 limit to control how often the cycling occurs. A large value improves
18129 performance. A small value minimizes the time lost should the
18130 connection be lost while fetching (You may need to run
18131 @code{gnus-agent-regenerate-group} to update the group's state.
18132 However, all articles parsed prior to loosing the connection will be
18133 available while unplugged). The default is 10M so it is unusual to
18136 @item gnus-server-unopen-status
18137 @vindex gnus-server-unopen-status
18138 Perhaps not a Agent variable, but closely related to the Agent, this
18139 variable says what will happen if Gnus cannot open a server. If the
18140 Agent is enabled, the default, @code{nil}, makes Gnus ask the user
18141 whether to deny the server or whether to unplug the agent. If the
18142 Agent is disabled, Gnus always simply deny the server. Other choices
18143 for this variable include @code{denied} and @code{offline} the latter
18144 is only valid if the Agent is used.
18146 @item gnus-auto-goto-ignores
18147 @vindex gnus-auto-goto-ignores
18148 Another variable that isn't a Agent variable, yet so closely related
18149 that most will look for it here, this variable tells the summary
18150 buffer how to maneuver around undownloaded (only headers stored in the
18151 agent) and unfetched (neither article nor headers stored) articles.
18153 The legal values are @code{nil} (maneuver to any article),
18154 @code{undownloaded} (maneuvering while unplugged ignores articles that
18155 have not been fetched), @code{always-undownloaded} (maneuvering always
18156 ignores articles that have not been fetched), @code{unfetched}
18157 (maneuvering ignores articles whose headers have not been fetched).
18162 @node Example Setup
18163 @subsection Example Setup
18165 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
18166 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
18167 @file{~/.gnus.el} file to get started.
18170 ;;; Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over @sc{nntp}
18171 ;;; from your ISP's server.
18172 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.your-isp.com"))
18174 ;;; Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from
18175 ;;; your ISP's POP server.
18176 (setq mail-sources '((pop :server "pop.your-isp.com")))
18178 ;;; Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.
18179 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
18181 ;;; Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.
18182 ;;; (gnus-agentize) ; The obsolete setting.
18183 ;;; (setq gnus-agent t) ; Now the default.
18186 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
18187 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
18190 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
18191 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
18192 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
18193 @sc{nntp} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
18194 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
18197 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
18198 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
18199 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
18200 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
18201 back all the killed groups.)
18203 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
18204 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
18205 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
18208 @node Batching Agents
18209 @subsection Batching Agents
18210 @findex gnus-agent-batch
18212 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
18213 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
18214 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
18216 You can run a complete batch command from the command line with the
18217 following incantation:
18221 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f -l ~/.gnus.el gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null 2>&1
18225 @node Agent Caveats
18226 @subsection Agent Caveats
18228 The Gnus Agent doesn't seem to work like most other offline
18229 newsreaders. Here are some common questions that some imaginary people
18233 @item If I read an article while plugged, do they get entered into the Agent?
18235 @strong{No}. If you want this behaviour, add
18236 @code{gnus-agent-fetch-selected-article} to
18237 @code{gnus-select-article-hook}.
18239 @item If I read an article while plugged, and the article already exists in
18240 the Agent, will it get downloaded once more?
18242 @strong{No}, unless @code{gnus-agent-cache} is @code{nil}.
18246 In short, when Gnus is unplugged, it only looks into the locally stored
18247 articles; when it's plugged, it talks to your ISP and may also use the
18248 locally stored articles.
18255 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
18256 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
18257 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
18260 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
18261 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
18262 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
18263 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
18264 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
18266 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
18267 before generating the summary buffer.
18269 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
18270 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
18271 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
18273 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
18274 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
18275 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
18276 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
18279 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
18280 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
18281 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
18282 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
18283 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
18284 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
18285 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
18286 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
18287 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
18288 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
18289 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
18290 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
18291 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
18292 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
18293 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
18294 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
18295 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
18299 @node Summary Score Commands
18300 @section Summary Score Commands
18301 @cindex score commands
18303 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
18304 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
18305 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
18306 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
18307 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
18309 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
18310 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
18311 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
18312 score file the current one.
18314 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
18319 @kindex V s (Summary)
18320 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
18321 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
18324 @kindex V S (Summary)
18325 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
18326 Display the score of the current article
18327 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
18330 @kindex V t (Summary)
18331 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
18332 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
18333 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}). In the @code{*Score Trace*} buffer, you
18334 can use @kbd{q} to quit. @kbd{e} edits the corresponding score file.
18335 When point is on a string within the match element, @kbd{e} will try to
18336 bring you to this string in the score file.
18339 @kindex V w (Summary)
18340 @findex gnus-score-find-favourite-words
18341 List words used in scoring (@code{gnus-score-find-favourite-words}).
18344 @kindex V R (Summary)
18345 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
18346 Run the current summary through the scoring process
18347 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
18348 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
18349 effect you're having.
18352 @kindex V c (Summary)
18353 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
18354 Make a different score file the current
18355 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
18358 @kindex V e (Summary)
18359 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
18360 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
18361 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
18365 @kindex V f (Summary)
18366 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
18367 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
18368 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
18371 @kindex V F (Summary)
18372 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
18373 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
18374 after editing score files.
18377 @kindex V C (Summary)
18378 @findex gnus-score-customize
18379 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
18380 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
18384 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
18389 @kindex V m (Summary)
18390 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
18391 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
18392 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
18395 @kindex V x (Summary)
18396 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
18397 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
18398 expunge all articles below this score
18399 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
18402 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
18403 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
18406 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
18407 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
18411 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
18412 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
18414 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
18415 keys are available:
18419 Score on the author name.
18422 Score on the subject line.
18425 Score on the @code{Xref} line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
18428 Score on the @code{References} line.
18434 Score on the number of lines.
18437 Score on the @code{Message-ID} header.
18440 Score on an ``extra'' header, that is, one of those in gnus-extra-headers,
18441 if your @sc{nntp} server tracks additional header data in overviews.
18444 Score on followups---this matches the author name, and adds scores to
18445 the followups to this author. (Using this key leads to the creation of
18446 @file{ADAPT} files.)
18455 Score on thread. (Using this key leads to the creation of @file{ADAPT}
18461 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
18462 what headers you are scoring on.
18474 Substring matching.
18477 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
18506 Greater than number.
18511 The fourth and usually final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e.,
18512 expiring) score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry,
18513 or whether it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score
18518 Temporary score entry.
18521 Permanent score entry.
18524 Immediately scoring.
18528 If you are scoring on `e' (extra) headers, you will then be prompted for
18529 the header name on which you wish to score. This must be a header named
18530 in gnus-extra-headers, and @samp{TAB} completion is available.
18534 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
18535 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
18536 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
18537 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
18539 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
18540 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
18541 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
18542 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
18543 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
18545 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
18546 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
18547 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
18548 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
18549 current score file.
18551 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
18552 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
18553 pretend they are keymaps or not.
18556 @node Group Score Commands
18557 @section Group Score Commands
18558 @cindex group score commands
18560 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
18565 @kindex W f (Group)
18566 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
18567 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
18568 all the time. This command will flush the cache
18569 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
18573 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
18575 @findex gnus-batch-score
18576 @cindex batch scoring
18578 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-batch-score
18582 @node Score Variables
18583 @section Score Variables
18584 @cindex score variables
18588 @item gnus-use-scoring
18589 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
18590 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
18591 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
18593 @item gnus-kill-killed
18594 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
18595 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
18596 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
18597 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
18598 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
18599 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
18600 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
18602 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
18603 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
18604 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
18605 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
18606 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
18608 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
18609 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
18610 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
18611 (@file{SCORE} by default.)
18613 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
18614 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
18615 @cindex score cache
18616 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
18617 score files. However, if this might make your Emacs grow big and
18618 bloated, so this regexp can be used to weed out score files unlikely
18619 to be needed again. It would be a bad idea to deny caching of
18620 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
18621 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
18622 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
18625 @item gnus-save-score
18626 @vindex gnus-save-score
18627 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
18628 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
18629 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
18631 If you do not set this to @code{t}, then manual scores (like those set
18632 with @kbd{V s} (@code{gnus-summary-set-score})) will not be preserved
18633 across group visits.
18635 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
18636 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
18637 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
18638 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
18639 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
18640 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
18641 manually entered data.
18643 @item gnus-summary-default-score
18644 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
18645 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
18647 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
18648 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
18649 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
18650 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
18651 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
18652 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
18654 @item gnus-score-over-mark
18655 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
18656 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
18657 default. Default is @samp{+}.
18659 @item gnus-score-below-mark
18660 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
18661 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
18662 default. Default is @samp{-}.
18664 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
18665 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
18666 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
18667 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
18669 Predefined functions available are:
18672 @item gnus-score-find-single
18673 @findex gnus-score-find-single
18674 Only apply the group's own score file.
18676 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
18677 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
18678 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
18679 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
18680 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
18681 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
18682 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
18683 then a regexp match is done.
18685 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
18686 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
18688 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
18689 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
18690 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
18691 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
18693 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
18694 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
18695 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
18696 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
18697 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE} for each
18701 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all
18702 these functions will be called with the group name as argument, and
18703 all the returned lists of score files will be applied. These
18704 functions can also return lists of lists of score alists directly. In
18705 that case, the functions that return these non-file score alists
18706 should probably be placed before the ``real'' score file functions, to
18707 ensure that the last score file returned is the local score file.
18710 For example, to do hierarchical scoring but use a non-server-specific
18711 overall score file, you could use the value
18713 (list (lambda (group) ("all.SCORE"))
18714 'gnus-score-find-hierarchical)
18717 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
18718 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
18719 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
18720 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
18721 are expired. It's 7 by default.
18723 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
18724 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
18725 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, temporary score entries that have
18726 been triggered (matched) will have their dates updated. (This is how Gnus
18727 controls expiry---all non-matched-entries will become too old while
18728 matched entries will stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this
18729 variable to @code{nil}, even matched entries will grow old and will
18730 have to face that oh-so grim reaper.
18732 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
18733 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
18734 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
18736 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
18737 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
18738 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be simplified
18739 for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
18740 threading---according to the current value of
18741 gnus-simplify-subject-functions. If the scoring entry uses
18742 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
18743 simplified in this manner.
18748 @node Score File Format
18749 @section Score File Format
18750 @cindex score file format
18752 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
18753 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
18754 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
18756 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
18760 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
18762 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
18764 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
18766 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
18771 (mark-and-expunge -10)
18775 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
18776 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
18777 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
18778 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
18782 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
18783 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
18785 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
18786 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
18787 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
18789 Six keys are supported by this alist:
18794 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
18795 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
18796 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
18797 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
18798 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
18799 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
18800 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
18801 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
18802 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
18803 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
18804 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
18805 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
18806 to articles that matches these score entries.
18808 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
18809 score entry has one to four elements.
18813 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
18814 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
18818 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
18819 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
18820 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
18821 is successful. If this element is not present, the
18822 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
18823 instead. This is 1000 by default.
18826 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
18827 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
18828 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
18829 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
18830 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
18833 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
18834 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
18835 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
18836 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
18839 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
18840 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
18841 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
18842 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
18843 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
18844 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
18845 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
18846 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
18847 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
18848 instead, if you feel like.
18851 Just as for the standard string overview headers, if you are using
18852 gnus-extra-headers, you can score on these headers' values. In this
18853 case, there is a 5th element in the score entry, being the name of the
18854 header to be scored. The following entry is useful in your
18855 @file{all.SCORE} file in case of spam attacks from a single origin host,
18856 if your @sc{nntp} server tracks NNTP-Posting-Host in overviews:
18859 ("111.222.333.444" -1000 nil s "NNTP-Posting-Host")
18863 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
18864 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
18866 These predicates are true if
18869 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
18872 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
18873 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
18880 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
18881 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
18882 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
18883 it's not. I think.)
18885 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some back ends (like
18886 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
18887 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
18888 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
18891 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
18892 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
18893 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
18894 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
18895 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
18896 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
18897 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
18901 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
18902 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
18903 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
18904 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
18905 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
18906 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
18907 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
18908 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
18911 @item Head, Body, All
18912 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
18916 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
18917 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
18918 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
18919 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
18920 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
18921 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
18922 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
18926 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
18927 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread started by an
18928 article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{x}, then you add a @samp{thread}
18929 match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each article that
18930 has @var{x} in its @code{References} header. (These new @samp{thread}
18931 matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching articles.)
18932 This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an entire thread,
18933 even though some articles in the thread may not have complete
18934 @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
18935 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
18936 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
18940 @cindex Score File Atoms
18942 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
18943 lower than this number will be marked as read.
18946 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
18947 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
18949 @item mark-and-expunge
18950 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
18951 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
18954 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
18955 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
18956 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
18957 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
18958 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
18961 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
18962 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
18965 @item exclude-files
18966 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
18967 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
18971 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
18972 ignored when handling global score files.
18975 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
18976 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
18977 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
18978 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
18981 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
18982 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
18983 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
18984 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
18986 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
18990 (mark-and-expunge -100)
18993 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
18994 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
18995 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
18996 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
18997 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
18999 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where a few
19000 interesting threads which can't be found automatically by ordinary
19001 scoring rules exist.
19004 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
19005 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
19006 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
19007 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
19008 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
19009 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
19010 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
19011 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
19012 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
19013 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
19014 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
19018 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
19019 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
19020 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
19021 file for a number of groups.
19024 @cindex local variables
19025 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(@var{var}
19026 @var{value})} pairs. Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the
19027 current summary buffer, and set to the value specified. This is a
19028 convenient, if somewhat strange, way of setting variables in some
19029 groups if you don't like hooks much. Note that the @var{value} won't
19034 @node Score File Editing
19035 @section Score File Editing
19037 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
19038 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
19039 with a mode for that.
19041 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
19042 additional commands:
19047 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
19048 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
19049 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
19050 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
19053 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
19054 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
19055 Insert the current date in numerical format
19056 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
19057 you were wondering.
19060 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
19061 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
19062 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
19063 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
19064 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
19069 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
19071 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
19072 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
19074 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
19075 e} to begin editing score files.
19078 @node Adaptive Scoring
19079 @section Adaptive Scoring
19080 @cindex adaptive scoring
19082 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
19083 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
19084 stupidity, to be precise.
19086 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
19087 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
19088 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
19089 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
19090 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
19091 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
19092 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
19093 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
19094 variable to @code{(word line)}.
19096 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
19097 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
19098 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
19099 might look something like this:
19102 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
19103 '((gnus-unread-mark)
19104 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
19105 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
19106 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
19107 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
19108 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
19109 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
19110 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
19111 (gnus-ancient-mark)
19112 (gnus-low-score-mark)
19113 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
19116 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
19117 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
19118 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
19119 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
19120 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
19121 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
19124 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
19125 will be applied to each article.
19127 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
19128 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{e}) will have a
19129 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
19130 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
19132 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
19133 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
19134 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
19135 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
19137 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
19138 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
19139 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
19140 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
19142 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
19143 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
19144 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
19145 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
19146 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
19147 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
19149 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
19150 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
19151 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
19153 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
19154 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
19155 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
19157 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
19158 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
19159 let you use different rules in different groups.
19161 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
19162 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
19163 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
19166 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
19167 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
19168 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
19169 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
19170 the length of the match is less than
19171 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
19172 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
19175 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
19176 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
19177 headers. If you adapt on words, the
19178 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
19179 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
19182 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
19183 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
19184 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
19185 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
19186 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
19189 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
19190 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
19191 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
19192 score with 30 points.
19194 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
19195 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
19196 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
19197 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
19198 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
19200 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit
19201 Some may feel that short words shouldn't count when doing adaptive
19202 scoring. If so, you may set @code{gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit} to
19203 an integer. Words shorter than this number will be ignored. This
19204 variable defaults to @code{nil}.
19206 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
19207 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
19208 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
19209 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
19211 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
19212 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
19213 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
19214 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
19216 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words
19217 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words} is set to @code{t}, gnus
19218 won't adaptively word score any of the words in the group name. Useful
19219 for groups like @samp{comp.editors.emacs}, where most of the subject
19220 lines contain the word @samp{emacs}.
19222 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
19223 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
19224 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
19226 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
19227 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
19228 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
19229 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
19232 @node Home Score File
19233 @section Home Score File
19235 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
19236 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
19237 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
19238 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
19240 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
19241 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
19242 could perhaps use the same home score file.
19244 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
19245 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
19250 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
19254 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
19255 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
19259 A list. The elements in this list can be:
19263 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{file-name})}. If the @var{regexp} matches the
19264 group name, the @var{file-name} will be used as the home score file.
19267 A function. If the function returns non-@code{nil}, the result will
19268 be used as the home score file.
19271 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
19274 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
19279 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
19282 (setq gnus-home-score-file
19283 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
19286 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
19287 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
19289 @findex gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file
19291 (setq gnus-home-score-file
19292 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
19295 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
19296 Other functions include
19299 @item gnus-current-home-score-file
19300 @findex gnus-current-home-score-file
19301 Return the ``current'' regular score file. This will make scoring
19302 commands add entry to the ``innermost'' matching score file.
19306 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
19307 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
19308 their own home score files:
19311 (setq gnus-home-score-file
19312 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
19313 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
19314 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
19315 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
19318 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
19319 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
19320 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
19321 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
19322 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
19324 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
19325 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
19326 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
19327 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
19328 precedence over this variable.
19331 @node Followups To Yourself
19332 @section Followups To Yourself
19334 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
19335 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
19336 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
19337 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
19338 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
19339 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
19343 @item gnus-score-followup-article
19344 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
19345 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
19348 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
19349 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
19350 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
19354 @vindex message-sent-hook
19355 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
19356 @code{message-sent-hook}, like this:
19358 (add-hook 'message-sent-hook 'gnus-score-followup-thread)
19362 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
19363 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
19367 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
19368 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
19371 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
19372 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
19377 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore\\.no>"
19381 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
19382 is system-dependent.
