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}{Oort Gnus v0.10}
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}}
72 \newcommand{\gnusbullet}{{${\bullet}$}}
73 \newcommand{\gnusdollar}{\$}
74 \newcommand{\gnusampersand}{\&}
75 \newcommand{\gnuspercent}{\%}
76 \newcommand{\gnushash}{\#}
77 \newcommand{\gnushat}{\symbol{"5E}}
78 \newcommand{\gnusunderline}{\symbol{"5F}}
79 \newcommand{\gnusnot}{$\neg$}
80 \newcommand{\gnustilde}{\symbol{"7E}}
81 \newcommand{\gnusless}{{$<$}}
82 \newcommand{\gnusgreater}{{$>$}}
83 \newcommand{\gnusbraceleft}{{$>$}}
84 \newcommand{\gnusbraceright}{{$>$}}
86 \newcommand{\gnushead}{\raisebox{-1cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-head,height=1cm}}}
87 \newcommand{\gnusinteresting}{
88 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\gnushead]{\gnushead}
91 \newcommand{\gnuscleardoublepage}{\ifodd\count0\mbox{}\clearpage\thispagestyle{empty}\mbox{}\clearpage\else\clearpage\fi}
93 \newcommand{\gnuspagechapter}[1]{
100 \newcommand{\gnuschapter}[2]{
102 \ifdim \gnusdimen = 0pt\setcounter{page}{1}\pagestyle{gnus}\pagenumbering{arabic} \gnusdimen 1pt\fi
104 \renewcommand{\gnussectionname}{}
105 \renewcommand{\gnuschaptername}{#2}
106 \thispagestyle{empty}
108 \begin{picture}(500,500)(0,0)
109 \put(480,350){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{#1}}
110 \put(40,300){\makebox(500,50)[bl]{{\Huge\bf{#2}}}}
115 \newcommand{\gnusfigure}[3]{
117 \mbox{}\ifodd\count0\hspace*{-0.8cm}\else\hspace*{-3cm}\fi\begin{picture}(440,#2)
124 \newcommand{\gnusicon}[1]{
125 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\raisebox{-1.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/#1-up,height=1.5cm}}]{\raisebox{-1cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/#1-up,height=1cm}}}
128 \newcommand{\gnuspicon}[1]{
129 \margindex{\epsfig{figure=#1,width=2cm}}
132 \newcommand{\gnusxface}[2]{
133 \margindex{\epsfig{figure=#1,width=1cm}\epsfig{figure=#2,width=1cm}}
136 \newcommand{\gnussmiley}[2]{
137 \margindex{\makebox[2cm]{\hfill\epsfig{figure=#1,width=0.5cm}\hfill\epsfig{figure=#2,width=0.5cm}\hfill}}
140 \newcommand{\gnusitemx}[1]{\mbox{}\vspace*{-\itemsep}\vspace*{-\parsep}\item#1}
142 \newcommand{\gnussection}[1]{
143 \renewcommand{\gnussectionname}{#1}
147 \newenvironment{codelist}%
152 \newenvironment{kbdlist}%
158 \newenvironment{dfnlist}%
163 \newenvironment{stronglist}%
168 \newenvironment{samplist}%
173 \newenvironment{varlist}%
178 \newenvironment{emphlist}%
183 \newlength\gnusheadtextwidth
184 \setlength{\gnusheadtextwidth}{\headtextwidth}
185 \addtolength{\gnusheadtextwidth}{1cm}
187 \newpagestyle{gnuspreamble}%
192 \hspace*{-0.23cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\mbox{}}\textbf{\hfill\roman{page}}}
196 \hspace*{-3.25cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\roman{page}\hfill\mbox{}}}
205 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
207 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
212 \newpagestyle{gnusindex}%
217 \hspace*{-0.23cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\gnuschaptername\hfill\arabic{page}}}}
221 \hspace*{-3.25cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\arabic{page}\hfill\gnuschaptername}}}
229 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
231 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
241 \makebox[12cm]{\hspace*{3.1cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\arabic{chapter}.\arabic{section}} \textbf{\gnussectionname\hfill\arabic{page}}}}}
245 \makebox[12cm]{\hspace*{-2.95cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\arabic{page}\hfill\gnuschaptername}}}}
253 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
255 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
260 \pagenumbering{roman}
261 \pagestyle{gnuspreamble}
271 %\addtolength{\oddsidemargin}{-5cm}
272 %\addtolength{\evensidemargin}{-5cm}
274 \addtolength{\textheight}{2cm}
276 \gnustitle{\gnustitlename}\hfill\gnusversion{\gnusversionname}\\
279 \hspace*{0cm}\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=15cm}
282 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
289 \thispagestyle{empty}
291 Copyright \copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002
292 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
295 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
296 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
297 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
298 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
299 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
300 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
301 License'' in the Emacs manual.
303 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
304 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
305 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
307 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
308 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
309 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
310 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
318 This file documents gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
320 Copyright (C) 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002
321 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
323 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
324 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
325 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the
326 Invariant Sections being none, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
327 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
328 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
329 License'' in the Emacs manual.
331 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
332 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
333 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
335 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
336 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
337 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
338 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
344 @title T-gnus 6.15 Manual
346 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
349 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
350 Copyright @copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002
351 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
353 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
354 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
355 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
356 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
357 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
358 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
359 License'' in the Emacs manual.
361 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
362 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
363 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
365 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
366 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
367 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
368 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
377 @top The gnus Newsreader
381 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using gnus. The news
382 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
383 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
386 T-gnus provides @sc{mime} features based on @sc{semi} API. So T-gnus
387 supports your right to read strange messages including big images or
388 other various kinds of formats. T-gnus also supports
389 internationalization/localization and multiscript features based on MULE
390 API. So T-gnus does not discriminate various language communities.
391 Oh, if you are a Klingon, please wait Unicode Next Generation.
393 This manual corresponds to T-gnus 6.15.
404 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
405 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
407 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
408 being accused of plagiarism:
410 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
411 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
412 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you
413 can even read news with it!
415 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
416 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
417 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend gnus to make it behave
418 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
419 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
425 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
426 * Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
427 * Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
428 * Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
429 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
430 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
431 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
432 * Various:: General purpose settings.
433 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
434 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
435 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
436 * Key Index:: Key Index.
438 Other related manuals
440 * Message:(message). Composing messages.
441 * Emacs-MIME:(emacs-mime). Composing messages; MIME-specific parts.
442 * Sieve:(sieve). Managing Sieve scripts in Emacs.
443 * PGG:(pgg). PGP/MIME with Gnus.
446 --- The Detailed Node Listing ---
450 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
451 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
452 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
453 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
454 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
455 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
456 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
457 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
458 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
459 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
460 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
464 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
465 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
466 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
470 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
471 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
472 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
473 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
474 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
475 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
476 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
477 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
478 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
479 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
480 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
481 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
482 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
483 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
484 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
485 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
486 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
490 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
491 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
492 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
496 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
497 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
498 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
499 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
500 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
504 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
505 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
506 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
507 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
508 * Sieve Commands:: Managing Sieve scripts.
512 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
513 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
514 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
515 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
516 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
517 * Delayed Articles:: Send articles at a later time.
518 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
519 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
520 * Threading:: How threads are made.
521 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
522 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
523 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
524 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
525 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
526 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
527 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
528 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
529 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
530 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
531 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
532 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
533 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
534 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
535 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
536 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
537 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
538 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
539 or reselecting the current group.
540 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
541 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
542 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
543 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
545 Summary Buffer Format
547 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
548 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
549 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
550 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
554 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
555 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
557 Reply, Followup and Post
559 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
560 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
561 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
562 * Canceling and Superseding::
566 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
567 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
568 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
570 * Generic Marking Commands::
571 * Setting Process Marks::
575 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
576 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
577 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
581 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
582 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
584 Customizing Threading
586 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
587 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
588 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
589 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
593 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
594 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
595 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
596 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
597 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
598 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
602 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
603 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
604 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
608 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
609 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
610 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
611 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
612 * Article Header:: Doing various header transformations.
613 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
614 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
615 * Article Display:: Display various stuff---X-Face, Picons, Smileys
616 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
617 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
619 Alternative Approaches
621 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
622 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
624 Various Summary Stuff
626 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
627 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
628 * Summary Generation Commands::
629 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
633 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
634 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
635 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
636 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
637 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
641 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
642 * Posting Server:: What server should you post and mail via?
643 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
644 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
645 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
646 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
647 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
648 * Signing and encrypting:: How to compose secure messages.
652 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
653 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
654 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
655 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
656 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
657 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
658 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
659 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
663 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
664 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
665 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
666 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
667 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
668 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
669 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
673 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
674 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
678 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
679 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
680 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
684 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
685 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
686 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
687 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
688 * Mail Back End Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
689 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
690 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
691 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
692 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
693 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
694 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
695 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail back ends for reading other files.
696 * Choosing a Mail Back End:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
700 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
701 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
702 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
704 Choosing a Mail Back End
706 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
707 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
708 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
709 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like back end.
710 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
711 * Comparing Mail Back Ends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
716 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
717 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
718 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
719 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
720 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
721 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
725 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
726 * Expiring in IMAP:: Expiring mail with nnimap.
727 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
728 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
729 * A note on namespaces:: How to (not) use IMAP namespace in Gnus.
733 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
734 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
735 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
736 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
737 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
741 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
745 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
746 * SOUP Groups:: A back end for reading @sc{soup} packets.
747 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
751 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
752 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
756 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
757 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
758 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
759 * Agent as Cache:: The Agent is a big cache too.
760 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
761 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
762 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
763 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
764 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
765 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
766 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
770 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
771 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
772 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
776 * Group Agent Commands::
777 * Summary Agent Commands::
778 * Server Agent Commands::
782 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
783 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
784 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
785 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
786 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
787 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
788 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
789 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
790 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
791 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
792 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
793 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
794 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
795 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
796 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
797 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
798 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
802 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
803 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
804 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
805 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
809 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
810 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
811 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
815 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
816 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
817 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
818 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
819 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
820 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
821 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
822 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
823 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
824 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
825 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
826 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
827 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
828 * Predicate Specifiers:: Specifying predicates.
829 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
830 * Image Enhancements:: Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
831 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
832 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
833 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
837 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
838 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
839 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
840 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
841 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
842 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
843 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
844 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
848 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what you're reading.
849 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
850 * X-Face:: Display a funky, teensy black-and-white image.
851 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
852 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
856 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
857 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
858 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
859 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
860 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
864 * The problem of spam:: Some background, and some solutions
865 * Anti-Spam Basics:: Simple steps to reduce the amount of spam.
866 * SpamAssassin:: How to use external anti-spam tools.
867 * Hashcash:: Reduce spam by burning CPU time.
868 * Filtering Spam Using spam.el::
869 * Filtering Spam Using Statistics (spam-stat.el)::
873 * XEmacs:: Requirements for installing under XEmacs.
874 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
875 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
876 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
877 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
878 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
879 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
880 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
881 * Frequently Asked Questions::
885 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
886 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
887 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
888 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
889 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
890 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
891 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
892 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
893 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
897 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
898 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
899 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
900 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
901 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
905 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
906 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
907 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
908 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
912 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
913 * Back End Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
914 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
915 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
916 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
917 * Group Info:: The group info format.
918 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
919 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
920 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
924 * Required Back End Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
925 * Optional Back End Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
926 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
927 * Writing New Back Ends:: Extending old back ends.
928 * Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
929 * Mail-like Back Ends:: Some tips on mail back ends.
933 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
934 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
938 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
939 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
945 @chapter Starting gnus
950 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting gnus
951 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
954 @findex gnus-other-frame
955 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
956 If you want to start gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
957 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
959 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
960 variables in your @file{~/.gnus} file. This file is similar to
961 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
963 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
964 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
967 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
968 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
969 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
970 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
971 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
972 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
973 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
974 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
975 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
976 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
977 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
981 @node Finding the News
982 @section Finding the News
985 @vindex gnus-select-method
987 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where gnus should look for
988 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
989 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
990 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
993 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
994 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
997 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
1000 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
1003 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
1006 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
1007 certainly be much faster. But do not use the local spool if your
1008 server is running Leafnode; in this case, use @code{(nntp "localhost")}.
1010 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
1012 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
1013 If this variable is not set, gnus will take a look at the
1014 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
1015 gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
1016 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
1017 that fails as well, gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
1019 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
1020 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
1021 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
1022 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
1024 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
1025 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
1026 You can also make gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
1027 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
1028 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), gnus will let you choose between the servers
1029 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
1030 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting. (Note that this
1031 will set @code{gnus-nntp-server}, which means that if you then @kbd{M-x
1032 gnus} later in the same Emacs session, Gnus will contact the same
1035 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
1037 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
1038 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
1039 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
1040 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
1041 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
1042 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
1044 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
1046 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
1047 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
1048 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
1049 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
1050 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
1051 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
1054 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} back end to read your mail,
1055 you would typically set this variable to
1058 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
1062 @node The First Time
1063 @section The First Time
1064 @cindex first time usage
1066 If no startup files exist, gnus will try to determine what groups should
1067 be subscribed by default.
1069 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
1070 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, gnus
1071 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
1072 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
1075 Since she hasn't, gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
1076 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
1077 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
1079 You'll also be subscribed to the gnus documentation group, which should
1080 help you with most common problems.
1082 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, gnus will just
1083 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
1087 @node The Server is Down
1088 @section The Server is Down
1089 @cindex server errors
1091 If the default server is down, gnus will understandably have some
1092 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
1093 the news groups, you may want to start gnus anyway.
1095 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
1096 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
1097 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
1098 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
1099 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
1100 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
1101 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
1103 @findex gnus-no-server
1104 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
1106 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
1107 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
1108 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start gnus. That might come in handy
1109 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
1110 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
1111 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
1112 levels.) Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1116 @section Slave Gnusae
1119 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one gnus at the
1120 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
1121 are using the two different gnusae to read from two different servers),
1122 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
1124 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
1125 @code{.newsrc} file.
1127 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the gnus
1128 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
1129 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
1130 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
1131 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
1132 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
1133 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
1135 Anyway, you start one gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
1136 however you do it). Each subsequent slave gnusae should be started with
1137 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
1138 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
1139 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master gnus
1140 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
1141 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
1142 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
1144 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
1145 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
1147 If the @code{.newsrc*} files have not been saved in the master when the
1148 slave starts, you may be prompted as to whether to read an auto-save
1149 file. If you answer "yes", the unsaved changes to the master will be
1150 incorporated into the slave. If you answer "no", the slave may see some
1151 messages as unread that have been read in the master.
1153 @node Fetching a Group
1154 @section Fetching a Group
1155 @cindex fetching a group
1157 @findex gnus-fetch-group
1158 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
1159 group and I don't care whether gnus has been started or not''. This is
1160 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
1161 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
1162 It takes the group name as a parameter.
1168 @cindex subscription
1170 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
1171 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
1172 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
1173 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
1174 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
1175 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
1176 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
1177 @code{always}, then Gnus will query the back ends for new groups even
1178 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1181 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
1182 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
1183 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
1187 @node Checking New Groups
1188 @subsection Checking New Groups
1190 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
1191 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
1192 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
1193 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, gnus will ask the
1194 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
1195 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
1196 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
1197 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
1198 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
1199 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
1201 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
1202 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
1203 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
1204 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
1205 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
1206 work. I could write a function to make gnus guess whether the server
1207 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
1208 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
1209 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
1210 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
1211 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
1213 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, gnus will
1214 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
1215 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
1216 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
1217 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
1218 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
1221 @node Subscription Methods
1222 @subsection Subscription Methods
1224 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
1225 What gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
1226 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
1228 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
1229 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
1231 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
1235 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
1236 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
1237 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
1238 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
1239 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
1241 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
1242 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
1243 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
1244 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
1246 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1247 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1248 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
1250 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1251 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1252 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
1253 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
1254 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
1255 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into its
1256 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
1257 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
1258 up. Or something like that.
1260 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
1261 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
1262 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that gnus will ask
1263 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
1264 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
1266 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
1267 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
1268 Kill all new groups.
1270 @item gnus-subscribe-topics
1271 @vindex gnus-subscribe-topics
1272 Put the groups into the topic that has a matching @code{subscribe} topic
1273 parameter (@pxref{Topic Parameters}). For instance, a @code{subscribe}
1274 topic parameter that looks like
1280 will mean that all groups that match that regex will be subscribed under
1283 If no topics match the groups, the groups will be subscribed in the
1288 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
1289 A closely related variable is
1290 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
1291 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, gnus will ask you in a
1292 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
1293 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
1296 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
1297 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
1298 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
1299 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
1302 @node Filtering New Groups
1303 @subsection Filtering New Groups
1305 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
1306 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
1307 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
1310 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
1313 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
1314 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
1315 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
1316 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
1317 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
1318 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
1319 subscribing these groups.