19385 @node Scoring On Other Headers
19386 @section Scoring On Other Headers
19387 @cindex scoring on other headers
19389 Gnus is quite fast when scoring the ``traditional''
19390 headers---@samp{From}, @samp{Subject} and so on. However, scoring
19391 other headers requires writing a @code{head} scoring rule, which means
19392 that Gnus has to request every single article from the back end to find
19393 matches. This takes a long time in big groups.
19395 Now, there's not much you can do about this for news groups, but for
19396 mail groups, you have greater control. In the @pxref{To From
19397 Newsgroups} section of the manual, it's explained in greater detail what
19398 this mechanism does, but here's a cookbook example for @code{nnml} on
19399 how to allow scoring on the @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} headers.
19401 Put the following in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file.
19404 (setq gnus-extra-headers '(To Cc Newsgroups Keywords)
19405 nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
19408 Restart Gnus and rebuild your @code{nnml} overview files with the
19409 @kbd{M-x nnml-generate-nov-databases} command. This will take a long
19410 time if you have much mail.
19412 Now you can score on @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} as ``extra headers'' like
19413 so: @kbd{I e s p To RET <your name> RET}.
19419 @section Scoring Tips
19420 @cindex scoring tips
19426 @cindex scoring crossposts
19427 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
19428 the @code{Xref} header.
19430 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
19433 @item Multiple crossposts
19434 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
19435 more than, say, 3 groups:
19438 ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+"
19442 @item Matching on the body
19443 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
19444 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
19445 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
19446 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
19447 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
19448 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
19449 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
19452 @item Marking as read
19453 You will probably want to mark articles that have scores below a certain
19454 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
19455 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
19459 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
19461 @item Negated character classes
19462 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
19463 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
19464 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
19468 @node Reverse Scoring
19469 @section Reverse Scoring
19470 @cindex reverse scoring
19472 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
19473 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
19474 like this in your score file:
19478 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
19483 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
19484 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
19487 @node Global Score Files
19488 @section Global Score Files
19489 @cindex global score files
19491 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
19492 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
19493 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
19495 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
19496 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
19497 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
19499 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
19500 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
19501 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
19502 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
19503 files are applicable to which group.
19505 To use the score file
19506 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
19507 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory,
19511 (setq gnus-global-score-files
19512 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
19513 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
19516 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
19518 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
19519 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
19520 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
19521 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
19523 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
19524 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
19526 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
19527 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
19528 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
19529 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
19530 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
19531 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
19533 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
19539 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
19541 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
19543 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
19545 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
19546 lowered out of existence.
19548 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
19549 articles completely.
19552 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
19553 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
19554 old articles for a long time.
19557 @dots{} I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
19558 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
19559 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
19560 holding our breath yet?
19564 @section Kill Files
19567 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
19568 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
19569 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
19571 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
19572 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
19573 files into score files.
19575 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
19576 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
19577 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
19578 that isn't a very good idea.
19580 Normal kill files look like this:
19583 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
19584 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
19588 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
19589 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
19591 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
19592 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
19595 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
19600 @kindex M-k (Summary)
19601 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
19602 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
19605 @kindex M-K (Summary)
19606 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
19607 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
19610 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
19615 @kindex M-k (Group)
19616 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
19617 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
19620 @kindex M-K (Group)
19621 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
19622 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
19625 Kill file variables:
19628 @item gnus-kill-file-name
19629 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
19630 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
19631 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
19632 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
19633 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
19634 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
19636 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
19637 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
19638 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
19639 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
19642 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
19643 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
19644 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
19645 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
19646 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
19647 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
19648 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
19649 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
19650 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
19652 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
19653 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
19654 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
19659 @node Converting Kill Files
19660 @section Converting Kill Files
19662 @cindex converting kill files
19664 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
19665 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
19666 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
19669 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
19670 You can fetch it from
19671 @uref{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-various/gnus-kill-to-score.el}.
19673 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
19674 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
19675 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
19683 GroupLens (@uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/}) is a
19684 collaborative filtering system that helps you work together with other
19685 people to find the quality news articles out of the huge volume of
19686 news articles generated every day.
19688 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
19689 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
19690 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
19691 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
19692 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
19693 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
19694 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
19695 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
19698 @sc{Note:} Unfortunately the GroupLens system seems to have shut down,
19699 so this section is mostly of historical interest.
19702 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
19703 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
19704 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
19705 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
19709 @node Using GroupLens
19710 @subsection Using GroupLens
19712 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
19714 @uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
19715 better bit in town at the moment.
19717 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
19721 @item gnus-use-grouplens
19722 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
19723 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
19724 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
19726 @item grouplens-pseudonym
19727 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
19728 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
19729 with the Better Bit Bureau.
19731 @item grouplens-newsgroups
19732 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
19733 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
19737 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
19738 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
19739 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
19740 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
19741 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
19742 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
19745 @node Rating Articles
19746 @subsection Rating Articles
19748 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
19749 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
19750 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
19751 yourself is, ``on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
19754 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
19759 @kindex r (GroupLens)
19760 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
19761 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
19764 @kindex k (GroupLens)
19765 @findex grouplens-score-thread
19766 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
19767 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
19768 threads in rec.humor.
19772 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
19773 the score of the article you're reading.
19778 @kindex n (GroupLens)
19779 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
19780 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
19783 @kindex , (GroupLens)
19784 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
19785 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
19789 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
19790 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
19793 @node Displaying Predictions
19794 @subsection Displaying Predictions
19796 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
19797 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
19798 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
19799 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
19800 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
19802 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
19803 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
19804 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
19805 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
19806 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
19807 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
19808 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
19809 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
19810 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
19811 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
19812 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
19813 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
19814 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
19816 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
19817 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
19818 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
19819 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
19821 The following are valid values for that variable.
19824 @item prediction-spot
19825 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
19828 @item confidence-interval
19829 A numeric confidence interval.
19831 @item prediction-bar
19832 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
19834 @item confidence-bar
19835 Numerical confidence.
19837 @item confidence-spot
19838 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
19840 @item prediction-num
19841 Plain-old numeric value.
19843 @item confidence-plus-minus
19844 Prediction +/- confidence.
19849 @node GroupLens Variables
19850 @subsection GroupLens Variables
19854 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
19855 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
19856 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
19857 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23n%]%)
19860 @item grouplens-bbb-host
19861 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
19864 @item grouplens-bbb-port
19865 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
19867 @item grouplens-score-offset
19868 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
19869 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
19872 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
19873 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
19874 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
19879 @node Advanced Scoring
19880 @section Advanced Scoring
19882 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
19883 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
19884 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
19885 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
19886 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
19888 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
19892 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
19893 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
19894 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
19898 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
19899 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
19901 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
19902 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
19903 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
19904 non-@code{nil} value.
19906 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
19907 operator, and various match operators.
19914 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
19915 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
19916 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
19921 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
19922 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
19923 then this operator will return @code{false}.
19928 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
19929 logical negation of the value of its argument.
19933 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
19934 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
19935 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
19936 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
19937 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
19938 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
19939 the ancestry you want to go.
19941 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
19942 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
19943 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
19944 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
19945 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
19948 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
19949 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
19951 Please note that the following examples are score file rules. To
19952 make a complete score file from them, surround them with another pair
19955 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
19956 when he's talking about Gnus:
19960 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
19961 ("subject" "Gnus"))
19967 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
19971 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
19978 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
19979 really don't want to read what he's written:
19983 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
19984 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
19988 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
19989 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
19990 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
19997 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
19998 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
19999 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
20000 ("body" "white.*socks"))
20004 The possibilities are endless.
20007 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
20008 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
20010 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
20011 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
20012 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
20013 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
20014 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
20015 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
20016 @samp{subject}) first.
20018 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
20019 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
20030 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
20031 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
20037 ("subject" "Gnus")))
20044 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
20045 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
20050 @section Score Decays
20051 @cindex score decays
20054 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
20055 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
20056 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
20057 use them in any sensible way.
20059 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
20060 @findex gnus-decay-score
20061 @vindex gnus-decay-score-function
20062 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
20063 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
20064 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
20065 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
20066 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-decay-score-function}
20067 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
20068 definition of that function:
20071 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
20073 This is done according to `gnus-score-decay-constant'
20074 and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
20077 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
20079 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
20081 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
20084 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
20085 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
20086 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
20087 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
20091 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
20094 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
20097 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
20101 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
20102 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
20103 the new score, which should be an integer.
20105 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
20106 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
20111 @include message.texi
20112 @chapter Emacs MIME
20113 @include emacs-mime.texi
20115 @include sieve.texi
20117 @c @include pgg.texi
20125 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
20126 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
20127 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
20128 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
20129 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
20130 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
20131 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
20132 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
20133 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
20134 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
20135 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
20136 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
20137 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
20138 * Predicate Specifiers:: Specifying predicates.
20139 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
20140 * Image Enhancements:: Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
20141 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
20142 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
20143 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
20147 @node Process/Prefix
20148 @section Process/Prefix
20149 @cindex process/prefix convention
20151 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
20152 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
20154 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
20155 command to be performed on.
20159 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
20160 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
20161 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
20162 with the current one.
20164 @vindex transient-mark-mode
20165 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
20166 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
20168 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
20169 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
20172 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
20173 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
20175 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
20178 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
20179 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
20180 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
20181 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
20183 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
20184 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
20185 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
20186 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
20187 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
20188 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
20189 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
20190 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
20192 Many commands do not use the process/prefix convention. All commands
20193 that do explicitly say so in this manual. To apply the process/prefix
20194 convention to commands that do not use it, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
20195 command. For instance, to mark all the articles in the group as
20196 expirable, you could say @kbd{M P b M-& E}.
20200 @section Interactive
20201 @cindex interaction
20205 @item gnus-novice-user
20206 @vindex gnus-novice-user
20207 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
20208 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
20209 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
20210 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
20213 @item gnus-expert-user
20214 @vindex gnus-expert-user
20215 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
20216 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
20217 matter how strange.
20219 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
20220 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
20221 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
20222 is @code{t} by default.
20224 @item gnus-interactive-exit
20225 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
20226 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
20231 @node Symbolic Prefixes
20232 @section Symbolic Prefixes
20233 @cindex symbolic prefixes
20235 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
20236 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
20237 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
20238 rule of 900 to the current article.
20240 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
20241 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
20242 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
20243 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
20244 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
20245 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
20246 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
20248 @kindex M-i (Summary)
20249 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
20250 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
20251 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
20252 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
20253 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a C-M-u} means ``feed the @kbd{C-M-u}
20254 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b C-M-u} means
20255 ``feed the @kbd{C-M-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
20256 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
20258 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
20259 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
20260 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
20262 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
20266 @node Formatting Variables
20267 @section Formatting Variables
20268 @cindex formatting variables
20270 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
20271 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
20272 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
20273 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
20274 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
20277 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
20278 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
20279 lots of percentages everywhere.
20282 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
20283 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
20284 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
20285 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
20286 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
20287 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
20288 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
20289 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
20292 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
20293 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
20294 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
20295 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
20296 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
20297 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
20298 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
20299 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
20301 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
20302 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
20304 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
20305 @findex gnus-update-format
20306 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
20307 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
20308 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
20309 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
20313 @node Formatting Basics
20314 @subsection Formatting Basics
20316 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
20317 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
20318 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
20320 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
20321 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
20322 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
20323 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
20324 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
20327 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
20328 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
20329 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
20330 less than 4 characters wide.
20332 Also Gnus supports some extended format specifications, such as
20333 @samp{%&user-date;}.
20336 @node Mode Line Formatting
20337 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
20339 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
20340 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
20341 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
20342 with the following two differences:
20347 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
20350 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
20351 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
20352 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
20353 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
20354 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
20355 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
20356 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
20361 @node Advanced Formatting
20362 @subsection Advanced Formatting
20364 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
20365 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
20366 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
20367 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
20369 These are the valid modifiers:
20374 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
20378 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
20383 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
20386 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
20391 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
20394 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
20397 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
20400 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
20406 "~(form (current-time-string))@@"
20411 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
20412 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
20413 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
20414 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
20415 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
20416 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
20417 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
20419 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
20420 last operation, padding.
20422 @vindex gnus-compile-user-specs
20423 If @code{gnus-compile-user-specs} is set to @code{nil} (@code{t} by
20424 default) with your strong personality, and use a lots of these advanced
20425 thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets quite slow. This can be helped
20426 enormously by running @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with
20427 the look of your lines.
20428 @xref{Compilation}.
20431 @node User-Defined Specs
20432 @subsection User-Defined Specs
20434 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
20435 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
20436 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
20437 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
20438 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
20439 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
20440 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
20441 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
20442 should protect against that.
20444 Also Gnus supports extended user-defined specs, such as @samp{%u&foo;}.
20445 Gnus will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{foo}.
20447 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
20448 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
20449 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
20450 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
20454 @node Formatting Fonts
20455 @subsection Formatting Fonts
20457 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
20458 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
20459 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
20460 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
20463 Text inside the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} specifiers will have their
20464 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
20465 default. If you say @samp{%1@{}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
20466 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
20467 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
20468 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
20470 Text inside the @samp{%<<} and @samp{%>>} specifiers will get the
20471 special @code{balloon-help} property set to
20472 @code{gnus-balloon-face-0}. If you say @samp{%1<<}, you'll get
20473 @code{gnus-balloon-face-1} and so on. The @code{gnus-balloon-face-*}
20474 variables should be either strings or symbols naming functions that
20475 return a string. When the mouse passes over text with this property
20476 set, a balloon window will appear and display the string. Please
20477 refer to @ref{Tooltips, ,Tooltips, emacs, The Emacs Manual},
20478 (in GNU Emacs) or the doc string of @code{balloon-help-mode} (in
20479 XEmacs) for more information on this. (For technical reasons, the
20480 guillemets have been approximated as @samp{<<} and @samp{>>} in this
20483 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
20486 ;; Create three face types.
20487 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
20488 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
20490 ;; We want the article count to be in
20491 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
20492 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
20493 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
20495 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
20496 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
20498 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
20499 (setq gnus-group-line-format
20500 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
20503 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
20504 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
20506 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
20507 mode-line variables.
20509 @node Positioning Point
20510 @subsection Positioning Point
20512 Gnus usually moves point to a pre-defined place on each line in most
20513 buffers. By default, point move to the first colon character on the
20514 line. You can customize this behaviour in three different ways.
20516 You can move the colon character to somewhere else on the line.
20518 @findex gnus-goto-colon
20519 You can redefine the function that moves the point to the colon. The
20520 function is called @code{gnus-goto-colon}.
20522 But perhaps the most convenient way to deal with this, if you don't want
20523 to have a colon in your line, is to use the @samp{%*} specifier. If you
20524 put a @samp{%*} somewhere in your format line definition, Gnus will
20529 @subsection Tabulation
20531 You can usually line up your displays by padding and cutting your
20532 strings. However, when combining various strings of different size, it
20533 can often be more convenient to just output the strings, and then worry
20534 about lining up the following text afterwards.
20536 To do that, Gnus supplies tabulator specs--@samp{%=}. There are two
20537 different types---@dfn{hard tabulators} and @dfn{soft tabulators}.
20539 @samp{%50=} will insert space characters to pad the line up to column
20540 50. If the text is already past column 50, nothing will be inserted.
20541 This is the soft tabulator.
20543 @samp{%-50=} will insert space characters to pad the line up to column
20544 50. If the text is already past column 50, the excess text past column
20545 50 will be removed. This is the hard tabulator.
20548 @node Wide Characters
20549 @subsection Wide Characters
20551 Proportional fonts in most countries have characters of the same width.
20552 Some countries, however, use Latin characters mixed with wider
20553 characters---most notable East Asian countries.
20555 The problem is that when formatting, Gnus assumes that if a string is 10
20556 characters wide, it'll be 10 Latin characters wide on the screen. In
20557 these countries, that's not true.
20559 @vindex gnus-use-correct-string-widths
20560 To help fix this, you can set @code{gnus-use-correct-string-widths} to
20561 @code{t}. This makes buffer generation slower, but the results will be
20562 prettier. The default value under XEmacs is @code{t} but @code{nil}
20566 @node Window Layout
20567 @section Window Layout
20568 @cindex window layout
20570 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
20572 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
20573 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
20574 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
20575 @code{t} by default.
20577 Setting this variable to @code{nil} kinda works, but there are
20578 glitches. Use at your own peril.
20580 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
20581 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
20582 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
20585 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
20586 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
20587 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
20591 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
20592 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
20593 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
20594 possible names is listed below.
20596 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
20597 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
20600 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
20604 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
20605 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
20606 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
20607 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
20608 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
20609 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
20610 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
20611 size spec per split.
20613 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
20614 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
20615 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
20616 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
20617 present) gets focus.
20619 Here's a more complicated example:
20622 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
20623 (summary 0.25 point)
20624 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
20628 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
20629 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
20630 occupy, not a percentage.
20632 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
20633 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
20634 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
20635 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
20636 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
20639 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
20642 (article (horizontal 1.0
20647 (summary 0.25 point)
20652 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
20653 @code{horizontal} thingie?
20655 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
20656 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
20657 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
20658 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
20659 the screen is to be given to this strip.
20661 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
20662 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
20663 lines from the splits.
20665 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
20669 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
20670 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
20671 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
20672 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
20673 buffer = "(" buf-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
20674 size = number | frame-params
20675 buf-name = group | article | summary ...