1320 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
1321 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
1323 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
1324 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
1325 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
1326 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
1327 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
1328 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
1329 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
1330 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
1332 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
1333 Yet another variable that meddles here is
1334 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
1335 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
1336 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
1337 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
1338 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
1339 that come from mail back ends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
1340 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, @code{nnmh}, and @code{nnmaildir})
1341 subscribed. If you don't like that, just set this variable to
1344 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
1345 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
1348 @node Changing Servers
1349 @section Changing Servers
1350 @cindex changing servers
1352 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
1353 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
1354 very flaky and you want to use another.
1356 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
1357 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
1361 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
1362 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
1363 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
1364 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
1367 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
1368 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
1369 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
1370 functions more than absolutely necessary.
1372 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
1373 @findex gnus-change-server
1374 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
1375 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
1376 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
1377 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
1378 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
1380 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1381 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1382 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
1383 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
1384 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
1386 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1387 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1388 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
1389 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
1390 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
1391 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
1393 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data
1394 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
1395 Clear the data from the current group only---nix out marks and the
1396 list of read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
1398 After changing servers, you @strong{must} move the cache hierarchy away,
1399 since the cached articles will have wrong article numbers, which will
1400 affect which articles Gnus thinks are read.
1401 @code{gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} will ask you if you want
1402 to have it done automatically; for @code{gnus-group-clear-data}, you
1403 can use @kbd{M-x gnus-cache-move-cache} (but beware, it will move the
1404 cache for all groups).
1408 @section Startup Files
1409 @cindex startup files
1414 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
1415 information is traditionally stored in this file.
1417 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
1418 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
1419 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
1420 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
1421 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
1422 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
1423 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
1425 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
1426 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
1427 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
1428 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
1429 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
1430 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
1432 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
1433 @vindex gnus-read-newsrc-file
1434 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
1435 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
1436 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from gnus faster.
1437 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
1438 gnus. But hey, who would want to, right? Similarly, setting
1439 @code{gnus-read-newsrc-file} to @code{nil} makes gnus ignore the
1440 @file{.newsrc} file and any @file{.newsrc-SERVER} files, which is
1441 convenient if you have a tendency to use Netscape once in a while.
1443 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
1444 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
1445 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
1446 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
1447 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
1448 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
1449 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
1450 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
1451 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
1452 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
1453 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
1454 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
1456 @vindex gnus-startup-file
1457 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
1458 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
1459 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
1461 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
1462 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
1463 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
1464 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
1465 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
1466 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
1467 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
1468 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
1469 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
1470 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
1473 (defun turn-off-backup ()
1474 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
1476 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1477 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1480 @vindex gnus-init-file
1481 When gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
1482 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
1483 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
1484 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
1485 @file{site-init} files with gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
1486 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
1487 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
1488 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
1489 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
1495 @cindex dribble file
1498 Whenever you do something that changes the gnus data (reading articles,
1499 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
1500 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
1501 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
1502 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
1505 If gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
1506 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
1509 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
1510 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, gnus won't create and
1511 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
1513 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
1514 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
1515 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, gnus will dribble
1516 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
1517 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
1518 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
1520 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
1521 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
1522 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
1525 @node The Active File
1526 @section The Active File
1528 @cindex ignored groups
1530 When gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
1531 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
1532 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
1534 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
1535 Before examining the active file, gnus deletes all lines that match the
1536 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
1537 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make gnus
1538 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
1539 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
1540 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
1543 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
1544 @c if you set it to anything else.
1546 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
1548 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
1549 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent gnus from
1550 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
1552 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
1553 you actually subscribe to.
1555 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
1556 variable to @code{nil} will probably make gnus slower, not faster. At
1557 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow gnus down
1558 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
1560 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
1561 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
1562 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
1563 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
1564 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
1565 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
1567 Some news servers (old versions of Leafnode and old versions of INN, for
1568 instance) do not support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group}. For these
1569 servers, @code{nil} is probably the most efficient value for this
1572 If this variable is @code{nil}, gnus will ask for group info in total
1573 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
1574 @sc{nntp} server, gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
1575 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
1576 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
1577 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
1579 If you think that starting up Gnus takes too long, try all the three
1580 different values for this variable and see what works best for you.
1582 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
1583 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1585 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1586 secondary select methods.
1589 @node Startup Variables
1590 @section Startup Variables
1594 @item gnus-load-hook
1595 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1596 A hook run while gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1597 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1598 times you start gnus.
1600 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1601 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1602 A hook run after starting up gnus successfully.
1604 @item gnus-startup-hook
1605 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1606 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up gnus
1608 @item gnus-started-hook
1609 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1610 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up gnus
1613 @item gnus-setup-news-hook
1614 @vindex gnus-setup-news-hook
1615 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1616 generating the group buffer.
1618 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1619 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1620 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1621 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1622 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1623 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1624 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1625 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1627 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1628 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1629 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1630 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1631 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1632 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
1634 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1635 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1636 Message displayed by gnus when no groups are available.
1638 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1639 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1640 If non-@code{nil}, play the gnus jingle at startup.
1642 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1643 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1644 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1645 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1651 @chapter Group Buffer
1652 @cindex group buffer
1654 @c Alex Schroeder suggests to rearrange this as follows:
1656 @c <kensanata> ok, just save it for reference. I'll go to bed in a minute.
1657 @c 1. Selecting a Group, 2. (new) Finding a Group, 3. Group Levels,
1658 @c 4. Subscription Commands, 5. Group Maneuvering, 6. Group Data,
1659 @c 7. Group Score, 8. Group Buffer Format
1660 @c <kensanata> Group Levels should have more information on levels 5 to 9. I
1661 @c suggest to split the 4th paragraph ("Gnus considers groups...") as follows:
1662 @c <kensanata> First, "Gnus considers groups... (default 9)."
1663 @c <kensanata> New, a table summarizing what levels 1 to 9 mean.
1664 @c <kensanata> Third, "Gnus treats subscribed ... reasons of efficiency"
1665 @c <kensanata> Then expand the next paragraph or add some more to it.
1666 @c This short one sentence explains levels 1 and 2, therefore I understand
1667 @c that I should keep important news at 3 and boring news at 4.
1668 @c Say so! Then go on to explain why I should bother with levels 6 to 9.
1669 @c Maybe keep those that you don't want to read temporarily at 6,
1670 @c those that you never want to read at 8, those that offend your
1671 @c human rights at 9...
1674 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1675 is the first buffer shown when gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1676 long as gnus is active.
1680 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1681 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=ps/group,height=9cm}}
1682 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1683 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1684 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1685 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1686 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1687 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1693 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1694 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1695 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1696 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1697 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1698 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1699 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1700 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1701 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1702 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1703 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1704 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1705 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1706 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1707 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1708 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1709 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1713 @node Group Buffer Format
1714 @section Group Buffer Format
1717 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1718 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1719 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1723 @node Group Line Specification
1724 @subsection Group Line Specification
1725 @cindex group buffer format
1727 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1728 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1730 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1733 25: news.announce.newusers
1734 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1739 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1740 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1741 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1742 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1744 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1745 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1746 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1747 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1748 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1749 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1751 @samp{%M%S%5y:%B%(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1753 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1754 the colon after performing an operation. @xref{Positioning
1755 Point}. Nothing else is required---not even the group name. All
1756 displayed text is just window dressing, and is never examined by Gnus.
1757 Gnus stores all real information it needs using text properties.
1759 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1760 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1761 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1763 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1768 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1771 Whether the group is subscribed.
1774 Level of subscribedness.
1777 Number of unread articles.
1780 Number of dormant articles.
1783 Number of ticked articles.
1786 Number of read articles.
1789 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1790 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1792 Gnus uses this estimation because the @sc{nntp} protocol provides
1793 efficient access to @var{max-number} and @var{min-number} but getting
1794 the true unread message count is not possible efficiently. For
1795 hysterical raisins, even the mail back ends, where the true number of
1796 unread messages might be available efficiently, use the same limited
1797 interface. To remove this restriction from Gnus means that the back
1798 end interface has to be changed, which is not an easy job. If you
1799 want to work on this, please contact the Gnus mailing list.
1802 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1805 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1814 Group comment (@pxref{Group Parameters}) or group name if there is no
1815 comment element in the group parameters.
1818 Newsgroup description.
1821 @samp{m} if moderated.
1824 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1830 If the summary buffer for the group is open or not.
1836 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1840 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1843 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1844 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1845 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1846 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1847 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.e.gnus}.
1850 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1852 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1856 @samp{#} (@code{gnus-process-mark}) if the group is process marked.
1859 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1863 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1864 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1865 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1866 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1867 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1868 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1873 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1874 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1875 group, or a bogus native group.
1878 @node Group Modeline Specification
1879 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1880 @cindex group modeline
1882 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1883 The mode line can be changed by setting
1884 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1885 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1889 The native news server.
1891 The native select method.
1895 @node Group Highlighting
1896 @subsection Group Highlighting
1897 @cindex highlighting
1898 @cindex group highlighting
1900 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1901 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1902 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1903 that look like @code{(@var{form} . @var{face})}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1904 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1906 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1910 (cond (window-system
1911 (setq custom-background-mode 'light)
1912 (defface my-group-face-1
1913 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))) "First group face")
1914 (defface my-group-face-2
1915 '((t (:foreground "DarkSeaGreen4" :bold t))) "Second group face")
1916 (defface my-group-face-3
1917 '((t (:foreground "Green4" :bold t))) "Third group face")
1918 (defface my-group-face-4
1919 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))) "Fourth group face")
1920 (defface my-group-face-5
1921 '((t (:foreground "Blue" :bold t))) "Fifth group face")))
1923 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1924 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1925 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1926 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1927 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1928 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1931 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1933 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1940 The number of unread articles in the group.
1944 Whether the group is a mail group.
1946 The level of the group.
1948 The score of the group.
1950 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1952 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1953 MIN-NUMBER plus one.
1955 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1956 topic being inserted.
1959 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1960 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal gnus
1961 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1963 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1964 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1965 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1966 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1967 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1970 @node Group Maneuvering
1971 @section Group Maneuvering
1972 @cindex group movement
1974 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1975 expected, hopefully.
1981 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1982 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1983 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1989 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1990 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1991 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1995 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1996 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
2000 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
2001 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
2005 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
2006 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
2007 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
2011 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
2012 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
2013 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
2016 Three commands for jumping to groups:
2022 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
2023 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
2024 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
2029 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
2030 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
2031 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
2035 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
2036 Jump to the first group with unread articles
2037 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
2040 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
2041 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
2042 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
2043 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
2047 @node Selecting a Group
2048 @section Selecting a Group
2049 @cindex group selection
2054 @kindex SPACE (Group)
2055 @findex gnus-group-read-group
2056 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
2057 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
2058 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
2059 this command, gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
2060 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
2061 determines the number of articles gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
2062 positive, gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
2063 negative, Gnus fetches the @code{abs(@var{N})} oldest articles.
2065 Thus, @kbd{SPC} enters the group normally, @kbd{C-u SPC} offers old
2066 articles, @kbd{C-u 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 newest articles, and @kbd{C-u
2067 - 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 oldest ones.
2069 When you are in the group (in the Summary buffer), you can type
2070 @kbd{M-g} to fetch new articles, or @kbd{C-u M-g} to also show the old
2075 @findex gnus-group-select-group
2076 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
2077 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
2078 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
2079 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
2083 @kindex M-RET (Group)
2084 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
2085 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
2086 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
2087 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
2088 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
2089 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
2090 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
2091 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
2092 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
2095 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
2096 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
2097 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
2098 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
2099 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
2102 @kindex C-M-RET (Group)
2103 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
2104 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
2105 doing any processing of its contents
2106 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
2107 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
2108 manner will have no permanent effects.
2112 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
2113 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what gnus should consider
2114 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
2115 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, gnus will query the user
2116 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
2117 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
2118 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
2119 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
2122 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
2123 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
2124 If @code{gnus-auto-select-first} is non-@code{nil}, select an article
2125 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
2126 Which article this is is controlled by the
2127 @code{gnus-auto-select-subject} variable. Valid values for this
2133 Place point on the subject line of the first unread article.
2136 Place point on the subject line of the first article.
2139 Place point on the subject line of the first unseen article.
2141 @item unseen-or-unread
2142 Place point on the subject line of the first unseen article, and if
2143 there is no such article, place point on the subject line of the first
2147 Place point on the subject line of the highest-scored unread article.
2151 This variable can also be a function. In that case, that function
2152 will be called to place point on a subject line.
2154 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
2155 binary group with Huge articles) you can set the
2156 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} variable to @code{nil} in
2157 @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
2161 @node Subscription Commands
2162 @section Subscription Commands
2163 @cindex subscription
2171 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
2172 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
2173 Toggle subscription to the current group
2174 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2180 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
2181 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
2182 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
2183 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
2189 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
2190 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
2191 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
2197 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
2198 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
2201 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
2202 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
2203 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
2204 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
2205 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
2211 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
2212 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
2216 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
2217 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
2220 @kindex S C-k (Group)
2221 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
2222 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
2223 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
2224 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
2225 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
2226 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
2227 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
2228 @file{.newsrc} file.
2232 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
2242 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
2243 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
2244 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
2245 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
2246 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
2247 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
2252 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
2253 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
2254 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
2258 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
2259 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
2260 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
2262 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2263 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2264 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2265 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
2266 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
2267 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
2274 @section Group Levels
2278 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
2279 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
2280 can ask gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
2281 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
2282 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
2284 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
2290 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
2291 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
2292 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
2293 prompted for a level.
2296 @vindex gnus-level-killed
2297 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
2298 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
2299 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
2300 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
2301 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
2302 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
2303 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
2304 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
2305 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
2306 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
2307 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
2308 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
2309 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
2310 reasons of efficiency.
2312 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
2313 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
2315 Maybe the following description of the default behavior of Gnus helps to
2316 understand what these levels are all about. By default, Gnus shows you
2317 subscribed nonempty groups, but by hitting @kbd{L} you can have it show
2318 empty subscribed groups and unsubscribed groups, too. Type @kbd{l} to
2319 go back to showing nonempty subscribed groups again. Thus, unsubscribed
2320 groups are hidden, in a way.
2322 Zombie and killed groups are similar to unsubscribed groups in that they
2323 are hidden by default. But they are different from subscribed and
2324 unsubscribed groups in that Gnus doesn't ask the news server for
2325 information (number of messages, number of unread messages) on zombie
2326 and killed groups. Normally, you use @kbd{C-k} to kill the groups you
2327 aren't interested in. If most groups are killed, Gnus is faster.
2329 Why does Gnus distinguish between zombie and killed groups? Well, when
2330 a new group arrives on the server, Gnus by default makes it a zombie
2331 group. This means that you are normally not bothered with new groups,
2332 but you can type @kbd{A z} to get a list of all new groups. Subscribe
2333 the ones you like and kill the ones you don't want. (@kbd{A k} shows a
2334 list of killed groups.)
2336 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
2337 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
2338 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
2340 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
2341 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
2342 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
2343 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
2344 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
2345 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
2346 relevant valid ranges.
2348 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
2349 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
2350 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
2351 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
2352 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
2353 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
2356 If this variable is @code{best}, Gnus will make the next newsgroup the
2357 one with the best level.
2359 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
2360 All groups with a level less than or equal to
2361 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
2364 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
2365 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
2366 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
2367 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
2370 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
2371 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
2372 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
2373 use this level as the ``work'' level.
2375 @vindex gnus-activate-level
2376 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
2377 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
2378 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
2379 to 5. The default is 6.
2383 @section Group Score
2388 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
2389 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
2390 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
2393 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can have Gnus assign a score
2394 to each group through the mechanism described below. You can then sort
2395 the group buffer based on this score. Alternatively, you can sort on
2396 score and then level. (Taken together, the level and the score is
2397 called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group that is on level 4 and has
2398 a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group on level 5 that has a score
2399 of 300. (The level is the most significant part and the score is the
2400 least significant part.))
2402 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
2403 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
2404 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
2405 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
2406 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
2407 action after each summary exit, you can add
2408 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
2409 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
2410 slow things down somewhat.
2413 @node Marking Groups
2414 @section Marking Groups
2415 @cindex marking groups
2417 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
2418 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
2419 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
2420 bidding on those groups.
2422 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
2423 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
2424 with the process mark and then execute the command.
2432 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
2433 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
2439 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
2440 Remove the mark from the current group
2441 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
2445 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
2446 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
2450 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
2451 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
2455 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
2456 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
2460 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
2461 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
2462 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
2465 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
2467 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
2468 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
2469 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
2470 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
2471 the command to be executed.