20678 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
20679 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
20680 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
20681 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
20683 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
20684 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
20685 @cindex window height
20686 @cindex window width
20687 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
20688 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
20689 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
20690 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
20691 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
20692 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
20694 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
20695 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
20696 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
20697 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
20699 @findex gnus-configure-frame
20700 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
20701 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
20702 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
20703 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
20704 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
20705 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
20706 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
20707 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
20708 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
20709 configuration list.
20712 (gnus-configure-frame
20716 (article 0.3 point))
20724 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
20725 @code{frame} split:
20728 (gnus-configure-frame
20731 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
20733 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
20734 (user-position . t)
20735 (left . -1) (top . 1))
20740 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
20741 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
20742 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
20743 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
20744 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
20745 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
20746 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
20747 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
20749 The list of all possible keys for @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} can
20750 be found in its default value.
20752 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
20753 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
20754 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
20758 (message (horizontal 1.0
20759 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
20761 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
20766 One common desire for a multiple frame split is to have a separate frame
20767 for composing mail and news while leaving the original frame intact. To
20768 accomplish that, something like the following can be done:
20773 (if (not (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer))
20774 (car (cdr (assoc 'group gnus-buffer-configuration)))
20775 (car (cdr (assoc 'summary gnus-buffer-configuration))))
20776 (vertical ((user-position . t) (top . 1) (left . 1)
20777 (name . "Message"))
20778 (message 1.0 point))))
20781 @findex gnus-add-configuration
20782 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
20783 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
20784 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
20785 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
20788 (gnus-add-configuration
20789 '(article (vertical 1.0
20791 (summary .25 point)
20795 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
20796 @file{~/.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
20797 Gnus has been loaded.
20799 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
20800 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
20801 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
20802 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
20803 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
20805 If you're using tree displays (@pxref{Tree Display}), and the tree
20806 window is displayed vertically next to another window, you may also want
20807 to fiddle with @code{gnus-tree-minimize-window} to avoid having the
20810 @subsection Example Window Configurations
20814 Narrow left hand side occupied by group buffer. Right hand side split
20815 between summary buffer (top one-sixth) and article buffer (bottom).
20830 (gnus-add-configuration
20833 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
20835 (summary 0.16 point)
20838 (gnus-add-configuration
20841 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
20842 (vertical 1.0 (summary 1.0 point)))))
20848 @node Faces and Fonts
20849 @section Faces and Fonts
20854 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
20855 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
20856 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
20861 @section Compilation
20862 @cindex compilation
20863 @cindex byte-compilation
20865 @findex gnus-compile
20867 Remember all those line format specification variables?
20868 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
20869 on. By default, T-gnus will use the byte-compiled codes of these
20870 variables and we can keep a slow-down to a minimum. However, if you set
20871 @code{gnus-compile-user-specs} to @code{nil} (@code{t} by default),
20872 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
20873 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
20874 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
20877 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
20878 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
20879 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
20880 you'll get top speed again. Note that T-gnus will not save these
20881 compiled specs in the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
20884 @item gnus-compile-user-specs
20885 @vindex gnus-compile-user-specs
20886 If it is non-nil, the user-defined format specs will be byte-compiled
20887 automatically. The default value of this variable is @code{t}. It has
20888 an effect on the values of @code{gnus-*-line-format-spec}.
20893 @section Mode Lines
20896 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
20897 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
20898 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
20899 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
20900 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
20901 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
20902 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
20905 @cindex display-time
20907 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
20908 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
20909 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
20910 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
20911 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
20912 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
20913 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
20914 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
20917 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
20919 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
20920 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
20922 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
20923 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
20924 (length display-time-string)))))
20927 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
20928 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
20929 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
20930 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
20931 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
20934 @node Highlighting and Menus
20935 @section Highlighting and Menus
20937 @cindex highlighting
20940 @vindex gnus-visual
20941 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
20942 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
20943 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
20946 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
20947 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
20950 @item group-highlight
20951 Do highlights in the group buffer.
20952 @item summary-highlight
20953 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
20954 @item article-highlight
20955 Do highlights in the article buffer.
20957 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
20959 Create menus in the group buffer.
20961 Create menus in the summary buffers.
20963 Create menus in the article buffer.
20965 Create menus in the browse buffer.
20967 Create menus in the server buffer.
20969 Create menus in the score buffers.
20971 Create menus in all buffers.
20974 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
20975 buffers, you could say something like:
20978 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
20981 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
20984 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
20987 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
20988 in all Gnus buffers.
20990 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
20993 @item gnus-mouse-face
20994 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
20995 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
20996 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
21000 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
21004 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
21005 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
21006 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
21008 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
21009 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
21010 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
21012 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
21013 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
21014 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
21016 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
21017 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
21018 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
21020 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
21021 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
21022 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
21024 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
21025 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
21026 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
21037 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
21038 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
21039 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
21040 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
21041 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
21045 @vindex gnus-carpal
21046 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
21047 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
21048 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
21053 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
21054 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
21055 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
21057 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
21058 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
21059 Face used on buttons.
21061 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
21062 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
21063 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
21065 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
21066 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
21067 Buttons in the group buffer.
21069 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
21070 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
21071 Buttons in the summary buffer.
21073 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
21074 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
21075 Buttons in the server buffer.
21077 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
21078 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
21079 Buttons in the browse buffer.
21082 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
21083 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
21084 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
21092 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
21093 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
21094 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
21095 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
21096 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
21098 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
21099 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
21100 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
21102 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
21103 been idle for thirty minutes:
21106 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
21109 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
21113 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
21116 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
21117 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
21118 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
21120 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
21121 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
21122 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
21123 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
21125 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
21126 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
21127 @var{idle} minutes.
21129 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
21130 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
21133 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
21134 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
21135 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
21137 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
21138 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
21139 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
21140 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
21142 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
21143 your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
21145 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
21147 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
21150 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
21151 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
21152 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
21153 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
21154 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
21155 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
21156 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
21157 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
21158 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
21159 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
21160 @file{~/.gnus.el} if you want those abilities.
21162 @findex gnus-demon-init
21163 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
21164 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
21165 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
21166 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
21167 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
21169 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
21170 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
21171 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
21180 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
21181 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
21183 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
21184 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
21185 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
21186 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
21189 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
21190 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
21191 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
21192 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
21194 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
21195 this will make spam disappear.
21197 There are some variables to customize, of course:
21200 @item gnus-use-nocem
21201 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
21202 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
21205 @item gnus-nocem-groups
21206 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
21207 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
21208 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
21209 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
21211 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
21212 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
21213 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
21214 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
21215 "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" "cosmo.roadkill" "SpamHippo"
21216 "hweede@@snafu.de")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
21218 Known despammers that you can put in this list are listed at
21219 @uref{http://www.xs4all.nl/~rosalind/nocemreg/nocemreg.html}.
21221 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
21222 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
21223 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
21224 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
21225 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
21226 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
21227 @code{(@var{issuer} @var{conditions} @dots{})} elements in the list.
21228 Each condition is either a string (which is a regexp that matches types
21229 you want to use) or a list on the form @code{(not @var{string})}, where
21230 @var{string} is a regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
21232 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
21233 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
21236 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
21239 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
21240 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
21243 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
21246 The specs are applied left-to-right.
21249 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
21250 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
21252 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
21253 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
21254 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
21255 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
21257 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
21258 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
21261 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
21263 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
21271 This might be dangerous, though.
21273 @item gnus-nocem-directory
21274 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
21275 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
21276 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
21278 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
21279 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
21280 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
21281 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
21282 might then see old spam.
21284 @item gnus-nocem-check-from
21285 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-from
21286 Non-@code{nil} means check for valid issuers in message bodies.
21287 Otherwise don't bother fetching articles unless their author matches a
21288 valid issuer; that is much faster if you are selective about the
21291 @item gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
21292 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
21293 If non-@code{nil}, the maximum number of articles to check in any NoCeM
21294 group. NoCeM groups can be huge and very slow to process.
21298 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
21299 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
21300 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
21301 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
21308 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
21309 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
21310 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
21312 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
21313 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
21314 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
21315 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
21316 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
21317 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
21318 @code{undo} function.
21320 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
21321 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
21322 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
21323 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
21324 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
21325 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
21326 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
21327 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
21328 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
21329 never be totally undoable.
21331 @findex gnus-undo-mode
21332 @vindex gnus-use-undo
21334 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
21335 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
21336 default. The @kbd{C-M-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo}
21337 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
21341 @node Predicate Specifiers
21342 @section Predicate Specifiers
21343 @cindex predicate specifiers
21345 Some Gnus variables are @dfn{predicate specifiers}. This is a special
21346 form that allows flexible specification of predicates without having
21347 to type all that much.
21349 These specifiers are lists consisting of functions, symbols and lists.
21354 (or gnus-article-unseen-p
21355 gnus-article-unread-p)
21358 The available symbols are @code{or}, @code{and} and @code{not}. The
21359 functions all take one parameter.
21361 @findex gnus-make-predicate
21362 Internally, Gnus calls @code{gnus-make-predicate} on these specifiers
21363 to create a function that can be called. This input parameter to this
21364 function will be passed along to all the functions in the predicate
21369 @section Moderation
21372 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
21373 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
21374 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
21377 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
21381 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
21384 in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file.
21386 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
21391 You split your incoming mail by matching on
21392 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
21393 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
21396 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
21397 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
21400 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
21401 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
21405 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
21408 (setq gnus-moderated-list
21409 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
21413 @node Image Enhancements
21414 @section Image Enhancements
21416 XEmacs, as well as Emacs 21, is able to display pictures and stuff, so
21417 Gnus has taken advantage of that.
21420 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what you're reading.
21421 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
21422 * X-Face:: Display a funky, teensy black-and-white image.
21423 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
21436 So@dots{} You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
21437 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
21438 over your shoulder as you read news.
21440 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
21449 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
21450 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
21451 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
21452 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
21453 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
21454 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
21455 @code{GIF} formats.
21458 @vindex gnus-picon-databases
21459 For instructions on obtaining and installing the picons databases,
21460 point your Web browser at
21461 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}.
21463 If you are using Debian GNU/Linux, saying @samp{apt-get install
21464 picons.*} will install the picons where Gnus can find them.
21466 To enable displaying picons, simply make sure that
21467 @code{gnus-picon-databases} points to the directory containing the
21470 The following variables offer control over where things are located.
21474 @item gnus-picon-databases
21475 @vindex gnus-picon-databases
21476 The location of the picons database. This is a list of directories
21477 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
21478 subdirectories. Defaults to @code{("/usr/lib/picon"
21479 "/usr/local/faces")}.
21481 @item gnus-picon-news-directories
21482 @vindex gnus-picon-news-directories
21483 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picon-databases} for
21484 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
21486 @item gnus-picon-user-directories
21487 @vindex gnus-picon-user-directories
21488 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picon-databases} for user
21489 faces. @code{("users" "usenix" "local" "misc")} is the default.
21491 @item gnus-picon-domain-directories
21492 @vindex gnus-picon-domain-directories
21493 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picon-databases} for
21494 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
21495 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
21497 @item gnus-picon-file-types
21498 @vindex gnus-picon-file-types
21499 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
21500 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your Emacs.
21505 @subsection Smileys
21510 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/BigFace,height=20cm}}
21515 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
21516 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
21518 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
21519 @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
21522 (setq gnus-treat-display-smileys t)
21525 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{8-)}, @samp{:-(} and
21526 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
21527 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
21528 text and maps that to file names.
21530 @vindex smiley-regexp-alist
21531 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist}
21532 variable. The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched;
21533 the second element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by
21534 the picture; and the third element is the name of the file to be
21537 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
21542 @item smiley-data-directory
21543 @vindex smiley-data-directory
21544 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
21546 @item gnus-smiley-file-types
21547 @vindex gnus-smiley-file-types
21548 List of suffixes on smiley file names to try.
21557 @code{X-Face} headers describe a 48x48 pixel black-and-white (1 bit
21558 depth) image that's supposed to represent the author of the message.
21559 It seems to be supported by an ever-growing number of mail and news
21563 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
21564 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
21565 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
21566 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
21574 Decoding an @code{X-Face} header either requires an Emacs that has
21575 @samp{compface} support (which most XEmacs versions has), or that you
21576 have @samp{compface} installed on your system. If either is true,
21577 Gnus will default to displaying @code{X-Face} headers.
21579 The variable that controls this is the
21580 @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable. If this variable is a
21581 string, this string will be executed in a sub-shell. If it is a
21582 function, this function will be called with the face as the argument.
21583 If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which is a regexp) matches
21584 the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
21586 The default action under Emacs 20 is to fork off the @code{display}
21587 program@footnote{@code{display} is from the ImageMagick package. For
21588 the @code{uncompface} and @code{icontopbm} programs look for a package
21589 like @code{compface} or @code{faces-xface} on a GNU/Linux system.} to
21592 Under XEmacs or Emacs 21+ with suitable image support, the default
21593 action is to display the face before the @code{From} header. (It's
21594 nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with @code{X-Face} support---that
21595 will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native @code{X-Face}
21596 support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
21597 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and
21598 friends.@footnote{On a GNU/Linux system look for packages with names
21599 like @code{netpbm}, @code{libgr-progs} and @code{compface}.})
21601 (Note: @code{x-face} is used in the variable/function names, not
21604 Gnus provides a few convenience functions and variables to allow
21605 easier insertion of X-Face headers in outgoing messages.
21607 @findex gnus-random-x-face
21608 @vindex gnus-convert-pbm-to-x-face-command
21609 @vindex gnus-x-face-directory
21610 @code{gnus-random-x-face} goes through all the @samp{pbm} files in
21611 @code{gnus-x-face-directory} and picks one at random, and then
21612 converts it to the X-Face format by using the
21613 @code{gnus-convert-pbm-to-x-face-command} shell command. The
21614 @samp{pbm} files should be 48x48 pixels big. It returns the X-Face
21615 header data as a string.
21617 @findex gnus-insert-random-x-face-header
21618 @code{gnus-insert-random-x-face-header} calls
21619 @code{gnus-random-x-face} and inserts a @samp{X-Face} header with the
21620 randomly generated data.
21622 @findex gnus-x-face-from-file
21623 @vindex gnus-convert-image-to-x-face-command
21624 @code{gnus-x-face-from-file} takes a GIF file as the parameter, and then
21625 converts the file to X-Face format by using the
21626 @code{gnus-convert-image-to-x-face-command} shell command.
21628 Here's how you would typically use the first function. Put something
21629 like the following in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
21632 (setq message-required-news-headers
21633 (nconc message-required-news-headers
21634 (list '(X-Face . gnus-random-x-face))))
21637 Using the last function would be something like this:
21640 (setq message-required-news-headers
21641 (nconc message-required-news-headers
21642 (list '(X-Face . (lambda ()
21643 (gnus-x-face-from-file
21644 "~/My-face.gif"))))))
21649 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
21652 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
21653 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
21654 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
21655 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
21656 unusual directory structure.
21658 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
21659 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
21660 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
21661 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
21663 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
21664 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
21665 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
21666 Valid values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
21667 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
21668 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
21670 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
21671 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
21672 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
21677 @subsubsection Toolbar
21681 @item gnus-use-toolbar
21682 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
21683 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
21684 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
21685 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
21687 @item gnus-group-toolbar
21688 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
21689 The toolbar in the group buffer.
21691 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
21692 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
21693 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
21695 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
21696 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
21697 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
21708 @node Fuzzy Matching
21709 @section Fuzzy Matching
21710 @cindex fuzzy matching
21712 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
21713 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
21715 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
21716 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
21717 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
21719 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
21720 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
21721 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
21722 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
21723 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
21726 @node Thwarting Email Spam
21727 @section Thwarting Email Spam
21731 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
21733 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
21734 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
21735 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
21736 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
21737 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
21738 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
21739 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
21740 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
21743 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
21744 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
21745 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
21746 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
21747 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
21748 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
21750 This is annoying. Here's what you can do about it.
21753 * The problem of spam:: Some background, and some solutions
21754 * Anti-Spam Basics:: Simple steps to reduce the amount of spam.
21755 * SpamAssassin:: How to use external anti-spam tools.
21756 * Hashcash:: Reduce spam by burning CPU time.
21757 * Filtering Spam Using The Spam ELisp Package::
21758 * Filtering Spam Using Statistics with spam-stat::
21761 @node The problem of spam
21762 @subsection The problem of spam
21764 @cindex spam filtering approaches
21765 @cindex filtering approaches, spam
21767 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
21769 First, some background on spam.
21771 If you have access to e-mail, you are familiar with spam (technically
21772 termed @acronym{UCE}, Unsolicited Commercial E-mail). Simply put, it exists
21773 because e-mail delivery is very cheap compared to paper mail, so only
21774 a very small percentage of people need to respond to an UCE to make it
21775 worthwhile to the advertiser. Ironically, one of the most common
21776 spams is the one offering a database of e-mail addresses for further
21777 spamming. Senders of spam are usually called @emph{spammers}, but terms like
21778 @emph{vermin}, @emph{scum}, and @emph{morons} are in common use as well.
21780 Spam comes from a wide variety of sources. It is simply impossible to
21781 dispose of all spam without discarding useful messages. A good
21782 example is the TMDA system, which requires senders
21783 unknown to you to confirm themselves as legitimate senders before
21784 their e-mail can reach you. Without getting into the technical side
21785 of TMDA, a downside is clearly that e-mail from legitimate sources may
21786 be discarded if those sources can't or won't confirm themselves
21787 through the TMDA system. Another problem with TMDA is that it
21788 requires its users to have a basic understanding of e-mail delivery
21791 The simplest approach to filtering spam is filtering. If you get 200
21792 spam messages per day from @samp{random-address@@vmadmin.com}, you
21793 block @samp{vmadmin.com}. If you get 200 messages about
21794 @samp{VIAGRA}, you discard all messages with @samp{VIAGRA} in the
21795 message. This, unfortunately, is a great way to discard legitimate
21796 e-mail. For instance, the very informative and useful RISKS digest
21797 has been blocked by overzealous mail filters because it
21798 @strong{contained} words that were common in spam messages.
21799 Nevertheless, in isolated cases, with great care, direct filtering of
21800 mail can be useful.
21802 Another approach to filtering e-mail is the distributed spam
21803 processing, for instance DCC implements such a system. In essence,
21804 @code{N} systems around the world agree that a machine @samp{X} in
21805 China, Ghana, or California is sending out spam e-mail, and these
21806 @code{N} systems enter @samp{X} or the spam e-mail from @samp{X} into
21807 a database. The criteria for spam detection vary - it may be the
21808 number of messages sent, the content of the messages, and so on. When
21809 a user of the distributed processing system wants to find out if a
21810 message is spam, he consults one of those @code{N} systems.
21812 Distributed spam processing works very well against spammers that send
21813 a large number of messages at once, but it requires the user to set up
21814 fairly complicated checks. There are commercial and free distributed
21815 spam processing systems. Distributed spam processing has its risks as
21816 well. For instance legitimate e-mail senders have been accused of
21817 sending spam, and their web sites have been shut down for some time
21818 because of the incident.
21820 The statistical approach to spam filtering is also popular. It is
21821 based on a statistical analysis of previous spam messages. Usually
21822 the analysis is a simple word frequency count, with perhaps pairs of
21823 words or 3-word combinations thrown into the mix. Statistical
21824 analysis of spam works very well in most of the cases, but it can
21825 classify legitimate e-mail as spam in some cases. It takes time to
21826 run the analysis, the full message must be analyzed, and the user has
21827 to store the database of spam analyses.
21829 @node Anti-Spam Basics
21830 @subsection Anti-Spam Basics
21834 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
21836 One way of dealing with spam is having Gnus split out all spam into a
21837 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
21839 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
21840 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
21841 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
21842 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
21843 sysadmin whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
21844 part of the mail address.)
21847 (setq message-default-news-headers
21848 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
21851 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
21852 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
21857 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
21858 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
21859 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
21865 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
21866 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
21867 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
21868 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
21870 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @sc{smtp} server
21871 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
21872 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
21873 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
21874 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
21875 your fancy split rule in this way:
21880 (to "larsi" "misc")
21884 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
21885 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
21886 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
21887 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
21888 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
21890 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
21891 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
21892 at @* @uref{http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html}.
21893 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
21894 cosmic balance somewhat.
21896 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
21897 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
21898 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
21899 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
21904 @subsection SpamAssassin, Vipul's Razor, DCC, etc
21905 @cindex SpamAssassin
21906 @cindex Vipul's Razor
21909 The days where the hints in the previous section was sufficient in
21910 avoiding spam is coming to an end. There are many tools out there
21911 that claim to reduce the amount of spam you get. This section could
21912 easily become outdated fast, as new products replace old, but
21913 fortunately most of these tools seem to have similar interfaces. Even
21914 though this section will use SpamAssassin as an example, it should be
21915 easy to adapt it to most other tools.
21917 If the tool you are using is not installed on the mail server, you
21918 need to invoke it yourself. Ideas on how to use the
21919 @code{:postscript} mail source parameter (@pxref{Mail Source
21920 Specifiers}) follows.
21924 '((file :prescript "formail -bs spamassassin < /var/mail/%u")
21927 :postscript "mv %t /tmp/foo; formail -bs spamc < /tmp/foo > %t")))
21930 Once you managed to process your incoming spool somehow, thus making
21931 the mail contain e.g. a header indicating it is spam, you are ready to
21932 filter it out. Using normal split methods (@pxref{Splitting Mail}):
21935 (setq nnmail-split-methods '(("spam" "^X-Spam-Flag: YES")
21939 Or using fancy split methods (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
21942 (setq nnmail-split-methods 'nnmail-split-fancy
21943 nnmail-split-fancy '(| ("X-Spam-Flag" "YES" "spam")
21947 Some people might not like the idea of piping the mail through various
21948 programs using a @code{:prescript} (if some program is buggy, you
21949 might lose all mail). If you are one of them, another solution is to
21950 call the external tools during splitting. Example fancy split method:
21953 (setq nnmail-split-fancy '(| (: kevin-spamassassin)
21955 (defun kevin-spamassassin ()
21957 (let ((buf (or (get-buffer " *nnmail incoming*")
21958 (get-buffer " *nnml move*"))))
21960 (progn (message "Oops, cannot find message buffer") nil)
21962 (if (eq 1 (call-process-region (point-min) (point-max)
21963 "spamc" nil nil nil "-c"))
21967 That is about it. As some spam is likely to get through anyway, you
21968 might want to have a nifty function to call when you happen to read
21969 spam. And here is the nifty function:
21972 (defun my-gnus-raze-spam ()
21973 "Submit SPAM to Vipul's Razor, then mark it as expirable."
21975 (gnus-summary-show-raw-article)
21976 (gnus-summary-save-in-pipe "razor-report -f -d")
21977 (gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable 1))
21981 @subsection Hashcash
21984 A novel technique to fight spam is to require senders to do something
21985 costly for each message they send. This has the obvious drawback that
21986 you cannot rely on that everyone in the world uses this technique,
21987 since it is not part of the Internet standards, but it may be useful
21988 in smaller communities.
21990 While the tools in the previous section work well in practice, they
21991 work only because the tools are constantly maintained and updated as
21992 new form of spam appears. This means that a small percentage of spam
21993 will always get through. It also means that somewhere, someone needs
21994 to read lots of spam to update these tools. Hashcash avoids that, but
21995 instead requires that everyone you communicate with supports the
21996 scheme. You can view the two approaches as pragmatic vs dogmatic.
21997 The approaches have their own advantages and disadvantages, but as
21998 often in the real world, a combination of them is stronger than either
21999 one of them separately.
22002 The ``something costly'' is to burn CPU time, more specifically to
22003 compute a hash collision up to a certain number of bits. The
22004 resulting hashcash cookie is inserted in a @samp{X-Hashcash:}
22005 header. For more details, and for the external application
22006 @code{hashcash} you need to install to use this feature, see
22007 @uref{http://www.cypherspace.org/~adam/hashcash/}. Even more
22008 information can be found at @uref{http://www.camram.org/}.
22010 If you wish to call hashcash for each message you send, say something
22014 (require 'hashcash)
22015 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'mail-add-payment)
22018 The @code{hashcash.el} library can be found at
22019 @uref{http://users.actrix.gen.nz/mycroft/hashcash.el}, or in the Gnus
22020 development contrib directory.
22022 You will need to set up some additional variables as well:
22026 @item hashcash-default-payment
22027 @vindex hashcash-default-payment
22028 This variable indicates the default number of bits the hash collision
22029 should consist of. By default this is 0, meaning nothing will be
22030 done. Suggested useful values include 17 to 29.
22032 @item hashcash-payment-alist
22033 @vindex hashcash-payment-alist
22034 Some receivers may require you to spend burn more CPU time than the
22035 default. This variable contains a list of @samp{(@var{addr}
22036 @var{amount})} cells, where @var{addr} is the receiver (email address
22037 or newsgroup) and @var{amount} is the number of bits in the collision
22038 that is needed. It can also contain @samp{(@var{addr} @var{string}
22039 @var{amount})} cells, where the @var{string} is the string to use
22040 (normally the email address or newsgroup name is used).
22044 Where the @code{hashcash} binary is installed.
22048 Currently there is no built in functionality in Gnus to verify
22049 hashcash cookies, it is expected that this is performed by your hand
22050 customized mail filtering scripts. Improvements in this area would be
22051 a useful contribution, however.
22053 @node Filtering Spam Using The Spam ELisp Package
22054 @subsection Filtering Spam Using The Spam ELisp Package
22055 @cindex spam filtering
22058 The idea behind @code{spam.el} is to have a control center for spam detection
22059 and filtering in Gnus. To that end, @code{spam.el} does two things: it
22060 filters incoming mail, and it analyzes mail known to be spam or ham.
22061 @emph{Ham} is the name used throughout @code{spam.el} to indicate
22064 So, what happens when you load @code{spam.el}? First of all, you get
22065 the following keyboard commands:
22075 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-spam
22076 @code{gnus-summary-mark-as-spam}.
22078 Mark current article as spam, showing it with the @samp{$} mark.
22079 Whenever you see a spam article, make sure to mark its summary line
22080 with @kbd{M-d} before leaving the group. This is done automatically
22081 for unread articles in @emph{spam} groups.
22087 @findex spam-bogofilter-score
22088 @code{spam-bogofilter-score}.
22090 You must have Bogofilter installed for that command to work properly.
22096 Also, when you load @code{spam.el}, you will be able to customize its
22097 variables. Try @code{customize-group} on the @samp{spam} variable
22100 The concepts of ham processors and spam processors are very important.
22101 Ham processors and spam processors for a group can be set with the
22102 @code{spam-process} group parameter, or the
22103 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. Ham processors take
22104 mail known to be non-spam (@emph{ham}) and process it in some way so
22105 that later similar mail will also be considered non-spam. Spam
22106 processors take mail known to be spam and process it so similar spam
22107 will be detected later.
22109 Gnus learns from the spam you get. You have to collect your spam in
22110 one or more spam groups, and set or customize the variable
22111 @code{spam-junk-mailgroups} as appropriate. You can also declare
22112 groups to contain spam by setting their group parameter
22113 @code{spam-contents} to @code{gnus-group-spam-classification-spam}, or
22114 by customizing the corresponding variable
22115 @code{gnus-spam-newsgroup-contents}. The @code{spam-contents} group
22116 parameter and the @code{gnus-spam-newsgroup-contents} variable can
22117 also be used to declare groups as @emph{ham} groups if you set their
22118 classification to @code{gnus-group-spam-classification-ham}. If
22119 groups are not classified by means of @code{spam-junk-mailgroups},
22120 @code{spam-contents}, or @code{gnus-spam-newsgroup-contents}, they are
22121 considered @emph{unclassified}. All groups are unclassified by
22124 In spam groups, all messages are considered to be spam by default:
22125 they get the @samp{$} mark when you enter the group. You must review
22126 these messages from time to time and remove the @samp{$} mark for
22127 every message that is not spam after all. To remove the @samp{$}
22128 mark, you can use @kbd{M-u} to ``unread'' the article, or @kbd{d} for
22129 declaring it read the non-spam way. When you leave a group, all
22130 spam-marked (@samp{$}) articles are sent to a spam processor which
22131 will study them as spam samples.
22133 Messages may also be deleted in various other ways, and unless
22134 @code{spam-ham-marks} gets overridden below, marks @samp{R} and
22135 @samp{r} for default read or explicit delete, marks @samp{X} and
22136 @samp{K} for automatic or explicit kills, as well as mark @samp{Y} for
22137 low scores, are all considered to be associated with articles which
22138 are not spam. This assumption might be false, in particular if you
22139 use kill files or score files as means for detecting genuine spam, you
22140 should then adjust the @code{spam-ham-marks} variable.
22142 @defvar spam-ham-marks
22143 You can customize this variable to be the list of marks you want to
22144 consider ham. By default, the list contains the deleted, read,
22145 killed, kill-filed, and low-score marks.
22148 @defvar spam-spam-marks
22149 You can customize this variable to be the list of marks you want to
22150 consider spam. By default, the list contains only the spam mark.
22153 When you leave @emph{any} group, regardless of its
22154 @code{spam-contents} classification, all spam-marked articles are sent
22155 to a spam processor, which will study these as spam samples. If you
22156 explicit kill a lot, you might sometimes end up with articles marked
22157 @samp{K} which you never saw, and which might accidentally contain
22158 spam. Best is to make sure that real spam is marked with @samp{$},
22161 When you leave a @emph{spam} group, all spam-marked articles are
22162 marked as expired after processing with the spam processor. This is
22163 not done for @emph{unclassified} or @emph{ham} groups. Also, any
22164 @strong{ham} articles in a spam group will be moved to a location
22165 determined by either the @code{ham-process-destination} group
22166 parameter or a match in the @code{gnus-ham-process-destinations}
22167 variable, which is a list of regular expressions matched with group
22168 names (it's easiest to customize this variable with
22169 @code{customize-variable gnus-ham-process-destinations}). The ultimate
22170 location is a group name. If the @code{ham-process-destination}
22171 parameter is not set, spam articles are only expired.
22173 When you leave a @emph{ham} group, all ham-marked articles are sent to
22174 a ham processor, which will study these as non-spam samples.
22176 When you leave a @emph{ham} or @emph{unclassified} group, all
22177 @strong{spam} articles are moved to a location determined by either
22178 the @code{spam-process-destination} group parameter or a match in the
22179 @code{gnus-spam-process-destinations} variable, which is a list of
22180 regular expressions matched with group names (it's easiest to
22181 customize this variable with @code{customize-variable
22182 gnus-spam-process-destinations}). The ultimate location is a group
22183 name. If the @code{spam-process-destination} parameter is not set,
22184 the spam articles are only expired.
22186 To use the @code{spam.el} facilities for incoming mail filtering, you
22187 must add the following to your fancy split list
22188 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} or @code{nnimap-split-fancy}:
22194 Note that the fancy split may be called @code{nnmail-split-fancy} or
22195 @code{nnimap-split-fancy}, depending on whether you use the nnmail or
22196 nnimap back ends to retrieve your mail.
22198 The @code{spam-split} function will process incoming mail and send the
22199 mail considered to be spam into the group name given by the variable
22200 @code{spam-split-group}. By default that group name is @samp{spam},
22201 but you can customize it.
22203 @emph{Note for IMAP users}
22205 The boolean variable @code{nnimap-split-download-body} needs to be
22206 set, if you want to split based on the whole message instead of just
22207 the headers. By default, the nnimap backend will only retrieve the
22208 message headers. If you use spam-check-bogofilter, spam-check-ifile,
22209 or spam-check-stat (the splitters that can benefit from the full
22210 message body), you should set this variable. It is not set by default
22211 because it will slow IMAP down.
22213 @xref{Splitting in IMAP}.
22215 @emph{TODO: Currently, spam.el only supports insertion of articles
22216 into a backend. There is no way to tell spam.el that an article is no
22217 longer spam or ham.}
22219 @emph{TODO: spam.el needs to provide a uniform way of training all the
22220 statistical databases. Some have that functionality built-in, others
22223 The following are the methods you can use to control the behavior of
22224 @code{spam-split} and their corresponding spam and ham processors:
22227 * Blacklists and Whitelists::
22228 * BBDB Whitelists::
22230 * Regular Expressions Header Matching::
22232 * ifile spam filtering::
22233 * spam-stat spam filtering::
22234 * Extending the spam elisp package::
22237 @node Blacklists and Whitelists
22238 @subsubsection Blacklists and Whitelists
22239 @cindex spam filtering
22240 @cindex whitelists, spam filtering
22241 @cindex blacklists, spam filtering
22244 @defvar spam-use-blacklist
22246 Set this variable to @code{t} if you want to use blacklists when
22247 splitting incoming mail. Messages whose senders are in the blacklist
22248 will be sent to the @code{spam-split-group}. This is an explicit
22249 filter, meaning that it acts only on mail senders @emph{declared} to
22254 @defvar spam-use-whitelist
22256 Set this variable to @code{t} if you want to use whitelists when
22257 splitting incoming mail. Messages whose senders are not in the
22258 whitelist will be sent to the next spam-split rule. This is an
22259 explicit filter, meaning that unless someone is in the whitelist, their
22260 messages are not assumed to be spam or ham.
22264 @defvar spam-use-whitelist-exclusive
22266 Set this variable to @code{t} if you want to use whitelists as an
22267 implicit filter, meaning that every message will be considered spam
22268 unless the sender is in the whitelist. Use with care.
22272 @defvar gnus-group-spam-exit-processor-blacklist
22274 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22275 customizing the group parameters or the
22276 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22277 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, the senders of
22278 spam-marked articles will be added to the blacklist.
22282 @defvar gnus-group-ham-exit-processor-whitelist
22284 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22285 customizing the group parameters or the
22286 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22287 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, the senders of
22288 ham-marked articles in @emph{ham} groups will be added to the
22289 whitelist. Note that this ham processor has no effect in @emph{spam}
22290 or @emph{unclassified} groups.
22294 Blacklists are lists of regular expressions matching addresses you
22295 consider to be spam senders. For instance, to block mail from any
22296 sender at @samp{vmadmin.com}, you can put @samp{vmadmin.com} in your
22297 blacklist. You start out with an empty blacklist. Blacklist entries
22298 use the Emacs regular expression syntax.
22300 Conversely, whitelists tell Gnus what addresses are considered
22301 legitimate. All messages from whitelisted addresses are considered
22302 non-spam. Also see @ref{BBDB Whitelists}. Whitelist entries use the
22303 Emacs regular expression syntax.
22305 The blacklist and whitelist file locations can be customized with the
22306 @code{spam-directory} variable (@file{~/News/spam} by default), or
22307 the @code{spam-whitelist} and @code{spam-blacklist} variables
22308 directly. The whitelist and blacklist files will by default be in the
22309 @code{spam-directory} directory, named @file{whitelist} and
22310 @file{blacklist} respectively.