2474 @node Foreign Groups
2475 @section Foreign Groups
2476 @cindex foreign groups
2478 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
2479 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
2480 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
2481 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
2488 @findex gnus-group-make-group
2489 @cindex making groups
2490 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
2491 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
2492 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
2496 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
2497 @cindex renaming groups
2498 Rename the current group to something else
2499 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
2500 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
2506 @findex gnus-group-customize
2507 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
2511 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
2512 @cindex renaming groups
2513 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
2514 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
2518 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
2519 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
2520 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
2524 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
2525 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
2526 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
2530 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
2532 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
2533 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
2538 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
2539 Make the gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
2543 @cindex (ding) archive
2544 @cindex archive group
2545 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
2546 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
2547 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
2548 Make a gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
2549 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
2550 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
2551 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
2555 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
2557 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
2558 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
2559 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
2560 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
2564 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
2566 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
2567 @code{nneething} back end (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
2568 @xref{Anything Groups}.
2572 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
2573 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
2575 Make a group based on some file or other
2576 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2577 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
2578 Currently supported types are @code{mbox}, @code{babyl},
2579 @code{digest}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward},
2580 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts},
2581 @code{standard-digest}, @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs},
2582 @code{nsmail}, @code{outlook}, @code{oe-dbx}, and @code{mailman}. If
2583 you run this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file
2584 type. @xref{Document Groups}.
2588 @vindex gnus-useful-groups
2589 @findex gnus-group-make-useful-group
2590 Create one of the groups mentioned in @code{gnus-useful-groups}
2591 (@code{gnus-group-make-useful-group}).
2595 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
2599 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
2600 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2601 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
2602 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
2603 include @code{google}, @code{dejanews}, and @code{gmane}.
2604 @xref{Web Searches}.
2606 If you use the @code{google} search engine, you can limit the search
2607 to a particular group by using a match string like
2608 @samp{shaving group:alt.sysadmin.recovery}.
2611 @kindex G DEL (Group)
2612 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
2613 This function will delete the current group
2614 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
2615 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
2616 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
2617 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
2618 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
2622 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
2623 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
2624 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
2628 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
2629 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
2630 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
2633 @xref{Select Methods}, for more information on the various select
2636 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
2637 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
2638 gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
2639 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
2640 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
2641 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
2645 @node Group Parameters
2646 @section Group Parameters
2647 @cindex group parameters
2649 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
2650 Here's an example group parameter list:
2653 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2657 We see that each element consists of a "dotted pair"---the thing before
2658 the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value. All the
2659 parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs, which are
2660 not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
2662 Some parameters have correspondant customizable variables, each of which
2663 is an alist of regexps and values.
2665 The following group parameters can be used:
2670 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
2673 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
2676 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
2677 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
2678 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
2679 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
2680 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
2682 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
2683 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
2684 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
2685 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
2686 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
2687 list address instead.
2689 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-address-alist}.
2693 Address used when doing @kbd{a} in that group.
2696 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
2699 It is totally ignored
2700 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2701 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2703 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2704 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2705 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2706 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2707 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2709 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2710 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2711 sending the message.
2713 @findex gnus-mailing-list-mode
2714 @cindex Mail List Groups
2715 If this variable is set, @code{gnus-mailing-list-mode} is turned on when
2716 entering summary buffer.
2718 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-list-alist}.
2723 If this parameter is set to @code{t}, Gnus will consider the
2724 to-address and to-list parameters for this group as addresses of
2725 mailing lists you are subscribed to. Giving Gnus this information is
2726 (only) a first step in getting it to generate correct Mail-Followup-To
2727 headers for your posts to these lists. Look here @pxref{(message)Mailing
2728 Lists} for a complete treatment of available MFT support.
2730 See also @code{gnus-find-subscribed-addresses}, the function that
2731 directly uses this group parameter.
2735 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2736 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2737 of whether it has any unread articles.
2739 @item broken-reply-to
2740 @cindex broken-reply-to
2741 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2742 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
2743 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
2744 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
2745 broken behavior. So there!
2749 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2750 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2754 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, gnus
2755 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2756 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2761 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2762 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group. If
2763 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2764 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2765 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2766 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2767 (@pxref{Archived Messages}). CAVEAT:: It yields an error putting
2768 @code{(gcc-self . t)} in groups of a @code{nntp} server or so, because
2769 a @code{nntp} server doesn't accept articles.
2773 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2774 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2775 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2777 See also @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups}.
2780 @cindex total-expire
2781 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2782 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2783 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2784 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2787 See also @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups}.
2791 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2792 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2793 @code{(expiry-wait . 10)}, this value will override any
2794 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function}
2795 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}) when expiring expirable messages. The value
2796 can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or the
2797 symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2800 @cindex score file group parameter
2801 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2802 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2803 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2806 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2807 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2808 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2809 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2812 @cindex admin-address
2813 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2814 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2815 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2816 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2820 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2821 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2825 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2828 Display the last INTEGER articles in the group. This is the same as
2829 entering the group with C-u INTEGER.
2832 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2836 Display articles that satisfy a predicate.
2838 Here are some examples:
2842 Display only unread articles.
2845 Display everything except expirable articles.
2847 @item [and (not reply) (not expire)]
2848 Display everything except expirable and articles you've already
2852 The available operators are @code{not}, @code{and} and @code{or}.
2853 Predicates include @code{tick}, @code{unsend}, @code{undownload},
2854 @code{unread}, @code{dormant}, @code{expire}, @code{reply},
2855 @code{killed}, @code{bookmark}, @code{score}, @code{save},
2856 @code{cache}, @code{forward}, @code{unseen} and @code{recent}.
2860 The @code{display} parameter works by limiting the summary buffer to
2861 the subset specified. You can pop the limit by using the @kbd{/ w}
2862 command (@pxref{Limiting}).
2866 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")} are
2867 arbitrary comments on the group. You can display comments in the
2868 group line (@pxref{Group Line Specification}).
2872 Elements that look like @code{(charset . iso-8859-1)} will make
2873 @code{iso-8859-1} the default charset; that is, the charset that will be
2874 used for all articles that do not specify a charset.
2876 See also @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}.
2878 @item ignored-charsets
2879 @cindex ignored-charset
2880 Elements that look like @code{(ignored-charsets x-unknown iso-8859-1)}
2881 will make @code{iso-8859-1} and @code{x-unknown} ignored; that is, the
2882 default charset will be used for decoding articles.
2884 See also @code{gnus-group-ignored-charsets-alist}.
2887 @cindex posting-style
2888 You can store additional posting style information for this group only
2889 here (@pxref{Posting Styles}). The format is that of an entry in the
2890 @code{gnus-posting-styles} alist, except that there's no regexp matching
2891 the group name (of course). Style elements in this group parameter will
2892 take precedence over the ones found in @code{gnus-posting-styles}.
2894 For instance, if you want a funky name and signature in this group only,
2895 instead of hacking @code{gnus-posting-styles}, you could put something
2896 like this in the group parameters:
2901 (signature "Funky Signature"))
2906 If it is set, the value is used as the method for posting message
2907 instead of @code{gnus-post-method}.
2911 An item like @code{(banner . "regex")} causes any part of an article
2912 that matches the regular expression "regex" to be stripped. Instead of
2913 "regex", you can also use the symbol @code{signature} which strips the
2914 last signature or any of the elements of the alist
2915 @code{gnus-article-banner-alist}.
2919 This parameter contains a Sieve test that should match incoming mail
2920 that should be placed in this group. From this group parameter, a
2921 Sieve @samp{IF} control structure is generated, having the test as the
2922 condition and @samp{fileinto "group.name";} as the body.
2924 For example, if the INBOX.list.sieve group has the @code{(sieve
2925 address "sender" "sieve-admin@@extundo.com")} group parameter, when
2926 translating the group parameter into a Sieve script (@pxref{Sieve
2927 Commands}) the following Sieve code is generated:
2930 if address \"sender\" \"sieve-admin@@extundo.com\" @{
2931 fileinto \"INBOX.list.sieve\";
2935 The Sieve language is described in RFC 3028. @xref{Top, , Top, sieve,
2938 @item (@var{variable} @var{form})
2939 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2940 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2941 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2942 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2943 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2944 @code{eval}ed there.
2946 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
2947 A use for this feature, is to remove a mailing list identifier tag in
2948 the subject fields of articles. E.g. if the news group
2949 @samp{nntp+news.gnus.org:gmane.text.docbook.apps} has the tag
2950 @samp{DOC-BOOK-APPS:} in the subject of all articles, this tag can be
2951 removed from the article subjects in the summary buffer for the group by
2952 putting @code{(gnus-list-identifiers "DOCBOOK-APPS:")} into the group
2953 parameters for the group.
2956 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2957 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2958 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2959 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2960 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2964 Use the @kbd{G p} or the @kbd{G c} command to edit group parameters of a
2965 group. (@kbd{G p} presents you with a Lisp-based interface, @kbd{G c}
2966 presents you with a Customize-like interface. The latter helps avoid
2967 silly Lisp errors.) You might also be interested in reading about topic
2968 parameters (@pxref{Topic Parameters}).
2970 Group parameters can be set via the @code{gnus-parameters} variable too.
2971 But some variables, such as @code{visible}, have no effect. For
2975 (setq gnus-parameters
2977 (gnus-show-threads nil)
2978 (gnus-use-scoring nil)
2979 (gnus-summary-line-format
2980 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%d:%ub%-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
2984 ("^nnimap:\\(foo.bar\\)$"
2988 (gnus-use-scoring t))
2992 (broken-reply-to . t))))
2995 String value of parameters will be subjected to regexp substitution, as
2996 the @code{to-group} example shows.
2999 @node Listing Groups
3000 @section Listing Groups
3001 @cindex group listing
3003 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
3011 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
3012 List all groups that have unread articles
3013 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
3014 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
3015 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
3016 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
3023 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
3024 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
3025 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
3026 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
3027 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
3028 unsubscribed groups).
3032 @findex gnus-group-list-level
3033 List all unread groups on a specific level
3034 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
3035 with no unread articles.
3039 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
3040 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
3041 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
3042 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
3047 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
3048 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
3052 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
3053 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
3054 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
3058 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
3059 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
3063 @findex gnus-group-list-active
3064 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
3065 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
3066 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
3067 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
3068 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
3069 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
3070 Take the output with some grains of salt.
3074 @findex gnus-group-apropos
3075 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
3076 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
3080 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
3081 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
3082 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
3086 @findex gnus-group-list-cached
3087 List all groups with cached articles (@code{gnus-group-list-cached}).
3091 @findex gnus-group-list-dormant
3092 List all groups with dormant articles (@code{gnus-group-list-dormant}).
3096 @findex gnus-group-list-limit
3097 List groups limited within the current selection
3098 (@code{gnus-group-list-limit}).
3102 @findex gnus-group-list-flush
3103 Flush groups from the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-flush}).
3107 @findex gnus-group-list-plus
3108 List groups plus the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-plus}).
3112 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3113 @cindex visible group parameter
3114 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
3115 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
3116 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
3117 get the same effect.
3119 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
3120 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
3121 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
3122 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
3123 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
3126 @node Sorting Groups
3127 @section Sorting Groups
3128 @cindex sorting groups
3130 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
3131 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
3132 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
3133 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
3134 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
3135 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
3140 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
3141 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
3142 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
3144 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
3145 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
3146 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
3148 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
3149 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
3150 Sort by group level.
3152 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
3153 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
3154 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
3156 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
3157 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
3158 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
3159 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
3161 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
3162 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
3163 Sort by number of unread articles.
3165 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
3166 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
3167 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
3169 @item gnus-group-sort-by-server
3170 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-server
3171 Sort alphabetically on the Gnus server name.
3176 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
3177 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
3181 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
3182 some sorting criteria:
3186 @kindex G S a (Group)
3187 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3188 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
3189 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3192 @kindex G S u (Group)
3193 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
3194 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
3195 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3198 @kindex G S l (Group)
3199 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
3200 Sort the group buffer by group level
3201 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
3204 @kindex G S v (Group)
3205 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
3206 Sort the group buffer by group score
3207 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3210 @kindex G S r (Group)
3211 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
3212 Sort the group buffer by group rank
3213 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3216 @kindex G S m (Group)
3217 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
3218 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by back end name
3219 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
3222 @kindex G S n (Group)
3223 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-real-name
3224 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by real (unprefixed) group name
3225 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-real-name}).
3229 All the commands below obey the process/prefix convention
3230 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3232 When given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), all these
3233 commands will sort in reverse order.
3235 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
3239 @kindex G P a (Group)
3240 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
3241 Sort the groups alphabetically by group name
3242 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
3245 @kindex G P u (Group)
3246 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
3247 Sort the groups by the number of unread articles
3248 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
3251 @kindex G P l (Group)
3252 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
3253 Sort the groups by group level
3254 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
3257 @kindex G P v (Group)
3258 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
3259 Sort the groups by group score
3260 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3263 @kindex G P r (Group)
3264 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
3265 Sort the groups by group rank
3266 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3269 @kindex G P m (Group)
3270 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
3271 Sort the groups alphabetically by back end name
3272 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
3275 @kindex G P n (Group)
3276 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-real-name
3277 Sort the groups alphabetically by real (unprefixed) group name
3278 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-real-name}).
3281 @kindex G P s (Group)
3282 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups
3283 Sort the groups according to @code{gnus-group-sort-function}.
3287 And finally, note that you can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} to manually
3291 @node Group Maintenance
3292 @section Group Maintenance
3293 @cindex bogus groups
3298 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
3299 Find bogus groups and delete them
3300 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
3304 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
3305 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
3306 With 1 @kbd{C-u}, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
3307 for new groups. With 2 @kbd{C-u}'s, use most complete method possible
3308 to query the server for new groups, and subscribe the new groups as
3312 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
3313 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
3314 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
3315 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}). That is, delete
3316 all expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
3317 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3320 @kindex C-c C-M-x (Group)
3321 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
3322 Run all expirable articles in all groups through the expiry process
3323 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
3328 @node Browse Foreign Server
3329 @section Browse Foreign Server
3330 @cindex foreign servers
3331 @cindex browsing servers
3336 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
3337 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
3338 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
3339 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
3342 @findex gnus-browse-mode
3343 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
3344 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
3345 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
3347 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
3352 @findex gnus-group-next-group
3353 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
3357 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
3358 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
3361 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
3362 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
3363 Enter the current group and display the first article
3364 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
3367 @kindex RET (Browse)
3368 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
3369 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
3373 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
3374 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
3375 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
3381 @findex gnus-browse-exit
3382 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
3386 @findex gnus-browse-describe-group
3387 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-browse-describe-group}).
3391 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
3392 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
3393 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
3398 @section Exiting gnus
3399 @cindex exiting gnus
3401 Yes, gnus is ex(c)iting.
3406 @findex gnus-group-suspend
3407 Suspend gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit gnus,
3408 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
3409 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
3413 @findex gnus-group-exit
3414 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
3415 Quit gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
3419 @findex gnus-group-quit
3420 Quit gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
3421 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
3424 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
3425 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
3426 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend gnus and
3427 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit gnus, while
3428 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
3433 If you wish to completely unload gnus and all its adherents, you can use
3434 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
3435 trying to customize meta-variables.
3440 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
3441 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
3442 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
3448 @section Group Topics
3451 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
3452 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
3453 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
3454 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
3455 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
3456 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
3460 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
3461 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=ps/group-topic,height=9cm}}
3472 2: alt.religion.emacs
3475 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3477 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3478 13: comp.sources.unix
3481 @findex gnus-topic-mode
3483 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
3484 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
3485 is a toggling command.)
3487 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
3488 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and
3489 now press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
3490 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
3493 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
3494 the hook for the group mode. Put the following line in your
3495 @file{~/.gnus} file:
3498 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
3502 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
3503 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
3504 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
3505 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
3506 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
3510 @node Topic Commands
3511 @subsection Topic Commands
3512 @cindex topic commands
3514 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
3515 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
3516 definitions slightly.
3518 In general, the following kinds of operations are possible on topics.
3519 First of all, you want to create topics. Secondly, you want to put
3520 groups in topics and to move them around until you have an order you
3521 like. The third kind of operation is to show/hide parts of the whole
3522 shebang. You might want to hide a topic including its subtopics and
3523 groups, to get a better overview of the other groups.
3525 Here is a list of the basic keys that you might need to set up topics
3532 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
3533 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
3534 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
3538 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
3540 @findex gnus-topic-indent
3541 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3542 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
3543 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
3546 @kindex M-TAB (Topic)
3547 @findex gnus-topic-unindent
3548 ``Un-indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3549 parent of its current parent (@code{gnus-topic-unindent}).
3553 The following two keys can be used to move groups and topics around.
3554 They work like the well-known cut and paste. @kbd{C-k} is like cut and
3555 @kbd{C-y} is like paste. Of course, this being Emacs, we use the terms
3556 kill and yank rather than cut and paste.
3562 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
3563 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
3564 topic will be removed along with the topic.
3568 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
3569 Yank the previously killed group or topic
3570 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
3573 So, to move a topic to the beginning of the list of topics, just hit
3574 @kbd{C-k} on it. This is like the `cut' part of cut and paste. Then,
3575 move the cursor to the beginning of the buffer (just below the `Gnus'
3576 topic) and hit @kbd{C-y}. This is like the `paste' part of cut and
3577 paste. Like I said -- E-Z.
3579 You can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} on groups as well as on topics. So
3580 you can move topics around as well as groups.
3584 After setting up the topics the way you like them, you might wish to
3585 hide a topic, or to show it again. That's why we have the following
3592 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
3594 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
3595 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
3596 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
3597 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
3598 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
3599 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
3603 Now for a list of other commands, in no particular order.
3609 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
3610 Move the current group to some other topic
3611 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3612 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3616 @findex gnus-topic-jump-to-topic
3617 Go to a topic (@code{gnus-topic-jump-to-topic}).
3621 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
3622 Copy the current group to some other topic
3623 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3624 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3628 @findex gnus-topic-hide-topic
3629 Hide the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-hide-topic}). If given
3630 a prefix, hide the topic permanently.
3634 @findex gnus-topic-show-topic
3635 Show the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-show-topic}). If given
3636 a prefix, show the topic permanently.
3640 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
3641 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
3642 This command is mainly useful if you have the same group in several
3643 topics and wish to remove it from one of the topics. You may also
3644 remove a group from all topics, but in that case, Gnus will add it to
3645 the root topic the next time you start Gnus. In fact, all new groups
3646 (which, naturally, don't belong to any topic) will show up in the root
3649 This command uses the process/prefix convention
3650 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3654 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
3655 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3656 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
3660 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
3661 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3662 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
3666 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
3667 Toggle hiding empty topics
3668 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
3672 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
3673 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
3674 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
3677 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
3678 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
3679 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
3680 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
3683 @kindex C-c C-x (Topic)
3684 @findex gnus-topic-expire-articles
3685 Run all expirable articles in the current group or topic through the
3686 expiry process (if any)
3687 (@code{gnus-topic-expire-articles}). (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3691 @findex gnus-topic-rename
3692 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
3695 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
3696 @findex gnus-topic-delete
3697 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
3701 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
3702 List all groups that gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
3703 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
3706 @kindex T M-n (Topic)
3707 @findex gnus-topic-goto-next-topic
3708 Go to the next topic (@code{gnus-topic-goto-next-topic}).
3711 @kindex T M-p (Topic)
3712 @findex gnus-topic-goto-previous-topic
3713 Go to the next topic (@code{gnus-topic-goto-previous-topic}).
3717 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
3718 @cindex group parameters
3719 @cindex topic parameters
3721 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
3722 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
3727 @node Topic Variables
3728 @subsection Topic Variables
3729 @cindex topic variables
3731 The previous section told you how to tell Gnus which topics to display.
3732 This section explains how to tell Gnus what to display about each topic.
3734 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
3735 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
3736 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3749 Number of groups in the topic.
3751 Number of unread articles in the topic.
3753 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
3756 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
3757 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
3758 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
3761 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
3762 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
3764 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
3765 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
3766 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
3770 @subsection Topic Sorting
3771 @cindex topic sorting
3773 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
3779 @kindex T S a (Topic)
3780 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3781 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
3782 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3785 @kindex T S u (Topic)
3786 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
3787 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
3788 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3791 @kindex T S l (Topic)
3792 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
3793 Sort the current topic by group level
3794 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
3797 @kindex T S v (Topic)
3798 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
3799 Sort the current topic by group score
3800 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3803 @kindex T S r (Topic)
3804 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
3805 Sort the current topic by group rank
3806 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3809 @kindex T S m (Topic)
3810 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
3811 Sort the current topic alphabetically by back end name
3812 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
3815 @kindex T S e (Topic)
3816 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-server
3817 Sort the current topic alphabetically by server name
3818 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-server}).
3822 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups
3823 Sort the current topic according to the function(s) given by the
3824 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable
3825 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups}).
3829 When given a prefix argument, all these commands will sort in reverse
3830 order. @xref{Sorting Groups}, for more information about group
3834 @node Topic Topology
3835 @subsection Topic Topology
3836 @cindex topic topology
3839 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
3845 2: alt.religion.emacs
3848 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3850 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3851 13: comp.sources.unix
3854 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
3855 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
3856 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
3861 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
3862 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
3866 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
3867 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
3868 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
3869 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
3870 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
3871 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
3873 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
3874 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
3875 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
3878 @node Topic Parameters
3879 @subsection Topic Parameters
3880 @cindex topic parameters
3882 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
3883 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
3884 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
3886 In addition, the following parameters are only valid as topic
3891 When subscribing new groups by topic (@pxref{Subscription Methods}), the
3892 @code{subscribe} topic parameter says what groups go in what topic. Its
3893 value should be a regexp to match the groups that should go in that
3896 @item subscribe-level
3897 When subscribing new groups by topic (see the @code{subscribe} parameter),
3898 the group will be subscribed with the level specified in the
3899 @code{subscribe-level} instead of @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}.
3903 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
3904 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
3905 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
3906 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
3912 2: alt.religion.emacs
3916 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3918 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3919 13: comp.sources.unix
3923 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
3924 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
3925 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
3926 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
3927 @* @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
3928 . "religion.SCORE")}.
3930 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
3931 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
3932 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
3933 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
3934 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
3936 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
3937 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
3938 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
3939 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
3940 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
3941 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
3942 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
3943 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
3946 @node Misc Group Stuff
3947 @section Misc Group Stuff
3950 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
3951 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
3952 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
3953 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
3954 * Sieve Commands:: Managing Sieve scripts.
3961 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
3962 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
3963 @xref{Server Buffer}.
3967 @findex gnus-group-post-news
3968 Start composing a message (a news by default)
3969 (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a prefix, post to the group
3970 under the point. If the prefix is 1, prompt for a group to post to.
3971 Contrary to what the name of this function suggests, the prepared
3972 article might be a mail instead of a news, if a mail group is specified
3973 with the prefix argument. @xref{Composing Messages}.
3977 @findex gnus-group-mail
3978 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}). If given a prefix,
3979 use the posting style of the group under the point. If the prefix is 1,
3980 prompt for a group name to find the posting style.
3981 @xref{Composing Messages}.
3985 @findex gnus-group-news
3986 Start composing a news (@code{gnus-group-news}). If given a prefix,
3987 post to the group under the point. If the prefix is 1, prompt
3988 for group to post to. @xref{Composing Messages}.
3990 This function actually prepares a news even when using mail groups.
3991 This is useful for "posting" messages to mail groups without actually
3992 sending them over the network: they're just saved directly to the group
3993 in question. The corresponding back end must have a request-post method
3994 for this to work though.
3998 Variables for the group buffer:
4002 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
4003 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
4004 is called after the group buffer has been
4007 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
4008 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
4009 is called after the group buffer is
4010 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
4013 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
4014 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
4015 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
4016 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
4018 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
4019 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
4020 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
4021 whether they are empty or not.
4023 @item gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
4024 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
4025 An alist of method and the charset for group names. It is used to show
4026 non-ASCII group names.
4030 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
4031 '(((nntp "news.com.cn") . cn-gb-2312)))
4034 @item gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
4035 @cindex UTF-8 group names
4036 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
4037 An alist of regexp of group name and the charset for group names. It
4038 is used to show non-ASCII group names. @code{((".*" utf-8))} is the
4039 default value if UTF-8 is supported, otherwise the default is nil.
4043 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
4044 '(("\\.com\\.cn:" . cn-gb-2312)))
4049 @node Scanning New Messages
4050 @subsection Scanning New Messages
4051 @cindex new messages
4052 @cindex scanning new news
4058 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
4059 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
4060 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
4061 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
4062 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
4063 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
4068 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
4069 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
4070 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
4071 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
4072 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
4073 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
4074 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
4076 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
4077 @cindex activating groups
4079 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
4080 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
4085 @findex gnus-group-restart
4086 Restart gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
4087 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
4088 gnus variables, and then starts gnus all over again.
4092 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
4093 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
4095 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
4096 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
4100 @node Group Information
4101 @subsection Group Information
4102 @cindex group information
4103 @cindex information on groups
4110 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
4111 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
4114 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
4115 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
4116 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
4117 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
4118 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
4119 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
4120 for fetching the file.
4122 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, gnus will attempt to go
4123 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
4127 @findex gnus-group-fetch-charter
4128 @vindex gnus-group-charter-alist
4130 Try to open the charter for the current group in a web browser
4131 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-charter}). Query for a group if given a
4134 Gnus will use @code{gnus-group-charter-alist} to find the location of
4135 the charter. If no location is known, Gnus will fetch the control
4136 messages for the group, which in some cases includes the charter.
4140 @findex gnus-group-fetch-control
4141 @vindex gnus-group-fetch-control-use-browse-url
4142 @cindex control message
4143 Fetch the control messages for the group from the archive at
4144 @code{ftp.isc.org} (@code{gnus-group-fetch-control}). Query for a
4145 group if given a prefix argument.
4147 If @code{gnus-group-fetch-control-use-browse-url} is non-nil, Gnus
4148 will open the control messages in a browser using @code{browse-url}.
4149 Otherwise they are fetched using @code{ange-ftp} and displayed in an
4152 Note that the control messages are compressed. To use this command
4153 you need to turn on @code{auto-compression-mode}
4154 (@pxref{(emacs)Compressed Files}).
4158 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
4160 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
4161 @cindex describing groups
4162 @cindex group description
4163 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
4164 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
4165 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
4169 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
4170 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
4171 prefix, force gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
4178 @findex gnus-version
4179 Display current gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
4183 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
4184 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
4187 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
4190 @findex gnus-info-find-node
4191 Go to the gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
4195 @node Group Timestamp
4196 @subsection Group Timestamp
4198 @cindex group timestamps
4200 It can be convenient to let gnus keep track of when you last read a
4201 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
4202 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
4205 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
4208 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
4210 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
4211 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
4214 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4215 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
4218 This will result in lines looking like:
4221 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
4222 0: custom 19961002T012713
4225 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
4226 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
4230 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4231 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
4234 If you would like greater control of the time format, you can use a
4235 user-defined format spec. Something like the following should do the
4239 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4240 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %ud\n")
4241 (defun gnus-user-format-function-d (headers)
4242 (let ((time (gnus-group-timestamp gnus-tmp-group)))
4244 (format-time-string "%b %d %H:%M" time)
4250 @subsection File Commands
4251 @cindex file commands
4257 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
4258 @vindex gnus-init-file
4259 @cindex reading init file
4260 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
4261 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
4265 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
4266 @cindex saving .newsrc
4267 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
4268 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
4269 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
4272 @c @kindex Z (Group)
4273 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
4274 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
4279 @node Sieve Commands
4280 @subsection Sieve Commands
4281 @cindex group sieve commands
4283 Sieve is a server-side mail filtering language. In Gnus you can use
4284 the @code{sieve} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to specify
4285 sieve rules that should apply to each group. Gnus provides two
4286 commands to translate all these group parameters into a proper Sieve
4287 script that can be transfered to the server somehow.
4289 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4290 @vindex gnus-sieve-region-start
4291 @vindex gnus-sieve-region-end
4292 The generated Sieve script is placed in @code{gnus-sieve-file} (by
4293 default @file{~/.sieve}). The Sieve code that Gnus generate is placed
4294 between two delimiters, @code{gnus-sieve-region-start} and
4295 @code{gnus-sieve-region-end}, so you may write additional Sieve code
4296 outside these delimiters that will not be removed the next time you
4297 regenerate the Sieve script.
4299 @vindex gnus-sieve-crosspost
4300 The variable @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} controls how the Sieve script
4301 is generated. If it is non-nil (the default) articles is placed in
4302 all groups that have matching rules, otherwise the article is only
4303 placed in the group with the first matching rule. For example, the
4304 group parameter @samp{(sieve address "sender"
4305 "owner-ding@@hpc.uh.edu")} will generate the following piece of Sieve
4306 code if @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} is nil. (When
4307 @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} is non-nil, it looks the same except that
4308 the line containing the call to @code{stop} is removed.)
4311 if address "sender" "owner-ding@@hpc.uh.edu" @{
4312 fileinto "INBOX.ding";
4317 @xref{Top, ,Top, sieve, Emacs Sieve}.
4323 @findex gnus-sieve-generate
4324 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4325 @cindex generating sieve script
4326 Regenerate a Sieve script from the @code{sieve} group parameters and
4327 put you into the @code{gnus-sieve-file} without saving it.
4331 @findex gnus-sieve-update
4332 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4333 @cindex updating sieve script
4334 Regenerates the Gnus managed part of @code{gnus-sieve-file} using the
4335 @code{sieve} group parameters, save the file and upload it to the
4336 server using the @code{sieveshell} program.
4341 @node Summary Buffer
4342 @chapter Summary Buffer
4343 @cindex summary buffer
4345 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
4346 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
4348 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
4349 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
4351 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
4354 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
4355 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
4356 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
4357 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
4358 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
4359 * Delayed Articles:: Send articles at a later time.
4360 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
4361 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
4362 * Threading:: How threads are made.
4363 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
4364 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
4365 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
4366 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
4367 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
4368 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
4369 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
4370 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
4371 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
4372 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
4373 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
4374 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
4375 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
4376 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
4377 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
4378 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
4379 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
4380 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
4381 or reselecting the current group.
4382 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
4383 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
4384 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
4385 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
4389 @node Summary Buffer Format
4390 @section Summary Buffer Format
4391 @cindex summary buffer format
4395 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
4396 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=ps/summary,width=7.5cm}}
4397 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-article,width=7.5cm}}}
4403 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
4404 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
4405 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
4406 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
4409 @findex mail-extract-address-components
4410 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
4411 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
4412 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
4413 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
4414 @code{From} header. Three pre-defined functions exist:
4415 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
4416 fast, and too simplistic solution;
4417 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works nicely, but is
4418 slower; and @code{std11-extract-address-components}, which works very
4419 nicely, but is slower. The default function will return the wrong
4420 answer in 5% of the cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the
4421 other function instead:
4424 (setq gnus-extract-address-components
4425 'mail-extract-address-components)
4428 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
4429 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
4430 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
4431 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
4434 @node Summary Buffer Lines
4435 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
4437 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4438 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
4439 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
4440 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
4441 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
4443 There should always be a colon or a point position marker on the line;
4444 the cursor always moves to the point position marker or the colon after
4445 performing an operation. (Of course, Gnus wouldn't be Gnus if it wasn't
4446 possible to change this. Just write a new function
4447 @code{gnus-goto-colon} which does whatever you like with the cursor.)
4448 @xref{Positioning Point}.
4450 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23f%]%) %s\n}.
4452 The following format specification characters and extended format
4453 specification(s) are understood:
4459 Subject string. List identifiers stripped,
4460 @code{gnus-list-identifies}. @xref{Article Hiding}.
4462 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
4463 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
4464 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
4466 Full @code{From} header.
4468 The name (from the @code{From} header).
4470 The name, @code{To} header or the @code{Newsgroups} header (@pxref{To
4473 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
4474 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
4475 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
4476 may be more thorough.
4478 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
4481 Number of lines in the article.
4483 Number of characters in the article. This specifier is not supported
4484 in some methods (like nnfolder).
4486 Pretty-printed version of the number of characters in the article;
4487 for example, @samp{1.2k} or @samp{0.4M}.
4489 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4491 A complex trn-style thread tree, showing response-connecting trace
4494 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
4495 pushes everything after it off the screen).
4497 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
4498 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4500 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
4501 for adopted articles.
4503 One space for each thread level.
4505 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
4507 Unread. @xref{Read Articles}.
4510 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
4511 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
4512 or has been saved. @xref{Other Marks}.
4515 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
4517 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
4518 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
4519 default level. If the difference between
4520 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
4521 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
4529 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
4531 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
4537 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
4538 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
4540 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
4541 article has any children.
4547 Age sensitive date format. Various date format is defined in
4548 @code{gnus-user-date-format-alist}.
4550 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
4551 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
4552 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
4553 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
4554 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
4555 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
4558 Text between @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} will be highlighted with
4559 @code{gnus-mouse-face} when the mouse point is placed inside the area.