22312 @node BBDB Whitelists
22313 @subsubsection BBDB Whitelists
22314 @cindex spam filtering
22315 @cindex BBDB whitelists, spam filtering
22316 @cindex BBDB, spam filtering
22319 @defvar spam-use-BBDB
22321 Analogous to @code{spam-use-whitelist} (@pxref{Blacklists and
22322 Whitelists}), but uses the BBDB as the source of whitelisted
22323 addresses, without regular expressions. You must have the BBDB loaded
22324 for @code{spam-use-BBDB} to work properly. Messages whose senders are
22325 not in the BBDB will be sent to the next spam-split rule. This is an
22326 explicit filter, meaning that unless someone is in the BBDB, their
22327 messages are not assumed to be spam or ham.
22331 @defvar spam-use-BBDB-exclusive
22333 Set this variable to @code{t} if you want to use the BBDB as an
22334 implicit filter, meaning that every message will be considered spam
22335 unless the sender is in the BBDB. Use with care. Only sender
22336 addresses in the BBDB will be allowed through; all others will be
22337 classified as spammers.
22341 @defvar gnus-group-ham-exit-processor-BBDB
22343 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22344 customizing the group parameters or the
22345 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22346 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, the senders of
22347 ham-marked articles in @emph{ham} groups will be added to the
22348 BBDB. Note that this ham processor has no effect in @emph{spam}
22349 or @emph{unclassified} groups.
22354 @subsubsection Blackholes
22355 @cindex spam filtering
22356 @cindex blackholes, spam filtering
22359 @defvar spam-use-blackholes
22361 This option is disabled by default. You can let Gnus consult the
22362 blackhole-type distributed spam processing systems (DCC, for instance)
22363 when you set this option. The variable @code{spam-blackhole-servers}
22364 holds the list of blackhole servers Gnus will consult. The current
22365 list is fairly comprehensive, but make sure to let us know if it
22366 contains outdated servers.
22368 The blackhole check uses the @code{dig.el} package, but you can tell
22369 @code{spam.el} to use @code{dns.el} instead for better performance if
22370 you set @code{spam-use-dig} to @code{nil}. It is not recommended at
22371 this time to set @code{spam-use-dig} to @code{nil} despite the
22372 possible performance improvements, because some users may be unable to
22373 use it, but you can try it and see if it works for you.
22377 @defvar spam-blackhole-servers
22379 The list of servers to consult for blackhole checks.
22383 @defvar spam-blackhole-good-server-regex
22385 A regular expression for IPs that should not be checked against the
22386 blackhole server list. When set to @code{nil}, it has no effect.
22390 @defvar spam-use-dig
22392 Use the @code{dig.el} package instead of the @code{dns.el} package.
22393 The default setting of @code{t} is recommended.
22397 Blackhole checks are done only on incoming mail. There is no spam or
22398 ham processor for blackholes.
22400 @node Regular Expressions Header Matching
22401 @subsubsection Regular Expressions Header Matching
22402 @cindex spam filtering
22403 @cindex regular expressions header matching, spam filtering
22406 @defvar spam-use-regex-headers
22408 This option is disabled by default. You can let Gnus check the
22409 message headers against lists of regular expressions when you set this
22410 option. The variables @code{spam-regex-headers-spam} and
22411 @code{spam-regex-headers-ham} hold the list of regular expressions.
22412 Gnus will check against the message headers to determine if the
22413 message is spam or ham, respectively.
22417 @defvar spam-regex-headers-spam
22419 The list of regular expressions that, when matched in the headers of
22420 the message, positively identify it as spam.
22424 @defvar spam-regex-headers-ham
22426 The list of regular expressions that, when matched in the headers of
22427 the message, positively identify it as ham.
22431 Regular expression header checks are done only on incoming mail.
22432 There is no specific spam or ham processor for regular expressions.
22435 @subsubsection Bogofilter
22436 @cindex spam filtering
22437 @cindex bogofilter, spam filtering
22440 @defvar spam-use-bogofilter
22442 Set this variable if you want @code{spam-split} to use Eric Raymond's
22445 With a minimum of care for associating the @samp{$} mark for spam
22446 articles only, Bogofilter training all gets fairly automatic. You
22447 should do this until you get a few hundreds of articles in each
22448 category, spam or not. The command @kbd{S t} in summary mode, either
22449 for debugging or for curiosity, shows the @emph{spamicity} score of
22450 the current article (between 0.0 and 1.0).
22452 Bogofilter determines if a message is spam based on an internal
22453 threshold, set at compilation time. That threshold can't be
22456 If the @code{bogofilter} executable is not in your path, Bogofilter
22457 processing will be turned off.
22459 You should not enable this if you use @code{spam-use-bogofilter-headers}.
22463 @defvar spam-use-bogofilter-headers
22465 Set this variable if you want @code{spam-split} to use Eric Raymond's
22466 speedy Bogofilter, looking only at the message headers. It works
22467 similarly to @code{spam-use-bogofilter}, but the @code{X-Bogosity} header
22468 must be in the message already. Normally you would do this with a
22469 procmail recipe or something similar; consult the Bogofilter
22470 installation documents for details.
22472 You should not enable this if you use @code{spam-use-bogofilter}.
22476 @defvar gnus-group-spam-exit-processor-bogofilter
22477 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22478 customizing the group parameters or the
22479 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22480 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, spam-marked articles
22481 will be added to the Bogofilter spam database.
22484 @defvar gnus-group-ham-exit-processor-bogofilter
22485 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22486 customizing the group parameters or the
22487 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22488 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, the ham-marked
22489 articles in @emph{ham} groups will be added to the Bogofilter database
22490 of non-spam messages. Note that this ham processor has no effect in
22491 @emph{spam} or @emph{unclassified} groups.
22494 @defvar spam-bogofilter-database-directory
22496 This is the directory where Bogofilter will store its databases. It
22497 is not specified by default, so Bogofilter will use its own default
22498 database directory.
22502 The Bogofilter mail classifier is similar to ifile in intent and
22503 purpose. A ham and a spam processor are provided, plus the
22504 @code{spam-use-bogofilter} and @code{spam-use-bogofilter-headers}
22505 variables to indicate to spam-split that Bogofilter should either be
22506 used, or has already been used on the article. The 0.9.2.1 version of
22507 Bogofilter was used to test this functionality.
22509 @node ifile spam filtering
22510 @subsubsection ifile spam filtering
22511 @cindex spam filtering
22512 @cindex ifile, spam filtering
22515 @defvar spam-use-ifile
22517 Enable this variable if you want @code{spam-split} to use ifile, a
22518 statistical analyzer similar to Bogofilter.
22522 @defvar spam-ifile-all-categories
22524 Enable this variable if you want @code{spam-use-ifile} to give you all
22525 the ifile categories, not just spam/non-spam. If you use this, make
22526 sure you train ifile as described in its documentation.
22530 @defvar spam-ifile-spam-category
22532 This is the category of spam messages as far as ifile is concerned.
22533 The actual string used is irrelevant, but you probably want to leave
22534 the default value of @samp{spam}.
22537 @defvar spam-ifile-database-path
22539 This is the filename for the ifile database. It is not specified by
22540 default, so ifile will use its own default database name.
22544 The ifile mail classifier is similar to Bogofilter in intent and
22545 purpose. A ham and a spam processor are provided, plus the
22546 @code{spam-use-ifile} variable to indicate to spam-split that ifile
22547 should be used. The 1.2.1 version of ifile was used to test this
22550 @node spam-stat spam filtering
22551 @subsubsection spam-stat spam filtering
22552 @cindex spam filtering
22553 @cindex spam-stat, spam filtering
22557 @xref{Filtering Spam Using Statistics with spam-stat}.
22559 @defvar spam-use-stat
22561 Enable this variable if you want @code{spam-split} to use
22562 spam-stat.el, an Emacs Lisp statistical analyzer.
22566 @defvar gnus-group-spam-exit-processor-stat
22567 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22568 customizing the group parameters or the
22569 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22570 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, the spam-marked
22571 articles will be added to the spam-stat database of spam messages.
22574 @defvar gnus-group-ham-exit-processor-stat
22575 Add this symbol to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter by
22576 customizing the group parameters or the
22577 @code{gnus-spam-process-newsgroups} variable. When this symbol is
22578 added to a group's @code{spam-process} parameter, the ham-marked
22579 articles in @emph{ham} groups will be added to the spam-stat database
22580 of non-spam messages. Note that this ham processor has no effect in
22581 @emph{spam} or @emph{unclassified} groups.
22584 This enables spam.el to cooperate with spam-stat.el. spam-stat.el
22585 provides an internal (Lisp-only) spam database, which unlike ifile or
22586 Bogofilter does not require external programs. A spam and a ham
22587 processor, and the @code{spam-use-stat} variable for @code{spam-split}
22590 @node Extending the spam elisp package
22591 @subsubsection Extending the spam elisp package
22592 @cindex spam filtering
22593 @cindex spam elisp package, extending
22594 @cindex extending the spam elisp package
22596 Say you want to add a new back end called blackbox. For filtering
22597 incoming mail, provide the following:
22605 (defvar spam-use-blackbox nil
22606 "True if blackbox should be used.")
22611 (spam-use-blackbox . spam-check-blackbox)
22613 to @code{spam-list-of-checks}.
22618 Write the @code{spam-check-blackbox} function. It should return
22619 @samp{nil} or @code{spam-split-group}. See the existing
22620 @code{spam-check-*} functions for examples of what you can do.
22622 Make sure to add @code{spam-use-blackbox} to
22623 @code{spam-list-of-statistical-checks} if Blackbox is a statistical
22624 mail analyzer that needs the full message body to operate.
22628 For processing spam and ham messages, provide the following:
22635 Note you don't have to provide a spam or a ham processor. Only
22636 provide them if Blackbox supports spam or ham processing.
22639 (defvar gnus-group-spam-exit-processor-blackbox "blackbox"
22640 "The Blackbox summary exit spam processor.
22641 Only applicable to spam groups.")
22643 (defvar gnus-group-ham-exit-processor-blackbox "blackbox"
22644 "The whitelist summary exit ham processor.
22645 Only applicable to non-spam (unclassified and ham) groups.")
22653 (defun spam-blackbox-register-spam-routine ()
22654 (spam-generic-register-routine
22655 ;; the spam function
22657 (let ((from (spam-fetch-field-from-fast article)))
22658 (when (stringp from)
22659 (blackbox-do-something-with-this-spammer from))))
22660 ;; the ham function
22663 (defun spam-blackbox-register-ham-routine ()
22664 (spam-generic-register-routine
22665 ;; the spam function
22667 ;; the ham function
22669 (let ((from (spam-fetch-field-from-fast article)))
22670 (when (stringp from)
22671 (blackbox-do-something-with-this-ham-sender from))))))
22674 Write the @code{blackbox-do-something-with-this-ham-sender} and
22675 @code{blackbox-do-something-with-this-spammer} functions. You can add
22676 more complex code than fetching the message sender, but keep in mind
22677 that retrieving the whole message takes significantly longer than the
22678 sender through @code{spam-fetch-field-from-fast}, because the message
22679 senders are kept in memory by Gnus.
22684 @node Filtering Spam Using Statistics with spam-stat
22685 @subsection Filtering Spam Using Statistics with spam-stat
22686 @cindex Paul Graham
22687 @cindex Graham, Paul
22688 @cindex naive Bayesian spam filtering
22689 @cindex Bayesian spam filtering, naive
22690 @cindex spam filtering, naive Bayesian
22692 Paul Graham has written an excellent essay about spam filtering using
22693 statistics: @uref{http://www.paulgraham.com/spam.html,A Plan for
22694 Spam}. In it he describes the inherent deficiency of rule-based
22695 filtering as used by SpamAssassin, for example: Somebody has to write
22696 the rules, and everybody else has to install these rules. You are
22697 always late. It would be much better, he argues, to filter mail based
22698 on whether it somehow resembles spam or non-spam. One way to measure
22699 this is word distribution. He then goes on to describe a solution
22700 that checks whether a new mail resembles any of your other spam mails
22703 The basic idea is this: Create a two collections of your mail, one
22704 with spam, one with non-spam. Count how often each word appears in
22705 either collection, weight this by the total number of mails in the
22706 collections, and store this information in a dictionary. For every
22707 word in a new mail, determine its probability to belong to a spam or a
22708 non-spam mail. Use the 15 most conspicuous words, compute the total
22709 probability of the mail being spam. If this probability is higher
22710 than a certain threshold, the mail is considered to be spam.
22712 Gnus supports this kind of filtering. But it needs some setting up.
22713 First, you need two collections of your mail, one with spam, one with
22714 non-spam. Then you need to create a dictionary using these two
22715 collections, and save it. And last but not least, you need to use
22716 this dictionary in your fancy mail splitting rules.
22719 * Creating a spam-stat dictionary::
22720 * Splitting mail using spam-stat::
22721 * Low-level interface to the spam-stat dictionary::
22724 @node Creating a spam-stat dictionary
22725 @subsubsection Creating a spam-stat dictionary
22727 Before you can begin to filter spam based on statistics, you must
22728 create these statistics based on two mail collections, one with spam,
22729 one with non-spam. These statistics are then stored in a dictionary
22730 for later use. In order for these statistics to be meaningful, you
22731 need several hundred emails in both collections.
22733 Gnus currently supports only the nnml back end for automated dictionary
22734 creation. The nnml back end stores all mails in a directory, one file
22735 per mail. Use the following:
22737 @defun spam-stat-process-spam-directory
22738 Create spam statistics for every file in this directory. Every file
22739 is treated as one spam mail.
22742 @defun spam-stat-process-non-spam-directory
22743 Create non-spam statistics for every file in this directory. Every
22744 file is treated as one non-spam mail.
22747 Usually you would call @code{spam-stat-process-spam-directory} on a
22748 directory such as @file{~/Mail/mail/spam} (this usually corresponds
22749 the the group @samp{nnml:mail.spam}), and you would call
22750 @code{spam-stat-process-non-spam-directory} on a directory such as
22751 @file{~/Mail/mail/misc} (this usually corresponds the the group
22752 @samp{nnml:mail.misc}).
22754 When you are using IMAP, you won't have the mails available locally,
22755 so that will not work. One solution is to use the Gnus Agent to cache
22756 the articles. Then you can use directories such as
22757 @file{"~/News/agent/nnimap/mail.yourisp.com/personal_spam"} for
22758 @code{spam-stat-process-spam-directory}. @xref{Agent as Cache}.
22761 This variable holds the hash-table with all the statistics -- the
22762 dictionary we have been talking about. For every word in either
22763 collection, this hash-table stores a vector describing how often the
22764 word appeared in spam and often it appeared in non-spam mails.
22767 If you want to regenerate the statistics from scratch, you need to
22768 reset the dictionary.
22770 @defun spam-stat-reset
22771 Reset the @code{spam-stat} hash-table, deleting all the statistics.
22774 When you are done, you must save the dictionary. The dictionary may
22775 be rather large. If you will not update the dictionary incrementally
22776 (instead, you will recreate it once a month, for example), then you
22777 can reduce the size of the dictionary by deleting all words that did
22778 not appear often enough or that do not clearly belong to only spam or
22779 only non-spam mails.
22781 @defun spam-stat-reduce-size
22782 Reduce the size of the dictionary. Use this only if you do not want
22783 to update the dictionary incrementally.
22786 @defun spam-stat-save
22787 Save the dictionary.
22790 @defvar spam-stat-file
22791 The filename used to store the dictionary. This defaults to
22792 @file{~/.spam-stat.el}.
22795 @node Splitting mail using spam-stat
22796 @subsubsection Splitting mail using spam-stat
22798 In order to use @code{spam-stat} to split your mail, you need to add the
22799 following to your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
22802 (require 'spam-stat)
22806 This will load the necessary Gnus code, and the dictionary you
22809 Next, you need to adapt your fancy splitting rules: You need to
22810 determine how to use @code{spam-stat}. The following examples are for
22811 the nnml back end. Using the nnimap back end works just as well. Just
22812 use @code{nnimap-split-fancy} instead of @code{nnmail-split-fancy}.
22814 In the simplest case, you only have two groups, @samp{mail.misc} and
22815 @samp{mail.spam}. The following expression says that mail is either
22816 spam or it should go into @samp{mail.misc}. If it is spam, then
22817 @code{spam-stat-split-fancy} will return @samp{mail.spam}.
22820 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
22821 `(| (: spam-stat-split-fancy)
22825 @defvar spam-stat-split-fancy-spam-group
22826 The group to use for spam. Default is @samp{mail.spam}.
22829 If you also filter mail with specific subjects into other groups, use
22830 the following expression. Only mails not matching the regular
22831 expression are considered potential spam.
22834 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
22835 `(| ("Subject" "\\bspam-stat\\b" "mail.emacs")
22836 (: spam-stat-split-fancy)
22840 If you want to filter for spam first, then you must be careful when
22841 creating the dictionary. Note that @code{spam-stat-split-fancy} must
22842 consider both mails in @samp{mail.emacs} and in @samp{mail.misc} as
22843 non-spam, therefore both should be in your collection of non-spam
22844 mails, when creating the dictionary!
22847 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
22848 `(| (: spam-stat-split-fancy)
22849 ("Subject" "\\bspam-stat\\b" "mail.emacs")
22853 You can combine this with traditional filtering. Here, we move all
22854 HTML-only mails into the @samp{mail.spam.filtered} group. Note that since
22855 @code{spam-stat-split-fancy} will never see them, the mails in
22856 @samp{mail.spam.filtered} should be neither in your collection of spam mails,
22857 nor in your collection of non-spam mails, when creating the
22861 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
22862 `(| ("Content-Type" "text/html" "mail.spam.filtered")
22863 (: spam-stat-split-fancy)
22864 ("Subject" "\\bspam-stat\\b" "mail.emacs")
22869 @node Low-level interface to the spam-stat dictionary
22870 @subsubsection Low-level interface to the spam-stat dictionary
22872 The main interface to using @code{spam-stat}, are the following functions:
22874 @defun spam-stat-buffer-is-spam
22875 Called in a buffer, that buffer is considered to be a new spam mail.
22876 Use this for new mail that has not been processed before.
22879 @defun spam-stat-buffer-is-no-spam
22880 Called in a buffer, that buffer is considered to be a new non-spam
22881 mail. Use this for new mail that has not been processed before.