4560 There can only be one such area.
4562 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
4563 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, gnus will
4564 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
4565 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
4566 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
4567 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
4569 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
4570 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
4572 This restriction may disappear in later versions of gnus.
4575 @node To From Newsgroups
4576 @subsection To From Newsgroups
4580 In some groups (particularly in archive groups), the @code{From} header
4581 isn't very interesting, since all the articles there are written by
4582 you. To display the information in the @code{To} or @code{Newsgroups}
4583 headers instead, you need to decide three things: What information to
4584 gather; where to display it; and when to display it.
4588 @vindex gnus-extra-headers
4589 The reading of extra header information is controlled by the
4590 @code{gnus-extra-headers}. This is a list of header symbols. For
4594 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4595 '(To Newsgroups X-Newsreader))
4598 This will result in Gnus trying to obtain these three headers, and
4599 storing it in header structures for later easy retrieval.
4602 @findex gnus-extra-header
4603 The value of these extra headers can be accessed via the
4604 @code{gnus-extra-header} function. Here's a format line spec that will
4605 access the @code{X-Newsreader} header:
4608 "%~(form (gnus-extra-header 'X-Newsreader))@@"
4612 @vindex gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4613 The @code{gnus-ignored-from-addresses} variable says when the @samp{%f}
4614 summary line spec returns the @code{To}, @code{Newsreader} or
4615 @code{From} header. If this regexp matches the contents of the
4616 @code{From} header, the value of the @code{To} or @code{Newsreader}
4617 headers are used instead.
4621 @vindex nnmail-extra-headers
4622 A related variable is @code{nnmail-extra-headers}, which controls when
4623 to include extra headers when generating overview (@sc{nov}) files. If
4624 you have old overview files, you should regenerate them after changing
4625 this variable, by entering the server buffer using `^', and then `g' on
4626 the appropriate mail server (e.g. nnml) to cause regeneration.
4628 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4629 You also have to instruct Gnus to display the data by changing the
4630 @code{%n} spec to the @code{%f} spec in the
4631 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable.
4633 In summary, you'd typically put something like the following in
4637 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4639 (setq nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
4640 (setq gnus-summary-line-format
4641 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
4642 (setq gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4646 (The values listed above are the default values in Gnus. Alter them
4649 A note for news server administrators, or for users who wish to try to
4650 convince their news server administrator to provide some additional
4653 The above is mostly useful for mail groups, where you have control over
4654 the @sc{nov} files that are created. However, if you can persuade your
4655 nntp admin to add (in the usual implementation, notably INN):
4661 to the end of her @file{overview.fmt} file, then you can use that just
4662 as you would the extra headers from the mail groups.
4665 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
4666 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
4668 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
4669 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
4670 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
4671 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
4673 Here are the elements you can play with:
4679 Unprefixed group name.
4681 Current article number.
4683 Current article score.
4687 Number of unread articles in this group.
4689 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
4692 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
4693 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
4694 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
4695 and no unselected ones.
4697 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
4698 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
4700 Subject of the current article.
4702 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
4704 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
4706 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4708 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4710 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
4712 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
4716 @node Summary Highlighting
4717 @subsection Summary Highlighting
4721 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4722 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4723 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
4724 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
4725 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4727 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
4728 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
4729 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
4730 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4732 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
4733 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
4734 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
4735 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
4737 @item gnus-summary-highlight
4738 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
4739 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
4740 list where the elements are of the format @code{(@var{form}
4741 . @var{face})}. If you would, for instance, like ticked articles to be
4742 italic and high-scored articles to be bold, you could set this variable
4745 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
4746 ((> score default) . bold))
4748 As you may have guessed, if @var{form} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
4749 @var{face} will be applied to the line.
4753 @node Summary Maneuvering
4754 @section Summary Maneuvering
4755 @cindex summary movement
4757 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
4758 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
4760 None of these commands select articles.
4765 @kindex M-n (Summary)
4766 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
4767 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
4768 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
4769 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
4773 @kindex M-p (Summary)
4774 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
4775 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
4776 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
4777 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
4780 @kindex G g (Summary)
4781 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
4782 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
4783 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
4786 If gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
4787 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
4788 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
4789 to the group buffer.
4791 Variables related to summary movement:
4795 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
4796 @item gnus-auto-select-next
4797 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
4798 no more unread articles after the current one, gnus will offer to go to
4799 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
4800 empty, gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
4801 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, gnus will select the
4802 next group with unread articles. As a special case, if this variable
4803 is @code{quietly}, Gnus will select the next group without asking for
4804 confirmation. If this variable is @code{almost-quietly}, the same
4805 will happen only if you are located on the last article in the group.
4806 Finally, if this variable is @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n}
4807 command will go to the next group without confirmation. Also
4808 @pxref{Group Levels}.
4810 @item gnus-auto-select-same
4811 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
4812 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
4813 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
4814 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
4815 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) If there are no more
4816 articles with the same subject, go to the first unread article.
4818 This variable is not particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
4820 @item gnus-summary-check-current
4821 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
4822 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
4823 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
4824 Instead, they will choose the current article.
4826 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
4827 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
4828 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
4829 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
4830 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
4831 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
4832 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
4833 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
4836 This variable can also be a number. In that case, center the window at
4837 the given number of lines from the top.
4842 @node Choosing Articles
4843 @section Choosing Articles
4844 @cindex selecting articles
4847 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
4848 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
4852 @node Choosing Commands
4853 @subsection Choosing Commands
4855 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
4856 and they all select and display an article.
4858 If you want to fetch new articles or redisplay the group, see
4859 @ref{Exiting the Summary Buffer}.
4863 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4864 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4865 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
4866 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4871 @kindex G n (Summary)
4872 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
4873 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
4874 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
4879 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
4880 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
4881 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
4886 @kindex G N (Summary)
4887 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
4888 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
4893 @kindex G P (Summary)
4894 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
4895 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
4898 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
4899 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
4900 Go to the next article with the same subject
4901 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
4904 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
4905 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
4906 Go to the previous article with the same subject
4907 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
4911 @kindex G f (Summary)
4913 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
4914 Go to the first unread article
4915 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
4919 @kindex G b (Summary)
4921 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
4922 Go to the unread article with the highest score
4923 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}). If given a prefix argument,
4924 go to the first unread article that has a score over the default score.
4929 @kindex G l (Summary)
4930 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
4931 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
4934 @kindex G o (Summary)
4935 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
4937 @cindex article history
4938 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
4939 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
4940 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
4941 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
4942 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
4943 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
4948 @kindex G j (Summary)
4949 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
4950 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
4951 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
4956 @node Choosing Variables
4957 @subsection Choosing Variables
4959 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
4962 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4963 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4964 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
4965 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
4966 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
4967 the server and display it in the article buffer.
4969 @item gnus-select-article-hook
4970 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
4971 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
4972 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
4974 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
4975 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
4976 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
4977 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
4978 @findex gnus-unread-mark
4979 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
4980 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
4981 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
4982 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
4983 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
4984 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
4985 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
4986 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
4987 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
4992 @node Paging the Article
4993 @section Scrolling the Article
4994 @cindex article scrolling
4999 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
5000 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
5001 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
5002 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
5003 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
5006 @kindex DEL (Summary)
5007 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
5008 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
5011 @kindex RET (Summary)
5012 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
5013 Scroll the current article one line forward
5014 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
5017 @kindex M-RET (Summary)
5018 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-down
5019 Scroll the current article one line backward
5020 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-down}).
5024 @kindex A g (Summary)
5026 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
5027 @vindex gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
5028 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
5029 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
5030 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
5031 the way it came from the server.
5033 If given a numerical prefix, you can do semi-manual charset stuff.
5034 @kbd{C-u 0 g cn-gb-2312 RET} will decode the message as if it were
5035 encoded in the @code{cn-gb-2312} charset. If you have
5038 (setq gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
5043 then you can say @kbd{C-u 1 g} to get the same effect.
5048 @kindex A < (Summary)
5049 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
5050 Scroll to the beginning of the article
5051 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
5056 @kindex A > (Summary)
5057 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
5058 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
5062 @kindex A s (Summary)
5064 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
5065 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
5066 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
5070 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
5071 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
5076 @node Reply Followup and Post
5077 @section Reply, Followup and Post
5080 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
5081 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
5082 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
5083 * Canceling and Superseding::
5087 @node Summary Mail Commands
5088 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
5090 @cindex composing mail
5092 Commands for composing a mail message:
5098 @kindex S r (Summary)
5100 @findex gnus-summary-reply
5101 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
5102 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
5103 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
5104 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
5109 @kindex S R (Summary)
5110 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
5111 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
5112 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
5113 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
5114 command uses the process/prefix convention.
5117 @kindex S w (Summary)
5118 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
5119 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
5120 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
5121 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
5122 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
5125 @kindex S W (Summary)
5126 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
5127 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
5128 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
5129 the process/prefix convention.
5132 @kindex S v (Summary)
5133 @findex gnus-summary-very-wide-reply
5134 Mail a very wide reply to the author of the current article
5135 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{very wide reply} is a reply
5136 that goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
5137 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers in all the process/prefixed
5138 articles. This command uses the process/prefix convention.
5141 @kindex S V (Summary)
5142 @findex gnus-summary-very-wide-reply-with-original
5143 Mail a very wide reply to the author of the current article and include the
5144 original message (@code{gnus-summary-very-wide-reply-with-original}). This
5145 command uses the process/prefix convention.
5148 @kindex S B r (Summary)
5149 @findex gnus-summary-reply-broken-reply-to
5150 Mail a reply to the author of the current article but ignore the
5151 @code{Reply-To} field (@code{gnus-summary-reply-broken-reply-to}).
5154 @kindex S B R (Summary)
5155 @findex gnus-summary-reply-broken-reply-to-with-original
5156 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
5157 original message but ignore the @code{Reply-To} field
5158 (@code{gnus-summary-reply-broken-reply-to-with-original}).
5162 @kindex S o m (Summary)
5163 @kindex C-c C-f (Summary)
5164 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
5165 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
5166 Forward the current article to some other person
5167 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
5168 headers of the forwarded article.
5173 @kindex S m (Summary)
5174 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
5175 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
5176 Prepare a mail (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}). By default, use
5177 the posting style of the current group. If given a prefix, disable that.
5178 If the prefix is 1, prompt for a group name to find the posting style.
5183 @kindex S i (Summary)
5184 @findex gnus-summary-news-other-window
5185 Prepare a news (@code{gnus-summary-news-other-window}). By default,
5186 post to the current group. If given a prefix, disable that. If the
5187 prefix is 1, prompt for a group to post to.
5189 This function actually prepares a news even when using mail groups.
5190 This is useful for "posting" messages to mail groups without actually
5191 sending them over the network: they're just saved directly to the group
5192 in question. The corresponding back end must have a request-post method
5193 for this to work though.
5196 @kindex S D b (Summary)
5197 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
5198 @cindex bouncing mail
5199 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
5200 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
5201 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
5202 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
5203 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
5204 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, gnus will try to fetch
5205 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
5206 very well fail, though.
5209 @kindex S D r (Summary)
5210 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
5211 Not to be confused with the previous command,
5212 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
5213 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
5214 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
5215 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
5216 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
5217 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
5218 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
5220 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
5221 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
5222 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
5223 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
5224 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muss sein!
5226 This command understands the process/prefix convention
5227 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5230 @kindex S O m (Summary)
5231 @findex gnus-summary-digest-mail-forward
5232 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
5233 result using mail (@code{gnus-summary-digest-mail-forward}). This
5234 command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5237 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
5238 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
5239 @cindex crossposting
5240 @cindex excessive crossposting
5241 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
5242 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
5244 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
5245 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
5246 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
5247 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
5248 command understands the process/prefix convention
5249 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
5253 Also @xref{Header Commands, ,Header Commands, message, The Message
5254 Manual}, for more information.
5257 @node Summary Post Commands
5258 @subsection Summary Post Commands
5260 @cindex composing news
5262 Commands for posting a news article:
5268 @kindex S p (Summary)
5269 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
5270 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
5271 Prepare for posting an article (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}). By
5272 default, post to the current group. If given a prefix, disable that.
5273 If the prefix is 1, prompt for another group instead.
5278 @kindex S f (Summary)
5279 @findex gnus-summary-followup
5280 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
5281 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
5285 @kindex S F (Summary)
5287 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
5288 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
5289 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
5290 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
5291 process/prefix convention.
5294 @kindex S n (Summary)
5295 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
5296 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
5297 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
5300 @kindex S N (Summary)
5301 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
5302 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
5303 message through mail and include the original message
5304 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
5305 the process/prefix convention.
5308 @kindex S o p (Summary)
5309 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
5310 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
5311 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
5312 headers of the forwarded article.
5315 @kindex S O p (Summary)
5316 @findex gnus-summary-digest-post-forward
5318 @cindex making digests
5319 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
5320 (@code{gnus-summary-digest-post-forward}). This command uses the
5321 process/prefix convention.
5324 @kindex S u (Summary)
5325 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
5326 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
5327 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
5328 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
5331 Also @xref{Header Commands, ,Header Commands, message, The Message
5332 Manual}, for more information.
5335 @node Summary Message Commands
5336 @subsection Summary Message Commands
5340 @kindex S y (Summary)
5341 @findex gnus-summary-yank-message
5342 Yank the current article into an already existing Message composition
5343 buffer (@code{gnus-summary-yank-message}). This command prompts for
5344 what message buffer you want to yank into, and understands the
5345 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5350 @node Canceling and Superseding
5351 @subsection Canceling Articles
5352 @cindex canceling articles
5353 @cindex superseding articles
5355 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
5356 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
5358 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
5360 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
5362 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
5363 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
5364 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
5365 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
5366 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
5367 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5369 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
5370 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
5373 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
5374 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
5375 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
5377 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
5378 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
5379 your original article.
5381 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
5383 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
5384 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
5385 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
5388 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
5389 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
5390 have posted almost the same article twice.
5392 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
5393 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
5394 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
5395 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
5396 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
5397 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
5398 header by substituting one of those words for the word
5399 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
5400 you would do normally. The previous article will be
5401 canceled/superseded.
5403 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
5405 @node Delayed Articles
5406 @section Delayed Articles
5407 @cindex delayed sending
5408 @cindex send delayed
5410 Sometimes, you might wish to delay the sending of a message. For
5411 example, you might wish to arrange for a message to turn up just in time
5412 to remind your about the birthday of your Significant Other. For this,
5413 there is the @code{gnus-delay} package. Setup is simple:
5416 (gnus-delay-initialize)
5419 @findex gnus-delay-article
5420 Normally, to send a message you use the @kbd{C-c C-c} command from
5421 Message mode. To delay a message, use @kbd{C-c C-j}
5422 (@code{gnus-delay-article}) instead. This will ask you for how long the
5423 message should be delayed. Possible answers are:
5427 A time span. Consists of an integer and a letter. For example,
5428 @code{42d} means to delay for 42 days. Available letters are @code{m}
5429 (minutes), @code{h} (hours), @code{d} (days), @code{w} (weeks), @code{M}
5430 (months) and @code{Y} (years).
5433 A specific date. Looks like @code{YYYYY-MM-DD}. The message will be
5434 delayed until that day, at a specific time (eight o'clock by default).
5435 See also @code{gnus-delay-default-hour}.
5438 A specific time of day. Given in @code{hh:mm} format, 24h, no am/pm
5439 stuff. The deadline will be at that time today, except if that time has
5440 already passed, then it's at the given time tomorrow. So if it's ten
5441 o'clock in the morning and you specify @code{11:15}, then the deadline
5442 is one hour and fifteen minutes hence. But if you specify @code{9:20},
5443 that means a time tomorrow.
5446 The action of the @code{gnus-delay-article} command is influenced by a
5447 couple of variables:
5450 @item gnus-delay-default-hour
5451 @vindex gnus-delay-default-hour
5452 When you specify a specific date, the message will be due on that hour
5453 on the given date. Possible values are integers 0 through 23.
5455 @item gnus-delay-default-delay
5456 @vindex gnus-delay-default-delay
5457 This is a string and gives the default delay. It can be of any of the
5458 formats described above.
5460 @item gnus-delay-group
5461 @vindex gnus-delay-group
5462 Delayed articles will be kept in this group on the drafts server until
5463 they are due. You probably don't need to change this. The default
5464 value is @code{"delayed"}.
5466 @item gnus-delay-header
5467 @vindex gnus-delay-header
5468 The deadline for each article will be stored in a header. This variable
5469 is a string and gives the header name. You probably don't need to
5470 change this. The default value is @code{"X-Gnus-Delayed"}.
5473 The way delaying works is like this: when you use the
5474 @code{gnus-delay-article} command, you give a certain delay. Gnus
5475 calculates the deadline of the message and stores it in the
5476 @code{X-Gnus-Delayed} header and puts the message in the
5477 @code{nndraft:delayed} group.
5479 And whenever you get new news, Gnus looks through the group for articles
5480 which are due and sends them. It uses the @code{gnus-delay-send-queue}
5481 function for this. By default, this function is added to the hook
5482 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. But of course, you can change this.
5483 Maybe you want to use the demon to send drafts? Just tell the demon to
5484 execute the @code{gnus-delay-send-queue} function.
5487 @item gnus-delay-initialize
5488 @findex gnus-delay-initialize
5490 By default, this function installs @code{gnus-delay-send-queue} in
5491 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. But it accepts the optional second
5492 argument @code{no-check}. If it is non-nil,
5493 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is not changed. The optional first
5494 argument is ignored.
5496 For example, @code{(gnus-delay-initialize nil t)} means to do nothing.
5497 Presumably, you want to use the demon for sending due delayed articles.
5498 Just don't forget to set that up :-)
5502 @node Marking Articles
5503 @section Marking Articles
5504 @cindex article marking
5505 @cindex article ticking
5508 There are several marks you can set on an article.
5510 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
5511 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
5512 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
5514 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
5517 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
5518 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
5519 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
5523 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
5527 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
5528 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
5529 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
5533 @node Unread Articles
5534 @subsection Unread Articles
5536 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
5541 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
5542 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
5544 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
5545 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
5546 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
5547 tick it. However, articles can be expired (from news servers by the
5548 news server software, Gnus itself never expires ticked messages), so if
5549 you want to keep an article forever, you'll have to make it persistent
5550 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
5553 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
5554 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
5556 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
5557 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
5558 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
5559 Otherwise (except for the visibility issue), they are just like ticked
5563 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
5564 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
5566 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
5571 @subsection Read Articles
5572 @cindex expirable mark
5574 All the following marks mark articles as read.
5579 @vindex gnus-del-mark
5580 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
5581 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
5584 @vindex gnus-read-mark
5585 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
5588 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
5589 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
5590 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
5593 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
5594 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
5597 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
5598 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
5601 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
5602 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
5605 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
5606 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
5609 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
5610 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
5613 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
5614 @sc{soup}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
5617 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
5618 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
5622 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
5623 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
5624 (@code{gnus-duplicate-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
5628 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
5629 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
5631 One more special mark, though:
5635 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
5636 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
5638 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
5639 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
5640 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
5641 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by gnus at
5647 @subsection Other Marks
5648 @cindex process mark
5651 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
5657 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
5658 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
5659 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
5660 in the article, and gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
5661 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}.
5664 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
5665 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
5666 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
5667 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
5670 @vindex gnus-forwarded-mark
5671 All articles that you have forwarded will be marked with an @samp{F} in
5672 the second column (@code{gnus-forwarded-mark}).
5675 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
5676 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
5677 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5680 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
5681 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
5682 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
5683 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
5686 @vindex gnus-recent-mark
5687 Articles that according to the server haven't been shown to the user
5688 before are marked with a @samp{N} in the second column
5689 (@code{gnus-recent-mark}). Note that not all servers support this
5690 mark, in which case it simply never appears. Compare with
5691 @code{gnus-unseen-mark}.
5694 @vindex gnus-unseen-mark
5695 Articles that haven't been seen before in Gnus by the user are marked
5696 with a @samp{.} in the second column (@code{gnus-unseen-mark}).
5697 Compare with @code{gnus-recent-mark}.
5700 @vindex gnus-undownloaded-mark
5701 When using the Gnus agent @pxref{Agent Basics}, some articles might not
5702 have been downloaded. Such articles cannot be viewed while you are
5703 offline (unplugged). These articles get the @samp{@@} mark in the
5704 first column. (The variable @code{gnus-undownloaded-mark} controls
5705 which character to use.)
5708 @vindex gnus-downloadable-mark
5709 The Gnus agent @pxref{Agent Basics} downloads some articles
5710 automatically, but it is also possible to explicitly mark articles for
5711 download, even if they would not be downloaded automatically. Such
5712 explicitly-marked articles get the @samp{%} mark in the first column.
5713 (The variable @code{gnus-downloadable-mark} controls which character to
5717 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
5718 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
5719 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
5720 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
5721 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
5724 @vindex gnus-process-mark
5725 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
5726 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
5727 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
5728 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
5729 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
5733 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
5734 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
5735 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
5737 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
5738 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
5739 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
5743 @subsection Setting Marks
5744 @cindex setting marks
5746 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
5751 @kindex M c (Summary)
5752 @kindex M-u (Summary)
5753 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
5754 @cindex mark as unread
5755 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
5756 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
5762 @kindex M t (Summary)
5763 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
5764 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
5765 @xref{Article Caching}.
5770 @kindex M ? (Summary)
5771 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
5772 Mark the current article as dormant
5773 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5777 @kindex M d (Summary)
5779 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
5780 Mark the current article as read
5781 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
5785 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
5786 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
5787 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
5792 @kindex M k (Summary)
5793 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
5794 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
5795 and then select the next unread article
5796 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
5800 @kindex M K (Summary)
5801 @kindex C-k (Summary)
5802 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
5803 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
5804 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
5807 @kindex M C (Summary)
5808 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
5809 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
5810 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
5813 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
5814 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
5815 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
5816 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
5819 @kindex M H (Summary)
5820 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
5821 Catchup the current group to point (before the point)
5822 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
5825 @kindex M h (Summary)
5826 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-from-here
5827 Catchup the current group from point (after the point)
5828 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-from-here}).
5831 @kindex C-w (Summary)
5832 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
5833 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
5834 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
5837 @kindex M V k (Summary)
5838 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
5839 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
5840 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
5844 @kindex M e (Summary)
5846 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
5847 Mark the current article as expirable
5848 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
5851 @kindex M b (Summary)
5852 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
5853 Set a bookmark in the current article
5854 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
5857 @kindex M B (Summary)
5858 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
5859 Remove the bookmark from the current article
5860 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
5863 @kindex M V c (Summary)
5864 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
5865 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
5866 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5869 @kindex M V u (Summary)
5870 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
5871 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
5872 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
5875 @kindex M V m (Summary)
5876 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
5877 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
5878 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
5879 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5882 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
5883 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
5884 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
5885 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
5886 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
5887 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
5888 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
5889 The default is @code{t}.
5892 @node Generic Marking Commands
5893 @subsection Generic Marking Commands
5895 Some people would like the command that ticks an article (@kbd{!}) go to
5896 the next article. Others would like it to go to the next unread
5897 article. Yet others would like it to stay on the current article. And
5898 even though I haven't heard of anybody wanting it to go to the
5899 previous (unread) article, I'm sure there are people that want that as
5902 Multiply these five behaviors with five different marking commands, and
5903 you get a potentially complex set of variable to control what each
5906 To sidestep that mess, Gnus provides commands that do all these
5907 different things. They can be found on the @kbd{M M} map in the summary
5908 buffer. Type @kbd{M M C-h} to see them all---there are too many of them
5909 to list in this manual.
5911 While you can use these commands directly, most users would prefer
5912 altering the summary mode keymap. For instance, if you would like the
5913 @kbd{!} command to go to the next article instead of the next unread
5914 article, you could say something like:
5917 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'my-alter-summary-map)
5918 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5919 (local-set-key "!" 'gnus-summary-put-mark-as-ticked-next))
5925 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5926 (local-set-key "!" "MM!n"))
5930 @node Setting Process Marks
5931 @subsection Setting Process Marks
5932 @cindex setting process marks
5934 Process marks are displayed as @code{#} in the summary buffer, and are
5935 used for marking articles in such a way that other commands will
5936 process these articles. For instance, if you process mark four
5937 articles and then use the @kbd{*} command, Gnus will enter these four
5938 commands into the cache. For more information,
5939 @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
5946 @kindex M P p (Summary)
5947 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
5948 Mark the current article with the process mark
5949 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
5950 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
5954 @kindex M P u (Summary)
5955 @kindex M-# (Summary)
5956 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
5957 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
5960 @kindex M P U (Summary)
5961 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
5962 Remove the process mark from all articles
5963 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
5966 @kindex M P i (Summary)
5967 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
5968 Invert the list of process marked articles
5969 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
5972 @kindex M P R (Summary)
5973 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
5974 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5975 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
5978 @kindex M P G (Summary)
5979 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp
5980 Unmark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5981 expression (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp}).
5984 @kindex M P r (Summary)
5985 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
5986 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
5990 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-region
5991 Unmark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-region}).
5994 @kindex M P t (Summary)
5995 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
5996 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5997 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
6000 @kindex M P T (Summary)
6001 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
6002 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
6003 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
6006 @kindex M P v (Summary)
6007 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
6008 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
6009 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
6012 @kindex M P s (Summary)
6013 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
6014 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
6017 @kindex M P S (Summary)
6018 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
6019 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
6020 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
6023 @kindex M P a (Summary)
6024 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
6025 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
6028 @kindex M P b (Summary)
6029 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
6030 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
6031 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
6034 @kindex M P k (Summary)
6035 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
6036 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
6037 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
6040 @kindex M P y (Summary)
6041 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
6042 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
6043 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
6046 @kindex M P w (Summary)
6047 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
6048 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
6049 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
6053 Also see the @kbd{&} command in @pxref{Searching for Articles} for how to
6054 set process marks based on article body contents.
6061 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
6062 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
6063 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
6066 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
6067 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
6068 additional articles.
6074 @kindex / / (Summary)
6075 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
6076 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
6077 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}). If given a prefix, exclude
6081 @kindex / a (Summary)
6082 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
6083 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
6084 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}). If given a prefix, exclude
6088 @kindex / x (Summary)
6089 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-extra
6090 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match one of the ``extra''
6091 headers (@pxref{To From Newsgroups})
6092 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-extra}). If given a prefix, exclude
6097 @kindex / u (Summary)
6099 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
6100 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
6101 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
6102 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
6103 dormant articles will also be excluded.
6106 @kindex / m (Summary)
6107 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
6108 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
6109 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
6112 @kindex / t (Summary)
6113 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
6114 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
6115 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-age}). If given a prefix, limit to
6116 articles younger than that number of days.
6119 @kindex / n (Summary)
6120 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
6121 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
6122 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
6123 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
6126 @kindex / w (Summary)
6127 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
6128 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
6129 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
6133 @kindex / . (Summary)
6134 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unseen
6135 Limit the summary buffer to the unseen articles
6136 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unseen}).
6139 @kindex / v (Summary)
6140 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
6141 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
6142 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
6145 @kindex / p (Summary)
6146 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-display-predicate
6147 Limit the summary buffer to articles that satisfy the @code{display}
6148 group parameter predicate
6149 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-display-predicate}). See @pxref{Group
6150 Parameters} for more on this predicate.
6154 @kindex M S (Summary)
6155 @kindex / E (Summary)
6156 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
6157 Include all expunged articles in the limit
6158 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
6161 @kindex / D (Summary)
6162 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
6163 Include all dormant articles in the limit
6164 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
6167 @kindex / * (Summary)
6168 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
6169 Include all cached articles in the limit
6170 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
6173 @kindex / d (Summary)
6174 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
6175 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
6176 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
6179 @kindex / M (Summary)
6180 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks
6181 Exclude all marked articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks}).
6184 @kindex / T (Summary)
6185 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
6186 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
6189 @kindex / c (Summary)
6190 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
6191 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
6192 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
6195 @kindex / C (Summary)
6196 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
6197 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
6198 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
6199 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
6202 @kindex / N (Summary)
6203 @findex gnus-summary-insert-new-articles
6204 Insert all new articles in the summary buffer. It scans for new emails
6205 if @var{back-end}@code{-get-new-mail} is non-@code{nil}.
6208 @kindex / o (Summary)
6209 @findex gnus-summary-insert-old-articles
6210 Insert all old articles in the summary buffer. If given a numbered
6211 prefix, fetch this number of articles.
6219 @cindex article threading
6221 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
6222 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
6223 hierarchical fashion.
6225 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
6226 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
6227 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
6228 or simply missing. Weird news propagation exacerbates the problem,
6229 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
6230 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
6231 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
6233 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
6237 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
6240 A tree-like article structure.
6243 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
6246 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
6247 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
6248 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
6249 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
6250 called loose threads.
6252 @item thread gathering
6253 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
6255 @item sparse threads
6256 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
6257 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
6263 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
6264 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
6268 @node Customizing Threading
6269 @subsection Customizing Threading
6270 @cindex customizing threading
6273 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
6274 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
6275 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
6276 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
6281 @subsubsection Loose Threads
6284 @cindex loose threads
6287 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
6288 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
6289 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
6290 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
6291 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
6292 read or killed the root in a previous session.
6294 When there is no real root of a thread, gnus will have to fudge
6295 something. This variable says what fudging method gnus should use.
6296 There are four possible values:
6300 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
6301 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-adopt,width=7.5cm}}
6302 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-empty,width=7.5cm}}}
6303 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-none,width=7.5cm}}}
6304 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-dummy,width=7.5cm}}}
6309 @cindex adopting articles
6314 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
6315 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
6316 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
6317 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
6320 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
6321 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root-always
6322 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
6323 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
6324 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
6325 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
6326 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
6327 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
6328 If you want all threads to have a dummy root, even the non-gathered
6329 ones, set @code{gnus-summary-make-false-root-always} to t.
6332 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
6333 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
6334 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
6338 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
6339 display them after one another.
6342 Don't gather loose threads.
6345 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
6346 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
6347 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
6348 variable is @code{nil}, gnus requires an exact match between the
6349 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
6350 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
6351 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
6352 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
6353 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
6354 variable to a really low number, you'll find that gnus will gather
6355 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
6357 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
6358 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, gnus will
6359 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
6362 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
6363 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
6364 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
6365 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
6366 simplification is used.
6368 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6369 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6370 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
6371 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
6373 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
6375 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6381 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
6382 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
6383 "answer" "reference" "announce"
6384 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
6389 (mapconcat 'identity
6390 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
6392 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
6395 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
6398 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
6399 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
6400 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
6401 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
6402 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
6403 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
6405 Useful functions to put in this list include:
6408 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
6409 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
6410 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
6412 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
6413 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
6416 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
6417 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
6418 Remove excessive whitespace.
6420 @item gnus-simplify-all-whitespace
6421 @findex gnus-simplify-all-whitespace
6422 Remove all whitespace.
6425 You may also write your own functions, of course.
6428 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
6429 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
6430 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
6431 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
6432 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
6433 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
6434 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
6435 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
6437 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6438 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6439 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
6440 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
6441 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
6442 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
6443 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
6444 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
6445 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
6449 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
6450 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
6451 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
6452 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
6454 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
6455 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
6456 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
6459 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
6463 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6464 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
6470 @node Filling In Threads
6471 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
6474 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
6475 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
6476 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
6477 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you
6478 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
6479 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
6480 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
6481 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
6482 fetching old headers only works if the back end you are using carries
6483 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool},
6484 @code{nnml}, and @code{nnmaildir}. Also remember that if the root of
6485 the thread has been expired by the server, there's not much Gnus can do
6488 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
6489 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
6490 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
6492 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
6493 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
6494 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
6495 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
6496 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
6497 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
6498 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where gnus guesses that an article
6499 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
6500 lines. If you select a gap, gnus will try to fetch the article in
6501 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, gnus will display all these
6502 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
6503 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, gnus won't cut
6504 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
6505 @code{nil} by default.
6507 @item gnus-read-all-available-headers
6508 @vindex gnus-read-all-available-headers
6509 This is a rather obscure variable that few will find useful. It's
6510 intended for those non-news newsgroups where the back end has to fetch
6511 quite a lot to present the summary buffer, and where it's impossible to
6512 go back to parents of articles. This is mostly the case in the
6513 web-based groups, like the @code{nnultimate} groups.
6515 If you don't use those, then it's safe to leave this as the default
6516 @code{nil}. If you want to use this variable, it should be a regexp
6517 that matches the group name, or @code{t} for all groups.
6522 @node More Threading
6523 @subsubsection More Threading
6526 @item gnus-show-threads
6527 @vindex gnus-show-threads
6528 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
6529 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
6530 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
6531 slower and more awkward.
6533 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6534 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6535 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
6538 This can also be a predicate specifier (@pxref{Predicate Specifiers}).
6539 Available predicates are @code{gnus-article-unread-p} and
6540 @code{gnus-article-unseen-p}).