22884 @defun spam-stat-buffer-change-to-spam
22885 Called in a buffer, that buffer is no longer considered to be normal
22886 mail but spam. Use this to change the status of a mail that has
22887 already been processed as non-spam.
22890 @defun spam-stat-buffer-change-to-non-spam
22891 Called in a buffer, that buffer is no longer considered to be spam but
22892 normal mail. Use this to change the status of a mail that has already
22893 been processed as spam.
22896 @defun spam-stat-save
22897 Save the hash table to the file. The filename used is stored in the
22898 variable @code{spam-stat-file}.
22901 @defun spam-stat-load
22902 Load the hash table from a file. The filename used is stored in the
22903 variable @code{spam-stat-file}.
22906 @defun spam-stat-score-word
22907 Return the spam score for a word.
22910 @defun spam-stat-score-buffer
22911 Return the spam score for a buffer.
22914 @defun spam-stat-split-fancy
22915 Use this function for fancy mail splitting. Add the rule @samp{(:
22916 spam-stat-split-fancy)} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
22919 Make sure you load the dictionary before using it. This requires the
22920 following in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file:
22923 (require 'spam-stat)
22927 Typical test will involve calls to the following functions:
22930 Reset: (setq spam-stat (make-hash-table :test 'equal))
22931 Learn spam: (spam-stat-process-spam-directory "~/Mail/mail/spam")
22932 Learn non-spam: (spam-stat-process-non-spam-directory "~/Mail/mail/misc")
22933 Save table: (spam-stat-save)
22934 File size: (nth 7 (file-attributes spam-stat-file))
22935 Number of words: (hash-table-count spam-stat)
22936 Test spam: (spam-stat-test-directory "~/Mail/mail/spam")
22937 Test non-spam: (spam-stat-test-directory "~/Mail/mail/misc")
22938 Reduce table size: (spam-stat-reduce-size)
22939 Save table: (spam-stat-save)
22940 File size: (nth 7 (file-attributes spam-stat-file))
22941 Number of words: (hash-table-count spam-stat)
22942 Test spam: (spam-stat-test-directory "~/Mail/mail/spam")
22943 Test non-spam: (spam-stat-test-directory "~/Mail/mail/misc")
22946 Here is how you would create your dictionary:
22949 Reset: (setq spam-stat (make-hash-table :test 'equal))
22950 Learn spam: (spam-stat-process-spam-directory "~/Mail/mail/spam")
22951 Learn non-spam: (spam-stat-process-non-spam-directory "~/Mail/mail/misc")
22952 Repeat for any other non-spam group you need...
22953 Reduce table size: (spam-stat-reduce-size)
22954 Save table: (spam-stat-save)
22957 @node Various Various
22958 @section Various Various
22964 @item gnus-home-directory
22965 @vindex gnus-home-directory
22966 All Gnus file and directory variables will be initialized from this
22967 variable, which defaults to @file{~/}.
22969 @item gnus-directory
22970 @vindex gnus-directory
22971 Most Gnus storage file and directory variables will be initialized from
22972 this variable, which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment
22973 variable, or @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
22975 Note that gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{.gnus.el} file is read.
22976 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
22977 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
22978 @file{.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
22980 @item gnus-default-directory
22981 @vindex gnus-default-directory
22982 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
22983 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
22984 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
22985 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
22986 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
22987 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
22990 @vindex gnus-verbose
22991 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
22992 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
22993 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
22994 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
22995 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
22997 @item gnus-verbose-backends
22998 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
22999 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
23000 to the Gnus back ends instead of Gnus proper.
23002 @item nnheader-max-head-length
23003 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
23004 When the back ends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
23005 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
23006 the absolute max length the back ends will try to read before giving up
23007 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
23008 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
23009 @code{t}, the back ends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
23010 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
23011 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
23013 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
23014 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
23015 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
23016 read when doing the operation described above.
23018 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
23019 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
23021 @cindex invalid characters in file names
23022 @cindex characters in file names
23023 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
23024 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
23025 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
23028 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
23032 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
23033 Windows (phooey) systems.
23035 @item gnus-hidden-properties
23036 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
23037 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
23038 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
23039 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
23041 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
23042 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
23043 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
23044 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
23045 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
23047 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
23048 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
23049 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
23051 @item gnus-invalid-group-regexp
23052 @vindex gnus-invalid-group-regexp
23054 Regexp to match ``invalid'' group names when querying user for a group
23055 name. The default value catches some @strong{really} invalid group
23056 names who could possibly mess up Gnus internally (like allowing
23057 @samp{:} in a group name, which is normally used to delimit method and
23060 @sc{imap} users might want to allow @samp{/} in group names though.
23068 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
23069 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
23071 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
23073 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
23079 Not because of victories @*
23082 but for the common sunshine,@*
23084 the largess of the spring.
23088 but for the day's work done@*
23089 as well as I was able;@*
23090 not for a seat upon the dais@*
23091 but at the common table.@*
23096 @chapter Appendices
23099 * XEmacs:: Requirements for installing under XEmacs.
23100 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
23101 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
23102 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
23103 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
23104 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
23105 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
23106 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
23107 * Frequently Asked Questions::
23114 @cindex Installing under XEmacs
23116 XEmacs is distributed as a collection of packages. You should install
23117 whatever packages the Gnus XEmacs package requires. The current
23118 requirements are @samp{gnus}, @samp{w3}, @samp{mh-e},
23119 @samp{mailcrypt}, @samp{rmail}, @samp{eterm}, @samp{mail-lib},
23120 @samp{xemacs-base}, @samp{sh-script} and @samp{fsf-compat}. The
23121 @samp{misc-games} package is required for Morse decoding.
23128 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
23129 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
23131 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage,
23132 you can point your (feh!) web browser to
23133 @uref{http://quimby.gnus.org/}. This is also the primary
23134 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is
23135 known as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
23137 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
23138 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
23139 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
23140 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
23141 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
23142 appropriate name, don't you think?)
23144 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
23145 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
23146 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
23147 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
23150 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
23151 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
23152 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
23153 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
23154 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
23155 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
23156 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
23157 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
23158 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
23162 @node Gnus Versions
23163 @subsection Gnus Versions
23165 @cindex September Gnus
23167 @cindex Quassia Gnus
23168 @cindex Pterodactyl Gnus
23171 @cindex Gnus versions
23173 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
23174 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
23175 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
23177 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
23178 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
23180 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
23181 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4'' (67 releases).
23183 On September 13th 1997, Quassia Gnus was started and lasted 37 releases.
23184 If was released as ``Gnus 5.6'' on March 8th 1998 (46 releases).
23186 Gnus 5.6 begat Pterodactyl Gnus on August 29th 1998 and was released as
23187 ``Gnus 5.8'' (after 99 releases and a CVS repository) on December 3rd
23190 On the 26th of October 2000, Oort Gnus was begun.
23192 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
23193 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'',
23194 ``Pterodactyl Gnus'', ``Oort Gnus'' -- don't panic. Don't let it know
23195 that you're frightened. Back away. Slowly. Whatever you do, don't
23196 run. Walk away, calmly, until you're out of its reach. Find a proper
23197 released version of Gnus and snuggle up to that instead.
23200 @node Other Gnus Versions
23201 @subsection Other Gnus Versions
23204 In addition to the versions of Gnus which have had their releases
23205 coordinated by Lars, one major development has been Semi-gnus from
23206 Japan. It's based on a library called @sc{semi}, which provides
23207 @sc{mime} capabilities.
23209 These Gnusae are based mainly on Gnus 5.6 and Pterodactyl Gnus.
23210 Collectively, they are called ``Semi-gnus'', and different strains are
23211 called T-gnus, ET-gnus, Nana-gnus and Chaos. These provide powerful
23212 @sc{mime} and multilingualization things, especially important for
23219 What's the point of Gnus?
23221 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
23222 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
23223 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
23224 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
23225 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
23226 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
23227 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
23228 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
23229 keep track of millions of people who post?
23231 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
23232 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
23233 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
23234 to separate the newsreader from the back ends, Gnus now offers a simple
23235 interface for anybody who wants to write new back ends for fetching mail
23236 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
23237 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
23238 every one of you to explore and invent.
23240 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
23241 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
23244 @node Compatibility
23245 @subsection Compatibility
23247 @cindex compatibility
23248 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
23249 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
23250 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
23255 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
23259 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
23262 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
23265 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
23266 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
23267 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
23268 important variables have their values copied into their global
23269 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
23270 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
23272 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
23273 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
23274 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
23275 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
23276 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
23280 @cindex highlighting
23281 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
23282 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
23283 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
23284 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
23285 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
23286 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
23289 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
23290 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
23291 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
23292 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
23294 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
23295 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
23296 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
23297 to stop doing it the old way.
23299 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
23301 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
23303 @cindex reporting bugs
23305 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
23306 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
23307 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
23309 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
23310 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
23311 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
23312 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
23317 @subsection Conformity
23319 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
23320 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
23328 There are no known breaches of this standard.
23332 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
23334 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
23335 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
23336 We do have some breaches to this one.
23342 These are considered to be ``vanity headers'', while I consider them
23343 to be consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted
23344 articles coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use
23345 either of those for posting articles. I would not have known that if
23346 it wasn't for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
23351 USEFOR is an IETF working group writing a successor to RFC 1036, based
23352 on Son-of-RFC 1036. They have produced a number of drafts proposing
23353 various changes to the format of news articles. The Gnus towers will
23354 look into implementing the changes when the draft is accepted as an RFC.
23356 @item MIME - RFC 2045-2049 etc
23358 All the various @sc{mime} RFCs are supported.
23360 @item Disposition Notifications - RFC 2298
23361 Message Mode is able to request notifications from the receiver.
23363 @item PGP - RFC 1991 and RFC 2440
23366 RFC 1991 is the original PGP message specification, published as a
23367 Information RFC. RFC 2440 was the follow-up, now called Open PGP, and
23368 put on the Standards Track. Both document a non-@sc{mime} aware PGP
23369 format. Gnus supports both encoding (signing and encryption) and
23370 decoding (verification and decryption).
23372 @item PGP/MIME - RFC 2015/3156
23373 RFC 2015 (superseded by 3156 which references RFC 2440 instead of RFC
23374 1991) describes the @sc{mime}-wrapping around the RF 1991/2440 format.
23375 Gnus supports both encoding and decoding.
23377 @item S/MIME - RFC 2633
23378 RFC 2633 describes the @sc{s/mime} format.
23380 @item IMAP - RFC 1730/2060, RFC 2195, RFC 2086, RFC 2359, RFC 2595, RFC 1731
23381 RFC 1730 is @sc{imap} version 4, updated somewhat by RFC 2060 (@sc{imap} 4
23382 revision 1). RFC 2195 describes CRAM-MD5 authentication for @sc{imap}. RFC
23383 2086 describes access control lists (ACLs) for @sc{imap}. RFC 2359
23384 describes a @sc{imap} protocol enhancement. RFC 2595 describes the proper
23385 TLS integration (STARTTLS) with @sc{imap}. RFC 1731 describes the
23386 GSSAPI/Kerberos4 mechanisms for @sc{imap}.
23390 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
23391 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
23396 @subsection Emacsen
23402 Gnus should work on :
23410 XEmacs 21.1.1 and up.
23414 This Gnus version will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than
23415 that. Not reliably, at least. Older versions of Gnus may work on older
23416 Emacs versions. However, T-gnus does support ``Mule 2.3 based on Emacs
23417 19.34'' and possibly the versions of XEmacs prior to 21.1.1, e.g. 20.4.
23418 See the file ``README'' in the T-gnus distribution for more details.
23420 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
23421 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
23422 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
23426 @node Gnus Development
23427 @subsection Gnus Development
23429 Gnus is developed in a two-phased cycle. The first phase involves much
23430 discussion on the @samp{ding@@gnus.org} mailing list, where people
23431 propose changes and new features, post patches and new back ends. This
23432 phase is called the @dfn{alpha} phase, since the Gnusae released in this
23433 phase are @dfn{alpha releases}, or (perhaps more commonly in other
23434 circles) @dfn{snapshots}. During this phase, Gnus is assumed to be
23435 unstable and should not be used by casual users. Gnus alpha releases
23436 have names like ``Red Gnus'' and ``Quassia Gnus''.
23438 After futzing around for 50-100 alpha releases, Gnus is declared
23439 @dfn{frozen}, and only bug fixes are applied. Gnus loses the prefix,
23440 and is called things like ``Gnus 5.6.32'' instead. Normal people are
23441 supposed to be able to use these, and these are mostly discussed on the
23442 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} newsgroup.
23445 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
23446 Some variable defaults differ between alpha Gnusae and released Gnusae.
23447 In particular, @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} defaults to @code{nil} in
23448 alpha Gnusae and @code{t} in released Gnusae. This is to prevent
23449 lossage of mail if an alpha release hiccups while handling the mail.
23451 The division of discussion between the ding mailing list and the Gnus
23452 newsgroup is not purely based on publicity concerns. It's true that
23453 having people write about the horrible things that an alpha Gnus release
23454 can do (sometimes) in a public forum may scare people off, but more
23455 importantly, talking about new experimental features that have been
23456 introduced may confuse casual users. New features are frequently
23457 introduced, fiddled with, and judged to be found wanting, and then
23458 either discarded or totally rewritten. People reading the mailing list
23459 usually keep up with these rapid changes, while people on the newsgroup
23460 can't be assumed to do so.
23465 @subsection Contributors
23466 @cindex contributors
23468 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
23469 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
23470 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
23471 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
23472 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
23473 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
23474 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
23475 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
23476 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
23477 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
23479 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for@dots{} oops,
23485 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
23488 Shenghuo Zhu---uudecode.el, mm-uu.el, rfc1843.el, webmail.el,
23489 nnwarchive and many, many other things connected with @sc{mime} and
23490 other types of en/decoding, as well as general bug fixing, new
23491 functionality and stuff.
23494 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
23495 well as numerous other things).
23498 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
23501 Joe Reiss---creator of the smiley faces.
23504 Justin Sheehy--the FAQ maintainer.
23507 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
23510 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
23511 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
23514 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
23517 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
23518 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
23521 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
23524 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
23527 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
23530 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
23533 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
23534 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
23537 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
23540 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
23543 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
23546 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
23550 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
23553 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
23556 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
23559 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
23560 well as autoconf support.
23564 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
23565 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
23567 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
23582 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
23584 Katsumi Yamaoka, @c Yamaoka
23588 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
23598 Alexei V. Barantsev,
23613 Massimo Campostrini,
23618 Jae-you Chung, @c ?
23619 James H. Cloos, Jr.,
23623 Andrew J. Cosgriff,
23626 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
23632 Michael Welsh Duggan,
23637 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
23641 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
23649 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
23651 Michelangelo Grigni,
23655 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
23657 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c Hayashi
23659 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
23666 François Felix Ingrand,
23667 Tatsuya Ichikawa, @c Ichikawa
23668 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
23670 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
23680 Peter Skov Knudsen,
23681 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
23683 Koseki Yoshinori, @c Koseki
23684 Thor Kristoffersen,
23687 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
23705 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
23706 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
23713 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
23718 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
23722 John McClary Prevost,
23728 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
23733 Christian von Roques,
23736 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
23743 Philippe Schnoebelen,
23745 Randal L. Schwartz,
23759 Kiyokazu Suto, @c Suto
23764 Tozawa Akihiko, @c Tozawa
23784 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
23785 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
23786 (550kB and counting).
23788 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
23791 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
23792 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
23796 @subsection New Features
23797 @cindex new features
23800 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
23801 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
23802 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
23803 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
23804 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
23807 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
23808 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
23809 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
23812 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
23814 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
23819 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
23820 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
23823 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
23824 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
23827 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
23830 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
23831 All the mail back ends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
23832 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
23835 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
23836 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
23837 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
23838 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
23841 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
23842 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
23845 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
23846 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
23847 (@pxref{The Active File}).
23850 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
23851 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
23854 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
23855 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
23856 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
23859 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
23860 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
23861 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
23864 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{~/.gnus.el}) to avoid
23865 cluttering up the @file{.emacs} file.
23868 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
23869 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
23872 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
23873 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
23876 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
23877 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
23880 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
23881 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
23884 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
23885 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
23888 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
23891 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
23892 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
23895 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
23896 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
23899 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
23900 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
23903 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
23906 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
23907 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
23910 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
23914 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
23918 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
23919 configuration (@pxref{Window Layout}).
23922 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
23928 @node September Gnus
23929 @subsubsection September Gnus
23933 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/september,height=20cm}}
23937 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
23942 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
23943 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
23947 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
23948 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
23952 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
23956 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
23957 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
23960 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
23964 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
23967 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
23970 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
23973 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
23977 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
23978 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
23981 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
23985 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
23989 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
23993 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
23997 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
24000 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
24001 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
24004 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
24008 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
24009 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
24012 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
24015 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
24016 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
24017 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
24020 Gnus has a new back end (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
24024 The Gnus cache is much faster.
24027 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
24031 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
24032 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
24035 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
24036 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
24039 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
24040 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
24043 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
24044 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
24045 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
24048 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
24049 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
24052 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
24055 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
24058 All mail back ends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
24061 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
24064 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
24065 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
24068 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Window
24072 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
24075 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=ps/fseptember,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=ps/fseptember,height=5cm}}
24080 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
24083 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
24087 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
24090 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
24094 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
24097 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
24100 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
24101 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
24104 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
24105 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
24109 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
24110 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
24113 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
24117 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
24118 buffer to allow easier treatment.