6545 (setq gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6546 '(or gnus-article-unread-p
6547 gnus-article-unseen-p))
6550 (It's a pretty nonsensical example, since all unseen articles are also
6551 unread, but you get my drift.)
6554 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
6555 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
6556 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
6557 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
6558 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
6559 threads are expunged.
6561 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
6562 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
6563 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
6566 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
6567 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
6568 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
6569 this variable is non-@code{nil}, which is the default, the subject
6570 change is ignored. If it is @code{nil}, a change in the subject will
6571 result in a new thread.
6573 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
6574 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
6575 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
6578 @item gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
6579 @vindex gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
6580 Sometimes, particularly with mailing lists, the order in which mails
6581 arrive locally is not necessarily the same as the order in which they
6582 arrived on the mailing list. Consequently, when sorting sub-threads
6583 using the default @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number}, responses can end
6584 up appearing before the article to which they are responding to.
6585 Setting this variable to an alternate value
6586 (e.g. @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}), in a group's parameters or in an
6587 appropriate hook (e.g. @code{gnus-summary-generate-hook}) can produce a
6588 more logical sub-thread ordering in such instances.
6593 @node Low-Level Threading
6594 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
6598 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
6599 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
6600 Hook run before parsing any headers. The default value is
6601 @code{(gnus-set-summary-default-charset)}, which sets up local value of
6602 @code{default-mime-charset} in summary buffer based on variable
6603 @code{gnus-newsgroup-default-charset-alist}.
6605 @item gnus-alter-header-function
6606 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
6607 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
6608 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
6609 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
6610 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
6611 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
6612 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
6613 meaningful. Here's one example:
6616 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
6618 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
6619 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
6621 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
6623 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
6630 @node Thread Commands
6631 @subsection Thread Commands
6632 @cindex thread commands
6638 @kindex T k (Summary)
6639 @kindex C-M-k (Summary)
6640 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
6641 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
6642 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
6643 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
6648 @kindex T l (Summary)
6649 @kindex C-M-l (Summary)
6650 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
6651 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
6652 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
6655 @kindex T i (Summary)
6656 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
6657 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
6658 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
6661 @kindex T # (Summary)
6662 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
6663 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
6664 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
6667 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
6668 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
6669 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
6670 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
6673 @kindex T T (Summary)
6674 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
6675 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
6678 @kindex T s (Summary)
6679 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
6680 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
6681 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
6684 @kindex T h (Summary)
6685 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
6686 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
6689 @kindex T S (Summary)
6690 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
6691 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
6694 @kindex T H (Summary)
6695 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
6696 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
6699 @kindex T t (Summary)
6700 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
6701 Re-thread the current article's thread
6702 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
6703 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
6706 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
6707 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
6708 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
6709 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
6713 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
6714 understand the numeric prefix.
6719 @kindex T n (Summary)
6721 @kindex C-M-n (Summary)
6723 @kindex M-down (Summary)
6724 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
6725 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
6728 @kindex T p (Summary)
6730 @kindex C-M-p (Summary)
6732 @kindex M-up (Summary)
6733 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
6734 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
6737 @kindex T d (Summary)
6738 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
6739 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
6742 @kindex T u (Summary)
6743 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
6744 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
6747 @kindex T o (Summary)
6748 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
6749 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
6752 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
6753 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
6754 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
6755 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
6756 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
6757 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
6758 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
6759 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
6760 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
6761 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
6762 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
6763 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
6767 @node Sorting the Summary Buffer
6768 @section Sorting the Summary Buffer
6770 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
6771 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
6772 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
6773 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6774 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
6775 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6776 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-random
6777 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
6778 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-most-recent-thread
6779 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
6780 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which can be either a single
6781 function, a list of functions, or a list containing functions and
6782 @code{(not some-function)} elements.
6784 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
6785 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
6786 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
6787 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score},
6788 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-most-recent-number},
6789 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-most-recent-date},
6790 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-random} and
6791 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
6793 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
6794 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
6795 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread.
6797 If you use more than one function, the primary sort key should be the
6798 last function in the list. You should probably always include
6799 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
6800 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
6801 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
6802 ascending article order.
6804 If you would like to sort by reverse score, then by subject, and finally
6805 by number, you could do something like:
6808 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6809 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6810 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6811 (not gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score)))
6814 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
6815 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
6816 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
6817 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
6818 which the articles arrived.
6820 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
6824 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6826 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
6827 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
6830 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
6831 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
6832 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
6833 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
6836 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
6837 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
6838 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
6839 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
6840 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
6841 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-random
6842 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
6843 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or
6844 other, you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions}
6845 variable. It is very similar to the
6846 @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that it uses slightly
6847 different functions for article comparison. Available sorting
6848 predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
6849 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author},
6850 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date},
6851 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-random}, and
6852 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
6854 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
6858 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
6859 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
6860 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
6865 @node Asynchronous Fetching
6866 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
6867 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
6868 @cindex article pre-fetch
6871 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
6872 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
6873 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
6874 article appears. Why can't gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
6875 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
6877 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
6878 article fetching, especially the way gnus does it.
6880 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
6881 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
6882 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
6883 article 3, but since gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
6884 connection is blocked.
6886 To avoid these situations, gnus will open two (count 'em two)
6887 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
6888 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
6889 extra connection takes some time, so gnus startup will be slower.
6891 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
6892 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
6893 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
6894 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
6897 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
6900 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
6901 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
6902 happen automatically.
6904 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
6905 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
6906 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
6907 that when you read an article in the group, the back end will pre-fetch
6908 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the back end will
6909 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
6910 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
6912 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
6913 @findex gnus-async-read-p
6914 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
6915 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This function should
6916 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
6917 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
6918 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
6919 data structure as the only parameter.
6921 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter than 100 lines, you could say something like:
6924 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
6925 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
6926 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
6927 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
6930 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
6933 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
6934 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down gnus too much.
6935 It's probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
6937 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
6938 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
6939 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
6940 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
6944 Remove articles when they are read.
6947 Remove articles when exiting the group.
6950 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
6952 @c @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
6953 @c If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
6954 @c from the next group.
6957 @node Article Caching
6958 @section Article Caching
6959 @cindex article caching
6962 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
6963 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
6964 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
6965 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
6966 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
6968 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
6970 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
6971 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
6972 @vindex gnus-use-cache
6973 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
6974 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
6975 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
6976 cache is flat or hierarchical is controlled by the
6977 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
6979 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
6980 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
6981 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
6982 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
6983 as dormant, and don't worry.
6985 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
6987 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
6988 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
6989 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
6990 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
6991 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
6992 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
6993 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
6994 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
6995 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
6996 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
6998 @findex gnus-jog-cache
6999 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
7000 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
7001 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
7002 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
7003 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
7004 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
7005 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
7006 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
7007 not then be downloaded by this command.
7009 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
7010 @vindex gnus-cacheable-groups
7011 It is likely that you do not want caching on all groups. For instance,
7012 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
7013 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
7014 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space.
7016 To limit the caching, you could set @code{gnus-cacheable-groups} to a
7017 regexp of groups to cache, @samp{^nntp} for instance, or set the
7018 @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to @samp{^nnml}, for instance.
7019 Both variables are @code{nil} by default. If a group matches both
7020 variables, the group is not cached.
7022 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
7023 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
7024 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
7025 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
7026 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
7027 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, gnus
7028 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
7029 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
7030 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
7033 @findex gnus-cache-move-cache
7034 @code{gnus-cache-move-cache} will move your whole
7035 @code{gnus-cache-directory} to some other location. You get asked to
7036 where, isn't that cool?
7038 @node Persistent Articles
7039 @section Persistent Articles
7040 @cindex persistent articles
7042 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
7043 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
7044 useful in my opinion.
7046 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
7047 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
7048 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
7049 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
7050 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
7051 the expiry going on at the news server.
7053 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
7054 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
7055 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
7061 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
7062 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
7065 @kindex M-* (Summary)
7066 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
7067 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
7068 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
7072 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
7074 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
7075 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
7076 interested in persistent articles:
7079 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
7083 @node Article Backlog
7084 @section Article Backlog
7086 @cindex article backlog
7088 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
7089 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
7090 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where gnus will buffer
7091 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
7092 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
7093 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
7094 that, turning the backlog on will slow gnus down a little bit, and
7095 increase memory usage some.
7097 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
7098 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, gnus will store
7099 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
7100 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, gnus will store
7101 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
7102 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
7103 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
7105 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
7108 @node Saving Articles
7109 @section Saving Articles
7110 @cindex saving articles
7112 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
7113 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
7114 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
7115 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
7116 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
7118 For the commands listed here, the target is a file. If you want to
7119 save to a group, see the @kbd{B c} (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article})
7120 command (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
7122 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
7123 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, gnus will not delete
7124 unwanted headers before saving the article.
7126 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
7127 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
7128 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
7129 deleted before saving.
7135 @kindex O o (Summary)
7137 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
7138 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
7139 Save the current article using the default article saver
7140 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
7143 @kindex O m (Summary)
7144 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
7145 Save the current article in mail format
7146 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
7149 @kindex O r (Summary)
7150 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
7151 Save the current article in rmail format
7152 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
7155 @kindex O f (Summary)
7156 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
7157 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
7158 Save the current article in plain file format
7159 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
7162 @kindex O F (Summary)
7163 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
7164 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
7165 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
7168 @kindex O b (Summary)
7169 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
7170 Save the current article body in plain file format
7171 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
7174 @kindex O h (Summary)
7175 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
7176 Save the current article in mh folder format
7177 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
7180 @kindex O v (Summary)
7181 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
7182 Save the current article in a VM folder
7183 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
7187 @kindex O p (Summary)
7189 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
7190 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
7191 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
7192 If given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), include the
7193 complete headers in the piped output.
7196 @kindex O P (Summary)
7197 @findex gnus-summary-muttprint
7198 @vindex gnus-summary-muttprint-program
7199 Save the current article into muttprint. That is, print it using the
7200 external program Muttprint (see
7201 @uref{http://muttprint.sourceforge.net/}). The program name and
7202 options to use is controlled by the variable
7203 @code{gnus-summary-muttprint-program}. (@code{gnus-summary-muttprint}).
7207 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
7208 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
7209 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
7210 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
7211 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
7212 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
7213 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
7214 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
7215 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
7216 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
7217 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
7218 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
7222 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
7223 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
7224 gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the six ready-made
7225 functions below, or you can create your own.
7229 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
7230 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
7231 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
7232 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
7233 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
7234 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7235 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
7237 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
7238 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
7239 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
7240 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
7241 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7242 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
7244 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
7245 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
7246 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
7247 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
7248 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
7249 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7250 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7252 @item gnus-summary-write-to-file
7253 @findex gnus-summary-write-to-file
7254 Write the article straight to an ordinary file. The file is
7255 overwritten if it exists. Uses the function in the
7256 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7257 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7259 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
7260 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
7261 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
7262 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7263 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7265 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
7266 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
7267 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
7268 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
7269 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
7272 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
7273 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
7274 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
7275 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
7276 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
7278 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
7279 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
7280 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
7281 reader to use this setting.
7284 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
7285 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
7286 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
7287 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
7290 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
7291 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
7292 available functions that generate names:
7296 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
7297 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
7298 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
7300 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
7301 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
7302 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
7304 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
7305 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
7306 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
7308 @item gnus-plain-save-name
7309 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
7310 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
7312 @item gnus-sender-save-name
7313 @findex gnus-sender-save-name
7314 File names like @file{~/News/larsi}.
7317 @vindex gnus-split-methods
7318 You can have gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
7319 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
7320 save articles related to gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
7321 related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
7325 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
7326 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
7327 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
7328 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
7331 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
7332 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
7333 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
7334 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
7335 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
7336 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
7337 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
7338 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
7339 called returns a string or a list of strings.
7341 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
7342 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
7343 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
7344 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
7346 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
7347 means that gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
7348 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
7351 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
7352 lots of mail groups called things like
7353 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
7354 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
7355 following will do just that:
7358 (defun my-save-name (group)
7359 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
7360 (substring group (match-end 0))))
7362 (setq gnus-split-methods
7363 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
7368 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
7369 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
7370 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
7371 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
7372 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
7373 all the files in the top level directory
7374 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
7375 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
7376 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
7377 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
7379 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
7380 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
7381 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
7382 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
7383 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
7386 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
7390 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
7391 (setq gnus-default-article-saver
7392 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
7395 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
7396 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
7397 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
7398 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
7401 @node Decoding Articles
7402 @section Decoding Articles
7403 @cindex decoding articles
7405 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
7406 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
7409 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
7410 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
7411 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
7412 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
7413 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
7414 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
7418 @cindex article series
7419 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
7420 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
7421 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
7422 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
7423 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
7425 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
7426 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
7427 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
7429 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, gnus
7430 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
7431 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
7433 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
7434 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
7435 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
7438 @node Uuencoded Articles
7439 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
7441 @cindex uuencoded articles
7446 @kindex X u (Summary)
7447 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
7448 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
7449 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
7452 @kindex X U (Summary)
7453 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
7454 Uudecodes and saves the current series
7455 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
7458 @kindex X v u (Summary)
7459 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
7460 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
7463 @kindex X v U (Summary)
7464 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
7465 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
7466 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
7470 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
7471 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
7472 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
7473 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
7474 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
7476 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
7477 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
7478 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
7479 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
7482 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
7483 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
7484 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
7485 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
7486 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
7487 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
7491 @node Shell Archives
7492 @subsection Shell Archives
7494 @cindex shell archives
7495 @cindex shared articles
7497 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
7498 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
7499 some commands to deal with these:
7504 @kindex X s (Summary)
7505 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
7506 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
7509 @kindex X S (Summary)
7510 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
7511 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
7514 @kindex X v s (Summary)
7515 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
7516 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
7519 @kindex X v S (Summary)
7520 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
7521 Unshars, views and saves the current series
7522 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
7526 @node PostScript Files
7527 @subsection PostScript Files
7533 @kindex X p (Summary)
7534 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
7535 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
7538 @kindex X P (Summary)
7539 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
7540 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
7541 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
7544 @kindex X v p (Summary)
7545 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
7546 View the current PostScript series
7547 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
7550 @kindex X v P (Summary)
7551 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
7552 View and save the current PostScript series
7553 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
7558 @subsection Other Files
7562 @kindex X o (Summary)
7563 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
7564 Save the current series
7565 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
7568 @kindex X b (Summary)
7569 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
7570 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
7571 doesn't really work yet.
7575 @node Decoding Variables
7576 @subsection Decoding Variables
7578 Adjective, not verb.
7581 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
7582 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
7583 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
7587 @node Rule Variables
7588 @subsubsection Rule Variables
7589 @cindex rule variables
7591 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
7592 variables are of the form
7595 (list '(regexp1 command2)
7602 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7603 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7605 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
7606 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
7609 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7610 (list '("\\\\.au$" "sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio")))
7613 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
7614 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
7615 This variable is consulted if gnus couldn't make any matches from the
7616 user and default view rules.
7618 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
7619 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
7620 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
7625 @node Other Decode Variables
7626 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
7629 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
7631 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
7632 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
7633 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
7634 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
7635 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
7639 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
7640 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
7643 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
7644 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
7645 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
7648 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
7649 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
7650 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
7651 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
7652 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
7655 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
7656 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
7657 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
7659 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
7660 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
7661 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
7662 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
7663 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
7666 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
7667 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
7668 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
7670 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7671 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7672 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
7673 looking for files to display.
7675 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
7676 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
7677 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
7680 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7681 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7682 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
7685 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7686 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7687 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
7690 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7691 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7692 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
7695 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7696 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7697 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
7698 decoded articles as unread.
7700 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7701 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7702 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
7703 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
7705 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7706 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7707 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
7709 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7710 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7712 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
7713 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
7714 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
7715 @code{metamail} for viewing.
7717 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7718 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7719 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
7720 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
7721 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
7722 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC 1153---no easy way
7723 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
7724 simply dropped them.
7729 @node Uuencoding and Posting
7730 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
7734 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7735 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7736 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
7737 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
7738 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
7739 for you when you post the article.
7741 @item gnus-uu-post-length
7742 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
7743 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
7744 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
7746 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
7747 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
7748 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
7749 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
7750 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
7751 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
7752 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
7754 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7755 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7756 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
7757 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
7758 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
7759 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
7760 Default is @code{t}.
7766 @subsection Viewing Files
7767 @cindex viewing files
7768 @cindex pseudo-articles
7770 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, gnus will attempt
7771 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
7772 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
7773 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, gnus will
7774 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
7775 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
7776 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
7778 Finally, gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
7779 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
7780 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
7781 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
7783 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
7784 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
7785 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
7787 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
7788 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
7789 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
7790 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
7791 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
7793 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
7794 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
7795 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
7796 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
7797 a list of parameters to that command.