24121 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
24124 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
24128 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
24132 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
24133 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
24136 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
24140 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
24141 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
24144 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
24145 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
24148 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
24152 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
24155 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
24158 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
24164 @subsubsection Red Gnus
24166 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
24170 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/red,height=20cm}}
24177 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
24180 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
24181 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
24184 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
24185 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
24189 Article washing status can be displayed in the
24190 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
24193 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
24196 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
24197 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
24200 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
24204 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
24205 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
24209 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
24210 Server Internals}).
24213 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
24217 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
24220 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
24221 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
24224 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
24225 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
24226 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
24229 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
24230 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
24233 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
24234 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
24237 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{C-M-_}
24241 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
24242 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
24245 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
24246 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
24249 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
24253 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
24256 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
24260 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
24261 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
24264 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
24265 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
24268 A new command for reading collections of documents
24269 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{C-M-d}
24270 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
24273 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
24277 A new mail-to-news back end makes it possible to post even when the @sc{nntp}
24278 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
24281 A new back end for reading searches from Web search engines
24282 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
24283 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
24286 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
24287 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
24291 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
24295 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
24299 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=ps/fred,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=ps/fred,width=3cm}}
24304 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
24308 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
24312 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
24313 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
24316 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
24322 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
24324 New features in Gnus 5.6:
24329 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
24330 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
24331 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
24334 The @code{nndraft} back end has returned, but works differently than
24335 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
24336 group, which is created automatically.
24339 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
24343 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
24346 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
24347 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
24350 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
24354 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
24357 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
24358 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
24361 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
24364 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section ``Symbolic
24365 Prefixes'' in the Gnus manual for details.
24368 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
24369 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the @file{all.SCORE} file.
24372 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
24373 control over simplification.
24376 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
24379 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
24383 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
24386 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
24389 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
24390 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
24391 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
24394 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
24395 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
24398 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
24402 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
24403 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
24406 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
24407 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @sc{nntp} servers.
24410 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
24414 A history of where mails have been split is available.
24417 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
24420 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
24421 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
24424 A new function for citing in Message has been
24425 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
24428 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
24431 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
24435 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
24436 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
24439 The ``lapsed date'' article header can be kept continually
24440 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
24443 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} back end.
24446 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
24450 @node Pterodactyl Gnus
24451 @subsubsection Pterodactyl Gnus
24453 New features in Gnus 5.8:
24458 The mail-fetching functions have changed. See the manual for the
24459 many details. In particular, all procmail fetching variables are gone.
24461 If you used procmail like in
24464 (setq nnmail-use-procmail t)
24465 (setq nnmail-spool-file 'procmail)
24466 (setq nnmail-procmail-directory "~/mail/incoming/")
24467 (setq nnmail-procmail-suffix "\\.in")
24470 this now has changed to
24474 '((directory :path "~/mail/incoming/"
24478 More information is available in the info doc at Select Methods ->
24479 Getting Mail -> Mail Sources
24482 Gnus is now a @sc{mime}-capable reader. This affects many parts of
24483 Gnus, and adds a slew of new commands. See the manual for details.
24486 Gnus has also been multilingualized. This also affects too
24487 many parts of Gnus to summarize here, and adds many new variables.
24490 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} can now be a function to be
24491 called to position point.
24494 The user can now decide which extra headers should be included in
24495 summary buffers and @sc{nov} files.
24498 @code{gnus-article-display-hook} has been removed. Instead, a number
24499 of variables starting with @code{gnus-treat-} have been added.
24502 The Gnus posting styles have been redone again and now works in a
24503 subtly different manner.
24506 New web-based back ends have been added: @code{nnslashdot},
24507 @code{nnwarchive} and @code{nnultimate}. nnweb has been revamped,
24508 again, to keep up with ever-changing layouts.
24511 Gnus can now read @sc{imap} mail via @code{nnimap}.
24519 @section The Manual
24523 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
24524 either @code{texi2dvi}
24526 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
24527 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
24529 to get what you hold in your hands now.
24531 The following conventions have been used:
24536 This is a @samp{string}
24539 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
24542 This is a @file{file}
24545 This is a @code{symbol}
24549 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
24553 (setq flargnoze "yes")
24556 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
24559 (setq flumphel 'yes)
24562 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
24563 ever get them confused.
24567 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
24568 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
24569 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
24570 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
24571 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
24572 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
24573 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
24579 @node On Writing Manuals
24580 @section On Writing Manuals
24582 I guess most manuals are written after-the-fact; documenting a program
24583 that's already there. This is not how this manual is written. When
24584 implementing something, I write the manual entry for that something
24585 straight away. I then see that it's difficult to explain the
24586 functionality, so I write how it's supposed to be, and then I change the
24587 implementation. Writing the documentation and writing the code goes
24590 This, of course, means that this manual has no, or little, flow. It
24591 documents absolutely everything in Gnus, but often not where you're
24592 looking for it. It is a reference manual, and not a guide to how to get
24595 That would be a totally different book, that should be written using the
24596 reference manual as source material. It would look quite differently.
24601 @section Terminology
24603 @cindex terminology
24608 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
24609 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
24610 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
24611 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
24612 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
24616 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
24617 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
24618 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
24619 not posting, and replying is not following up.
24623 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
24627 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
24632 Gnus considers mail and news to be mostly the same, really. The only
24633 difference is how to access the actual articles. News articles are
24634 commonly fetched via the protocol NNTP, whereas mail messages could be
24635 read from a file on the local disk. The internal architecture of Gnus
24636 thus comprises a `front end' and a number of `back ends'. Internally,
24637 when you enter a group (by hitting @key{RET}, say), you thereby invoke
24638 a function in the front end in Gnus. The front end then `talks' to a
24639 back end and says things like ``Give me the list of articles in the foo
24640 group'' or ``Show me article number 4711''.
24642 So a back end mainly defines either a protocol (the @code{nntp} back end
24643 accesses news via NNTP, the @code{nnimap} back end accesses mail via
24644 IMAP) or a file format and directory layout (the @code{nnspool} back end
24645 accesses news via the common `spool directory' format, the @code{nnml}
24646 back end access mail via a file format and directory layout that's
24649 Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this is all
24650 done by the back ends. A back end is a collection of functions to
24651 access the articles.
24653 However, sometimes the term `back end' is also used where `server'
24654 would have been more appropriate. And then there is the term `select
24655 method' which can mean either. The Gnus terminology can be quite
24660 Gnus will always use one method (and back end) as the @dfn{native}, or
24661 default, way of getting news.
24665 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
24666 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary back ends for getting
24671 Secondary back ends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
24672 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
24676 A message that has been posted as news.
24679 @cindex mail message
24680 A message that has been mailed.
24684 A mail message or news article
24688 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
24693 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
24698 A line from the head of an article.
24702 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
24703 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
24707 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the back end for the headers of all
24708 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
24709 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
24710 normal @sc{head} format.
24714 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
24715 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
24716 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
24717 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
24718 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
24719 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
24721 @item killed groups
24722 @cindex killed groups
24723 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
24724 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
24726 @item zombie groups
24727 @cindex zombie groups
24728 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
24731 @cindex active file
24732 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
24733 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
24734 is rather large, as you might surmise.
24737 @cindex bogus groups
24738 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
24739 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
24740 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
24743 @cindex activating groups
24744 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
24745 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
24746 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
24750 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
24752 @item select method
24753 @cindex select method
24754 A structure that specifies the back end, the server and the virtual
24757 @item virtual server
24758 @cindex virtual server
24759 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
24760 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
24761 whole is a virtual server.
24765 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
24766 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
24769 @item ephemeral groups
24770 @cindex ephemeral groups
24771 @cindex temporary groups
24772 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
24773 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
24774 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
24777 @cindex solid groups
24778 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
24779 group buffer are solid groups.
24781 @item sparse articles
24782 @cindex sparse articles
24783 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
24784 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
24788 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
24789 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
24793 @cindex thread root
24794 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
24795 articles in the thread.
24799 An article that has responses.
24803 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
24807 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
24808 specified by RFC 1153.
24814 @node Customization
24815 @section Customization
24816 @cindex general customization
24818 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
24819 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
24820 for some quite common situations.
24823 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
24824 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
24825 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
24826 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
24830 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
24831 @subsection Slow/Expensive NNTP Connection
24833 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
24834 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
24835 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
24839 @item gnus-read-active-file
24840 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
24841 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
24842 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
24843 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
24844 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
24846 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
24847 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
24848 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
24849 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
24853 @node Slow Terminal Connection
24854 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
24856 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
24857 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
24858 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
24862 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
24863 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
24864 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
24865 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
24866 horizontal and vertical recentering.
24868 @item gnus-visible-headers
24869 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
24870 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
24871 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
24872 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
24874 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
24876 (setq gnus-treat-hide-headers 'head
24877 gnus-treat-hide-signature t
24878 gnus-treat-hide-citation t)
24881 @item gnus-use-full-window
24882 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
24883 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
24884 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
24885 want to read them anyway.
24887 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
24888 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
24892 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
24893 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
24894 lines, which might save some time.
24898 @node Little Disk Space
24899 @subsection Little Disk Space
24902 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
24903 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
24907 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
24908 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
24909 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
24910 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
24913 @item gnus-read-newsrc-file
24914 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never read @file{.newsrc}---it will
24915 only read @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
24916 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
24919 @item gnus-save-killed-list
24920 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
24921 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
24922 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
24923 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
24929 @subsection Slow Machine
24930 @cindex slow machine
24932 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
24933 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
24935 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
24936 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
24938 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
24939 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
24940 summary buffer faster.
24944 @node Troubleshooting
24945 @section Troubleshooting
24946 @cindex troubleshooting
24948 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
24956 Make sure your computer is switched on.
24959 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
24960 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
24964 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
24965 like @samp{T-gnus 6.15.* (based on Oort Gnus v0.*; for SEMI 1.1*, FLIM
24966 1.1*)} you have the right files loaded. If, on the other hand, you get
24967 something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp flee}, you have some old
24968 @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
24971 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
24975 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
24976 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
24977 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
24978 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
24979 something like that.
24982 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
24985 @cindex reporting bugs
24987 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
24989 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
24990 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
24991 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
24992 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
24994 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
24995 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
24996 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
24997 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
25000 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
25001 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
25002 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
25003 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
25004 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
25005 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
25007 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
25008 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
25009 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
25013 If you would like to contribute a patch to fix bugs or make
25014 improvements, please produce the patch using @samp{diff -u}.
25017 If you want to debug your problem further before reporting, possibly
25018 in order to solve the problem yourself and send a patch, you can use
25019 edebug. Debugging lisp code is documented in the Elisp manual
25020 (@pxref{Debugging, , Debugging Lisp Programs, elisp, The GNU Emacs
25021 Lisp Reference Manual}). To get you started with edebug, consider if
25022 you discover some weird behaviour when pressing @kbd{c}, the first
25023 step is to do @kbd{C-h k c} and click on the hyperlink (Emacs only) in
25024 the documentation buffer that leads you to the function definition,
25025 then press @kbd{M-x edebug-defun RET} with point inside that function,
25026 return to Gnus and press @kbd{c} to invoke the code. You will be
25027 placed in the lisp buffer and can single step using @kbd{SPC} and
25028 evaluate expressions using @kbd{M-:} or inspect variables using
25029 @kbd{C-h v}, abort execution with @kbd{q}, and resume execution with
25030 @kbd{c} or @kbd{g}.
25035 Sometimes, a problem do not directly generate a elisp error but
25036 manifests itself by causing Gnus to be very slow. In these cases, you
25037 can use @kbd{M-x toggle-debug-on-quit} and press @kbd{C-g} when things are
25038 slow, and then try to analyze the backtrace (repeating the procedure
25039 helps isolating the real problem areas). A fancier approach is to use
25040 the elisp profiler, ELP. The profiler is (or should be) fully
25041 documented elsewhere, but to get you started there are a few steps
25042 that need to be followed. First, instrument the part of Gnus you are
25043 interested in for profiling, e.g. @kbd{M-x elp-instrument-package RET
25044 gnus} or @kbd{M-x elp-instrument-package RET message}. Then perform
25045 the operation that is slow and press @kbd{M-x elp-results}. You will
25046 then see which operations that takes time, and can debug them further.
25047 If the entire operation takes much longer than the time spent in the
25048 slowest function in the profiler output, you probably profiled the
25049 wrong part of Gnus. To reset profiling statistics, use @kbd{M-x
25050 elp-reset-all}. @kbd{M-x elp-restore-all} is supposed to remove
25051 profiling, but given the complexities and dynamic code generation in
25052 Gnus, it might not always work perfectly.
25054 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
25055 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
25057 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
25058 @cindex ding mailing list
25059 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@email{ding@@gnus.org}.
25060 Write to @email{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
25064 @node Gnus Reference Guide
25065 @section Gnus Reference Guide
25067 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
25068 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
25069 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
25070 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
25073 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
25074 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
25075 back ends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
25076 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
25077 and general methods of operation.
25080 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
25081 * Back End Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
25082 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
25083 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
25084 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
25085 * Group Info:: The group info format.
25086 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
25087 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
25088 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
25092 @node Gnus Utility Functions
25093 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
25094 @cindex Gnus utility functions
25095 @cindex utility functions
25097 @cindex internal variables
25099 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
25100 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
25101 Below is a list of the most common ones.
25105 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
25106 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
25107 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
25109 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
25110 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
25111 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
25113 @item gnus-group-real-name
25114 @findex gnus-group-real-name
25115 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
25118 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
25119 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
25120 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
25121 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
25123 @item gnus-get-info
25124 @findex gnus-get-info
25125 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
25127 @item gnus-group-unread
25128 @findex gnus-group-unread
25129 The number of unread articles in @var{group}, or @code{t} if that is
25133 @findex gnus-active
25134 The active entry for @var{group}.
25136 @item gnus-set-active
25137 @findex gnus-set-active
25138 Set the active entry for @var{group}.
25140 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
25141 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
25142 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
25145 @item gnus-continuum-version
25146 @findex gnus-continuum-version
25147 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
25148 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
25151 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
25152 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
25153 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
25155 @item gnus-news-group-p
25156 @findex gnus-news-group-p
25157 Says whether @var{group} came from a news back end.
25159 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
25160 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
25161 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
25163 @item gnus-server-to-method
25164 @findex gnus-server-to-method
25165 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
25167 @item gnus-server-equal
25168 @findex gnus-server-equal
25169 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
25171 @item gnus-group-native-p
25172 @findex gnus-group-native-p
25173 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
25175 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
25176 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
25177 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
25179 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
25180 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
25181 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
25183 @item group-group-find-parameter
25184 @findex group-group-find-parameter
25185 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
25186 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
25188 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
25189 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
25190 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
25192 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
25193 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
25194 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
25196 @item gnus-check-backend-function
25197 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
25198 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the back end
25199 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
25202 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
25206 @item gnus-read-method
25207 @findex gnus-read-method
25208 Prompts the user for a select method.
25213 @node Back End Interface
25214 @subsection Back End Interface
25216 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
25217 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
25218 server is a @dfn{back end} and some @dfn{back end variables}. As examples
25219 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
25220 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
25221 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
25223 When Gnus asks for information from a back end---say @code{nntp}---on
25224 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
25225 function parameters. (If not, the back end should use the ``current''
25226 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
25227 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
25228 been opened, the function should fail.
25230 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
25231 name. Take this example:
25235 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
25236 (nntp-port-number 4324))
25239 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
25240 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
25242 The back ends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
25243 The standard back ends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
25244 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
25246 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
25247 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
25248 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
25250 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
25251 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
25252 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
25253 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
25254 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
25255 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
25258 Some back ends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} back ends, and
25259 some might be said not to be. The latter are back ends that generally
25260 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
25261 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
25264 Gnus identifies each message by way of group name and article number. A
25265 few remarks about these article numbers might be useful. First of all,
25266 the numbers are positive integers. Secondly, it is normally not
25267 possible for later articles to `re-use' older article numbers without
25268 confusing Gnus. That is, if a group has ever contained a message
25269 numbered 42, then no other message may get that number, or Gnus will get
25270 mightily confused.@footnote{See the function
25271 @code{nnchoke-request-update-info}, @ref{Optional Back End Functions}.}
25272 Third, article numbers must be assigned in order of arrival in the
25273 group; this is not necessarily the same as the date of the message.
25275 The previous paragraph already mentions all the `hard' restrictions that
25276 article numbers must fulfill. But it seems that it might be useful to
25277 assign @emph{consecutive} article numbers, for Gnus gets quite confused
25278 if there are holes in the article numbering sequence. However, due to
25279 the `no-reuse' restriction, holes cannot be avoided altogether. It's
25280 also useful for the article numbers to start at 1 to avoid running out
25281 of numbers as long as possible.
25283 Note that by convention, backends are named @code{nnsomething}, but
25284 Gnus also comes with some @code{nnnotbackends}, such as
25285 @file{nnheader.el}, @file{nnmail.el} and @file{nnoo.el}.
25287 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary back end
25290 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
25293 * Required Back End Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
25294 * Optional Back End Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
25295 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
25296 * Writing New Back Ends:: Extending old back ends.
25297 * Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
25298 * Mail-like Back Ends:: Some tips on mail back ends.
25302 @node Required Back End Functions
25303 @subsubsection Required Back End Functions
25307 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
25309 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
25310 @code{Message-ID}s. Current back ends do not fully support either---only
25311 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most back ends do not support
25312 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
25314 The result data should either be HEADs or @sc{nov} lines, and the result
25315 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
25316 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
25317 of HEADs and @sc{nov} lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
25319 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching ``extra
25320 headers'', in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
25321 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
25322 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
25323 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the back end finds it
25324 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
25325 number, do maximum fetches.
25327 Here's an example HEAD:
25330 221 1056 Article retrieved.
25331 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
25332 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
25333 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
25334 Subject: Re: Something very droll
25335 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
25336 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
25338 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
25339 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
25340 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
25344 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
25345 these in the data buffer.
25347 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
25351 head = error / valid-head
25352 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
25353 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
25354 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
25355 header = <text> eol
25359 (The version of BNF used here is the one used in RFC822.)
25361 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
25362 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
25366 nov-buffer = *nov-line
25367 nov-line = field 7*8[ <TAB> field ] eol
25368 field = <text except TAB>
25371 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
25375 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
25377 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
25378 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
25380 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The back end
25381 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
25382 server. In fact, it should do so.
25384 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
25385 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
25388 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
25390 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
25391 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
25394 There should be no data returned.
25397 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
25399 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the back end
25400 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that back end
25401 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
25402 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
25404 There should be no data returned.
25407 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
25409 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
25410 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
25411 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
25412 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
25414 There should be no data returned.
25417 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
25419 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
25421 There should be no data returned.
25424 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
25426 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
25427 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
25428 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
25429 it would be nice if that were possible.
25431 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
25432 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
25433 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
25434 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
25435 into its article buffer.
25437 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
25438 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
25439 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
25440 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
25441 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
25442 on successful article retrieval.
25445 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
25447 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
25448 making @var{group} the current group.
25450 If @var{fast}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
25453 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
25456 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
25459 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
25460 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
25461 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
25462 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
25463 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
25464 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
25465 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
25466 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader. If the group contains no
25467 articles, the lowest article number should be reported as 1 and the
25471 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
25472 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
25473 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
25477 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
25479 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
25480 a no-op on most back ends.
25482 There should be no data returned.
25485 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
25487 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
25490 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
25493 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
25494 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
25497 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
25498 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag. If the group
25499 contains no articles, the lowest article number should be reported as 1
25500 and the highest as 0.
25503 active-file = *active-line
25504 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
25506 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
25509 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
25510 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
25511 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
25514 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
25516 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
25517 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
25518 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
25519 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
25520 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
25521 clear if the posting could not be completed.
25523 There should be no result data from this function.
25528 @node Optional Back End Functions
25529 @subsubsection Optional Back End Functions
25533 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
25535 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
25536 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
25537 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
25539 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
25540 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
25541 former is in the same format as the data from
25542 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
25543 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
25546 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
25550 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
25552 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the back end for
25553 alterations. This comes in handy if the back end really carries all
25554 the information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
25555 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
25556 should return a non-@code{nil} value.
25558 There should be no result data from this function.
25561 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
25563 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
25564 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
25565 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
25566 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
25567 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
25568 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
25569 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
25570 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
25572 There should be no result data from this function.
25575 @item (nnchoke-request-set-mark GROUP ACTION &optional SERVER)
25577 Set/remove/add marks on articles. Normally Gnus handles the article
25578 marks (such as read, ticked, expired etc) internally, and store them in
25579 @file{~/.newsrc.eld}. Some back ends (such as @sc{imap}) however carry
25580 all information about the articles on the server, so Gnus need to
25581 propagate the mark information to the server.
25583 @var{action} is a list of mark setting requests, having this format:
25586 (RANGE ACTION MARK)
25589 @var{range} is a range of articles you wish to update marks on.
25590 @var{action} is @code{add} or @code{del}, used to add marks or remove
25591 marks (preserving all marks not mentioned). @var{mark} is a list of
25592 marks; where each mark is a symbol. Currently used marks are
25593 @code{read}, @code{tick}, @code{reply}, @code{expire}, @code{killed},
25594 @code{dormant}, @code{save}, @code{download}, @code{unsend},
25595 @code{forward} and @code{recent}, but your back end should, if
25596 possible, not limit itself to these.
25598 Given contradictory actions, the last action in the list should be the
25599 effective one. That is, if your action contains a request to add the
25600 @code{tick} mark on article 1 and, later in the list, a request to
25601 remove the mark on the same article, the mark should in fact be removed.
25603 An example action list:
25606 (((5 12 30) 'del '(tick))
25607 ((10 . 90) 'add '(read expire))
25608 ((92 94) 'del '(read)))
25611 The function should return a range of articles it wasn't able to set the
25612 mark on (currently not used for anything).
25614 There should be no result data from this function.
25616 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
25618 If the user tries to set a mark that the back end doesn't like, this
25619 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
25620 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
25621 @var{mark}. If the back end doesn't care, it must return the original
25622 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
25624 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
25625 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
25626 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
25629 There should be no result data from this function.
25632 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
25634 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
25635 request that the back end check for incoming articles, in one way or
25636 another. A mail back end will typically read the spool file or query the
25637 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
25638 to be heeded---if the back end decides that it is too much work just
25639 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
25640 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
25642 There should be no result data from this function.
25645 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
25647 The result data from this function should be a description of
25651 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
25653 description = <text>
25656 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
25658 The result data from this function should be the description of all
25659 groups available on the server.
25662 description-buffer = *description-line
25666 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
25668 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
25669 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date format
25670 (i.e., the date format used in mail and news headers, and returned by
25671 the function @code{message-make-date} by default). The data should be
25672 in the active buffer format.
25674 It is okay for this function to return `too many' groups; some back ends
25675 might find it cheaper to return the full list of groups, rather than
25676 just the new groups. But don't do this for back ends with many groups.
25677 Normally, if the user creates the groups herself, there won't be too
25678 many groups, so @code{nnml} and the like are probably safe. But for
25679 back ends like @code{nntp}, where the groups have been created by the
25680 server, it is quite likely that there can be many groups.
25683 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
25685 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
25687 There should be no return data.
25690 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
25692 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
25693 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
25694 numbers.) It is left up to the back end to decide how old articles
25695 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
25696 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
25699 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
25702 There should be no result data returned.
25705 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM &optional LAST)
25707 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
25708 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
25710 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
25711 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
25712 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
25713 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
25714 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
25715 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
25717 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
25718 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
25721 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
25722 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
25724 The group should exist before the backend is asked to accept the
25725 article for that group.
25727 There should be no data returned.
25730 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
25732 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
25733 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
25734 this function in short order.
25736 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
25737 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
25739 There should be no data returned.
25742 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
25744 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
25745 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
25747 There should be no data returned.
25750 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
25752 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
25753 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
25754 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
25756 There should be no data returned.
25759 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
25761 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
25762 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
25764 There should be no data returned.
25769 @node Error Messaging
25770 @subsubsection Error Messaging
25772 @findex nnheader-report
25773 @findex nnheader-get-report
25774 The back ends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
25775 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
25776 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the back end
25777 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
25778 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
25779 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
25782 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
25784 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
25787 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
25788 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
25789 recently reported message for the back end in question. This function
25790 takes one argument---the server symbol.
25792 Internally, these functions access @var{back-end}@code{-status-string},
25793 so the @code{nnchoke} back end will have its error message stored in
25794 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
25797 @node Writing New Back Ends
25798 @subsubsection Writing New Back Ends
25800 Many back ends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
25801 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
25802 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
25803 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
25804 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
25807 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
25808 back ends when writing new back ends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
25809 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
25811 All the back ends declare their public variables and functions by using a
25812 package called @code{nnoo}.
25814 To inherit functions from other back ends (and allow other back ends to
25815 inherit functions from the current back end), you should use the
25821 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
25822 parameters. For instance:
25825 (nnoo-declare nndir
25829 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
25830 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
25833 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
25834 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
25835 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
25837 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
25838 variables in the parent back ends to map the variable to when executing
25839 a function in those back ends.
25842 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
25843 "Where nndir will look for groups."
25844 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
25847 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
25848 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
25849 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
25851 @item nnoo-define-basics
25852 This macro defines some common functions that almost all back ends should
25856 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
25860 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
25861 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
25862 function as being public so that other back ends can inherit it.
25864 @item nnoo-map-functions
25865 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current back end to
25866 functions from the parent back ends.
25869 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
25870 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
25871 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
25874 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
25875 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
25876 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
25877 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
25880 This macro allows importing functions from back ends. It should be the
25881 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
25882 haven't already been defined.
25888 nnmh-request-newgroups)
25892 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
25893 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
25894 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
25899 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} back end.
25902 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
25903 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
25907 (require 'nnheader)
25911 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
25913 (nnoo-declare nndir
25916 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
25917 "Where nndir will look for groups."
25918 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
25920 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
25921 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
25924 (defvoo nndir-current-group ""
25926 nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
25927 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
25928 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
25930 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
25931 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
25933 ;;; Interface functions.
25935 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
25937 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
25938 (setq nndir-directory
25939 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
25941 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
25942 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
25943 (push `(nndir-current-group
25944 ,(file-name-nondirectory
25945 (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
25947 (push `(nndir-top-directory
25948 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
25950 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
25952 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
25953 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
25954 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
25955 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
25956 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
25960 nnmh-status-message
25962 nnmh-request-newgroups))
25968 @node Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus
25969 @subsubsection Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus
25971 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
25972 @findex gnus-declare-backend
25973 Having Gnus start using your new back end is rather easy---you just
25974 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
25975 enter the back end into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
25977 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the back end name and
25978 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
25983 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
25986 The above line would then go in the @file{nnchoke.el} file.
25988 The abilities can be:
25992 This is a mailish back end---followups should (probably) go via mail.
25994 This is a newsish back end---followups should (probably) go via news.
25996 This back end supports both mail and news.
25998 This is neither a post nor mail back end---it's something completely
26001 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
26002 articles and groups.
26004 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
26005 true for almost all back ends.
26006 @item prompt-address
26007 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
26008 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for back ends like
26009 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
26013 @node Mail-like Back Ends
26014 @subsubsection Mail-like Back Ends
26016 One of the things that separate the mail back ends from the rest of the
26017 back ends is the heavy dependence by most of the mail back ends on
26018 common functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the
26019 definition of @code{nnml-request-scan}:
26022 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
26023 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
26024 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
26027 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
26028 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
26031 This function takes four parameters.
26035 This should be a symbol to designate which back end is responsible for
26038 @item exit-function
26039 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
26041 @item temp-directory
26042 Where the temporary files should be stored.
26045 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
26046 performed for one group only.
26049 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{back-end}@code{-save-mail} to
26050 save each article. @var{back-end}@code{-active-number} will be called to
26051 find the article number assigned to this article.
26053 The function also uses the following variables:
26054 @var{back-end}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
26055 this back end); and @var{back-end}@code{-group-alist} and
26056 @var{back-end}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
26057 @var{back-end}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
26061 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
26062 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
26066 @node Score File Syntax
26067 @subsection Score File Syntax
26069 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
26070 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
26071 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
26073 Here's a typical score file:
26077 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
26084 BNF definition of a score file:
26087 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
26088 element = rule / atom
26089 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
26090 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
26091 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
26092 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
26094 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
26095 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
26096 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
26097 date-header = "date"
26098 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
26099 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
26100 score = "nil" / <integer>
26101 date = "nil" / <natural number>
26102 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
26103 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
26104 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
26105 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
26106 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
26107 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
26108 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
26109 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
26110 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
26111 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
26112 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
26113 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
26114 exclude-files / read-only / touched
26115 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
26116 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
26117 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
26118 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
26119 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
26120 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
26121 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
26122 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
26123 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
26124 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
26125 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
26126 eval = "eval" space <form>
26127 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
26130 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
26133 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
26134 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
26135 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
26136 one looong line, then that's ok.
26138 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
26139 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
26143 @subsection Headers
26145 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
26146 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
26147 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
26148 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
26150 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
26151 RFC 1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
26152 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
26153 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
26154 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
26155 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
26156 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
26158 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
26159 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
26160 @code{xref}, and @code{extra}. There are macros for accessing and
26161 setting these slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
26162 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
26164 All these slots contain strings, except the @code{extra} slot, which
26165 contains an alist of header/value pairs (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
26171 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
26172 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
26174 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
26175 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
26176 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
26177 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
26179 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
26183 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
26186 is transformed into
26189 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
26192 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
26193 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
26196 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
26199 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
26200 is slightly tricky:
26203 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
26209 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
26212 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
26218 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
26225 and is equal to the previous range.
26227 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
26228 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
26229 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
26233 range = simple-range / normal-range
26234 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
26235 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
26236 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
26237 number *[ " " contents ]
26240 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
26241 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
26242 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
26243 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
26244 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
26249 @subsection Group Info
26251 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
26252 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
26253 describes the group.
26255 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
26256 second is a more complex one:
26259 ("no.group" 5 ((1 . 54324)))
26261 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
26262 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
26264 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
26267 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
26268 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
26269 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
26270 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
26271 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
26272 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
26273 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
26274 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
26275 this section is about.
26277 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
26278 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
26279 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
26281 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
26284 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
26285 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
26286 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
26287 group = quote <string> quote
26288 ralevel = rank / level
26289 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
26290 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
26291 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
26293 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
26294 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
26295 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
26296 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
26299 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
26300 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
26303 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
26304 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
26307 @item gnus-info-group
26308 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
26309 @findex gnus-info-group
26310 @findex gnus-info-set-group
26311 Get/set the group name.
26313 @item gnus-info-rank
26314 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
26315 @findex gnus-info-rank
26316 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
26317 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
26319 @item gnus-info-level
26320 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
26321 @findex gnus-info-level
26322 @findex gnus-info-set-level
26323 Get/set the group level.
26325 @item gnus-info-score
26326 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
26327 @findex gnus-info-score
26328 @findex gnus-info-set-score
26329 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
26331 @item gnus-info-read
26332 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
26333 @findex gnus-info-read
26334 @findex gnus-info-set-read
26335 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
26337 @item gnus-info-marks
26338 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
26339 @findex gnus-info-marks
26340 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
26341 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
26343 @item gnus-info-method
26344 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
26345 @findex gnus-info-method
26346 @findex gnus-info-set-method
26347 Get/set the group select method.
26349 @item gnus-info-params
26350 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
26351 @findex gnus-info-params
26352 @findex gnus-info-set-params
26353 Get/set the group parameters.
26356 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
26357 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
26359 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
26360 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
26361 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
26362 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
26365 @node Extended Interactive
26366 @subsection Extended Interactive
26367 @cindex interactive
26368 @findex gnus-interactive
26370 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
26371 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
26372 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
26375 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
26376 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
26381 The best thing to do would have been to implement
26382 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
26383 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
26384 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
26385 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
26386 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
26387 @code{interactive}.
26389 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
26394 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
26395 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
26399 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
26400 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
26401 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
26404 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
26408 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
26412 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
26418 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
26419 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
26423 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
26424 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
26425 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
26427 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
26428 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
26429 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
26430 Gnus, that's very useful.
26432 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
26433 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
26434 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
26435 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
26436 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
26437 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
26438 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
26439 following function:
26442 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
26446 (,function ,@@args))
26450 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
26451 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
26452 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
26455 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
26456 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
26457 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
26459 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
26460 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
26461 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
26464 @node Various File Formats
26465 @subsection Various File Formats
26468 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
26469 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
26473 @node Active File Format
26474 @subsubsection Active File Format
26476 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
26477 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
26480 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
26483 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
26484 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
26485 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
26486 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
26487 no.general 1000 900 y
26490 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
26493 active = *group-line
26494 group-line = group spc high-number spc low-number spc flag <NEWLINE>
26495 group = <non-white-space string>
26497 high-number = <non-negative integer>
26498 low-number = <positive integer>
26499 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
26502 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
26503 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
26506 @node Newsgroups File Format
26507 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
26509 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
26510 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
26511 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
26514 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
26515 Here's the definition:
26519 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
26520 group = <non-white-space string>
26522 description = <string>
26527 @node Emacs for Heathens
26528 @section Emacs for Heathens
26530 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
26531 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
26532 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{C-M-a}'', ``kill the
26533 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
26534 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
26535 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
26536 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
26540 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
26541 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
26546 @subsection Keystrokes
26550 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
26553 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
26556 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
26557 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
26558 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
26559 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
26560 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
26561 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
26563 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
26564 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
26565 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
26566 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
26567 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
26568 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
26569 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
26571 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
26572 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{C-M-m}
26573 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
26574 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
26575 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
26576 ``Press @kbd{C-M-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
26577 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
26579 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
26580 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
26581 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
26582 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
26583 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
26589 @subsection Emacs Lisp
26591 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
26592 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
26593 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
26594 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
26596 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
26597 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
26598 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
26599 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
26600 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
26601 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
26602 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
26605 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
26606 write the following:
26609 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
26612 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
26613 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
26614 you can go and fill your @file{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
26617 If you have put that thing in your @file{.emacs} file, it will be read
26618 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
26619 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
26620 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
26621 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
26623 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
26624 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
26625 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
26629 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
26633 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
26636 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
26637 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
26640 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
26643 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
26644 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
26647 @include gnus-faq.texi
26667 @c Local Variables:
26669 @c coding: iso-8859-1
26671 % LocalWords: BNF mucho detailmenu cindex kindex kbd
26672 % LocalWords: findex Gnusae vindex dfn dfn samp nntp setq nnspool nntpserver
26673 % LocalWords: nnmbox newusers Blllrph NEWGROUPS dingnusdingnusdingnus
26674 % LocalWords: pre fab rec comp nnslashdot regex ga ga sci nnml nnbabyl nnmh
26675 % LocalWords: nnfolder emph looong eld newsreaders defun init elc pxref