7799 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
7800 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
7801 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
7803 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
7804 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
7805 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
7808 @node Article Treatment
7809 @section Article Treatment
7811 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
7812 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
7813 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
7814 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
7815 these articles easier.
7818 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
7819 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
7820 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
7821 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
7822 * Article Header:: Doing various header transformations.
7823 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
7824 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
7825 * Article Display:: Display various stuff---X-Face, Picons, Smileys
7826 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
7827 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
7831 @node Article Highlighting
7832 @subsection Article Highlighting
7833 @cindex highlighting
7835 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
7836 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
7841 @kindex W H a (Summary)
7842 @findex gnus-article-highlight
7843 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
7844 Do much highlighting of the current article
7845 (@code{gnus-article-highlight}). This function highlights header, cited
7846 text, the signature, and adds buttons to the body and the head.
7849 @kindex W H h (Summary)
7850 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
7851 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
7852 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
7853 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
7854 variable, which is a list where each element has the form
7855 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{name} @var{content})}.
7856 @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
7857 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
7858 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
7859 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
7860 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
7863 @kindex W H c (Summary)
7864 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
7865 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
7867 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
7870 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7872 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7873 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
7874 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
7876 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
7877 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
7878 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
7880 @item gnus-cite-face-list
7881 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
7882 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
7883 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
7884 gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
7885 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
7887 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
7888 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
7889 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
7891 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7892 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7893 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
7895 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7896 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7897 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
7898 that it's a citation.
7900 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7901 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7902 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
7904 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7905 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7906 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
7908 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
7909 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
7910 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
7911 cited text belonging to the attribution.
7917 @kindex W H s (Summary)
7918 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
7919 @vindex gnus-signature-face
7920 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
7921 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
7922 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
7923 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
7924 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
7929 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to highlight articles automatically.
7932 @node Article Fontisizing
7933 @subsection Article Fontisizing
7935 @cindex article emphasis
7937 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
7938 @kindex W e (Summary)
7939 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
7940 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*} or @samp{/this/}. Gnus can make
7941 this look nicer by running the article through the @kbd{W e}
7942 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
7944 @vindex gnus-emphasis-alist
7945 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
7946 @code{gnus-emphasis-alist} variable. This is an alist where the first
7947 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
7948 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
7949 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
7950 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
7951 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
7955 (setq gnus-emphasis-alist
7956 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
7957 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
7966 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
7967 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
7968 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
7969 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
7970 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
7971 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
7972 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
7973 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
7974 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
7975 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
7976 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
7977 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
7978 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
7980 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
7981 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
7982 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
7986 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
7989 @vindex gnus-group-highlight-words-alist
7991 If you want to highlight arbitrary words, you can use the
7992 @code{gnus-group-highlight-words-alist} variable, which uses the same
7993 syntax as @code{gnus-emphasis-alist}. The @code{highlight-words} group
7994 parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) can also be used.
7996 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to fontize articles automatically.
7999 @node Article Hiding
8000 @subsection Article Hiding
8001 @cindex article hiding
8003 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
8004 too much cruft in most articles.
8009 @kindex W W a (Summary)
8010 @findex gnus-article-hide
8011 Do quite a lot of hiding on the article buffer
8012 (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}). In particular, this function will hide
8013 headers, PGP, cited text and the signature.
8016 @kindex W W h (Summary)
8017 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
8018 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
8022 @kindex W W b (Summary)
8023 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
8024 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
8025 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
8028 @kindex W W s (Summary)
8029 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
8030 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
8034 @kindex W W l (Summary)
8035 @findex gnus-article-hide-list-identifiers
8036 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
8037 Strip list identifiers specified in @code{gnus-list-identifiers}. These
8038 are strings some mailing list servers add to the beginning of all
8039 @code{Subject} headers---for example, @samp{[zebra 4711]}. Any leading
8040 @samp{Re: } is skipped before stripping. @code{gnus-list-identifiers}
8041 may not contain @code{\\(..\\)}.
8045 @item gnus-list-identifiers
8046 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
8047 A regular expression that matches list identifiers to be removed from
8048 subject. This can also be a list of regular expressions.
8053 @kindex W W p (Summary)
8054 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
8055 @vindex gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
8056 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}). The
8057 @code{gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook} hook will be run after a @sc{pgp}
8058 signature has been hidden. For example, to automatically verify
8059 articles that have signatures in them do:
8061 ;;; Hide pgp cruft if any.
8063 (setq gnus-treat-strip-pgp t)
8065 ;;; After hiding pgp, verify the message;
8066 ;;; only happens if pgp signature is found.
8068 (add-hook 'gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
8071 (set-buffer gnus-original-article-buffer)
8076 @kindex W W P (Summary)
8077 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
8078 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
8079 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
8082 @kindex W W B (Summary)
8083 @findex gnus-article-strip-banner
8084 @vindex gnus-article-banner-alist
8085 @vindex gnus-article-address-banner-alist
8088 @cindex stripping advertisements
8089 @cindex advertisements
8090 Strip the banner specified by the @code{banner} group parameter
8091 (@code{gnus-article-strip-banner}). This is mainly used to hide those
8092 annoying banners and/or signatures that some mailing lists and moderated
8093 groups adds to all the messages. The way to use this function is to add
8094 the @code{banner} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to the
8095 group you want banners stripped from. The parameter either be a string,
8096 which will be interpreted as a regular expression matching text to be
8097 removed, or the symbol @code{signature}, meaning that the (last)
8098 signature should be removed, or other symbol, meaning that the
8099 corresponding regular expression in @code{gnus-article-banner-alist} is
8102 Regardless of a group, you can hide things like advertisements only when
8103 the sender of an article has a certain mail address specified in
8104 @code{gnus-article-address-banner-alist}.
8108 @item gnus-article-address-banner-alist
8109 @vindex gnus-article-address-banner-alist
8110 Alist of mail addresses and banners. Each element has the form
8111 @code{(ADDRESS . BANNER)}, where ADDRESS is a regexp matching a mail
8112 address in the From header, BANNER is one of a symbol @code{signature},
8113 an item in @code{gnus-article-banner-alist}, a regexp and @code{nil}.
8114 If ADDRESS matches author's mail address, it will remove things like
8115 advertisements. For example, if a sender has the mail address
8116 @samp{hail@@yoo-hoo.co.jp} and there is a banner something like
8117 @samp{Do You Yoo-hoo!?} in all articles he sends, you can use the
8118 following element to remove them:
8121 ("@@yoo-hoo\\.co\\.jp\\'" . "\n_+\nDo You Yoo-hoo!\\?\n.*\n.*\n")
8127 @kindex W W c (Summary)
8128 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
8129 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
8130 customizing the hiding:
8134 @item gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
8135 @itemx gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
8136 @vindex gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
8137 @vindex gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
8138 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
8139 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
8140 by these format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
8145 Starting point of the hidden text.
8147 Ending point of the hidden text.
8149 Number of characters in the hidden region.
8151 Number of lines of hidden text.
8154 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
8155 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
8156 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave
8157 shown. This can also be a cons cell with the number of lines at the top
8158 and bottom of the text, respectively, to remain visible.
8163 @kindex W W C-c (Summary)
8164 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe
8166 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe}) depending on the
8167 following two variables:
8170 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
8171 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
8172 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
8173 50), hide the cited text.
8175 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
8176 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
8177 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
8182 @kindex W W C (Summary)
8183 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
8184 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
8185 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
8186 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
8187 have happen automatically (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
8191 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
8192 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
8193 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
8195 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
8196 citation customization.
8198 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to hide article elements
8202 @node Article Washing
8203 @subsection Article Washing
8205 @cindex article washing
8207 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
8208 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
8210 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
8211 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
8214 @xref{Customizing Articles}, if you want to change how Gnus displays
8215 articles by default.
8220 This is not really washing, it's sort of the opposite of washing. If
8221 you type this, you see the article exactly as it exists on disk or on
8225 @kindex W l (Summary)
8226 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
8227 Remove page breaks from the current article
8228 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article}, for page
8232 @kindex W r (Summary)
8233 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
8234 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
8235 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
8236 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
8237 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
8238 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
8240 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
8241 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
8242 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
8243 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
8246 @kindex W m (Summary)
8247 @findex gnus-summary-morse-message
8248 @c @icon{gnus-summary-morse-message}
8249 Morse decode the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-morse-message}).
8253 @kindex W t (Summary)
8255 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
8256 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
8257 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
8260 @kindex W v (Summary)
8261 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-headers
8262 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
8263 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-headers}).
8266 @kindex W m (Summary)
8267 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-mime
8268 Toggle whether to run the article through @sc{mime} before displaying
8269 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-mime}).
8272 @kindex W o (Summary)
8273 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
8274 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
8277 @kindex W d (Summary)
8278 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
8279 @vindex gnus-article-dumbquotes-map
8281 @cindex M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s
8283 Treat M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s according to
8284 @code{gnus-article-dumbquotes-map}
8285 (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}). Note that this function guesses
8286 whether a character is a sm*rtq**t* or not, so it should only be used
8289 Sm*rtq**t*s are M****s***'s unilateral extension to the character map in
8290 an attempt to provide more quoting characters. If you see something
8291 like @code{\222} or @code{\264} where you're expecting some kind of
8292 apostrophe or quotation mark, then try this wash.
8295 @kindex W k (Summary)
8296 @findex gnus-article-outlook-deuglify-article
8297 @cindex Outlook Express
8298 Deuglify broken Outlook (Express) articles and redisplay
8299 (@code{gnus-article-outlook-deuglify-article}).
8302 @kindex W w (Summary)
8303 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
8304 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}).
8306 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
8310 @kindex W Q (Summary)
8311 @findex gnus-article-fill-long-lines
8312 Fill long lines (@code{gnus-article-fill-long-lines}).
8315 @kindex W C (Summary)
8316 @findex gnus-article-capitalize-sentences
8317 Capitalize the first word in each sentence
8318 (@code{gnus-article-capitalize-sentences}).
8321 @kindex W c (Summary)
8322 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
8323 Translate CRLF pairs (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines) into LF
8324 (this takes care of DOS line endings), and then translate any remaining
8325 CRs into LF (this takes care of Mac line endings)
8326 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
8329 @kindex W 6 (Summary)
8330 @findex gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable
8331 Treat base64 (@code{gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable}).
8332 Base64 is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending non-ASCII
8333 (i. e., 8-bit) articles. Note that this is usually done
8334 automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
8335 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} header that says that this encoding has
8337 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8340 @kindex W Z (Summary)
8341 @findex gnus-article-decode-HZ
8342 Treat HZ or HZP (@code{gnus-article-decode-HZ}). HZ (or HZP) is one
8343 common encoding employed when sending Chinese articles. It typically
8344 makes strings look like @samp{~@{<:Ky2;S@{#,NpJ)l6HK!#~@}}.
8347 @kindex W u (Summary)
8348 @findex gnus-article-unsplit-urls
8349 Remove newlines from within URLs. Some mailers insert newlines into
8350 outgoing email messages to keep lines short. This reformatting can
8351 split long URLs onto multiple lines. Repair those URLs by removing
8352 the newlines (@code{gnus-article-unsplit-urls}).
8355 @kindex W h (Summary)
8356 @findex gnus-article-wash-html
8357 Treat @sc{html} (@code{gnus-article-wash-html}). Note that this is
8358 usually done automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
8359 @code{Content-Type} header that says that the message is @sc{html}.
8361 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8363 @vindex gnus-article-wash-function
8364 The default is to use the function specified by
8365 @code{mm-inline-text-html-renderer} (@pxref{Customization, , , emacs-mime})
8366 to convert the @sc{html}, but this is controlled by the
8367 @code{gnus-article-wash-function} variable. Pre-defined functions you
8375 Use emacs-w3m (see @uref{http://emacs-w3m.namazu.org/} for more
8379 Use Links (see @uref{http://artax.karlin.mff.cuni.cz/~mikulas/links/}).
8382 Use Lynx (see @uref{http://lynx.browser.org/}).
8385 Use html2text -- a simple @sc{html} converter included with Gnus.
8390 @kindex W b (Summary)
8391 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
8392 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
8393 @xref{Article Buttons}.
8396 @kindex W B (Summary)
8397 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
8398 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
8399 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
8402 @kindex W p (Summary)
8403 @findex gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig
8404 Verify a signed control message (@code{gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig}).
8405 Control messages such as @code{newgroup} and @code{checkgroups} are
8406 usually signed by the hierarchy maintainer. You need to add the PGP
8407 public key of the maintainer to your keyring to verify the
8408 message.@footnote{PGP keys for many hierarchies are available at
8409 @uref{ftp://ftp.isc.org/pub/pgpcontrol/README.html}}
8412 @kindex W s (Summary)
8413 @findex gnus-summary-force-verify-and-decrypt
8414 Verify a signed (PGP, @sc{pgp/mime} or @sc{s/mime}) message
8415 (@code{gnus-summary-force-verify-and-decrypt}). @xref{Security}.
8418 @kindex W a (Summary)
8419 @findex gnus-article-strip-headers-in-body
8420 Strip headers like the @code{X-No-Archive} header from the beginning of
8421 article bodies (@code{gnus-article-strip-headers-in-body}).
8424 @kindex W E l (Summary)
8425 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
8426 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
8427 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
8430 @kindex W E m (Summary)
8431 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
8432 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
8433 lines with a single empty line.
8434 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
8437 @kindex W E t (Summary)
8438 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
8439 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
8440 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
8443 @kindex W E a (Summary)
8444 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
8445 Do all the three commands above
8446 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
8449 @kindex W E A (Summary)
8450 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
8451 Remove all blank lines
8452 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
8455 @kindex W E s (Summary)
8456 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
8457 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
8458 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
8461 @kindex W E e (Summary)
8462 @findex gnus-article-strip-trailing-space
8463 Remove all white space from the end of all lines of the article
8464 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-trailing-space}).
8468 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to wash articles automatically.
8471 @node Article Header
8472 @subsection Article Header
8474 These commands perform various transformations of article header.
8479 @kindex W G u (Summary)
8480 @findex gnus-article-treat-unfold-headers
8481 Unfold folded header lines (@code{gnus-article-treat-unfold-headers}).
8484 @kindex W G n (Summary)
8485 @findex gnus-article-treat-fold-newsgroups
8486 Fold the @code{Newsgroups} and @code{Followup-To} headers
8487 (@code{gnus-article-treat-fold-newsgroups}).
8490 @kindex W G f (Summary)
8491 @findex gnus-article-treat-fold-headers
8492 Fold all the message headers
8493 (@code{gnus-article-treat-fold-headers}).
8497 @findex gnus-article-remove-leading-whitespace
8498 Remove excessive whitespace from all headers
8499 (@code{gnus-article-remove-leading-whitespace}).
8504 @node Article Buttons
8505 @subsection Article Buttons
8508 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
8509 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
8510 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
8511 button on these references.
8513 @vindex gnus-button-man-handler
8514 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
8515 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses, Message-IDs, Info links and man pages.
8516 This is controlled by two variables, one that handles article bodies and
8517 one that handles article heads:
8521 @item gnus-button-alist
8522 @vindex gnus-button-alist
8523 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
8526 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
8532 All text that match this regular expression (case insensitive) will be
8533 considered an external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches
8534 embedded URLs: @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}. This can also be a
8535 variable containing a regexp, useful variables to use include
8536 @code{gnus-button-url-regexp}.
8539 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
8540 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
8541 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
8544 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
8545 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
8546 avoid false matches.
8549 This function will be called when you click on this button.
8552 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
8553 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
8557 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
8560 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
8563 @item gnus-header-button-alist
8564 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
8565 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
8566 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
8567 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
8570 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
8573 @var{header} is a regular expression.
8575 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
8576 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
8577 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
8578 default values of the variables above.
8580 @item gnus-article-button-face
8581 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
8582 Face used on buttons.
8584 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
8585 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
8586 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
8590 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to buttonize articles automatically.
8594 @subsection Article Date
8596 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
8597 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
8598 when the article was sent.
8603 @kindex W T u (Summary)
8604 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
8605 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
8606 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
8609 @kindex W T i (Summary)
8610 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
8612 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
8613 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
8616 @kindex W T l (Summary)
8617 @findex gnus-article-date-local
8618 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
8621 @kindex W T p (Summary)
8622 @findex gnus-article-date-english
8623 Display the date in a format that's easily pronounceable in English
8624 (@code{gnus-article-date-english}).
8627 @kindex W T s (Summary)
8628 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
8629 @findex gnus-article-date-user
8630 @findex format-time-string
8631 Display the date using a user-defined format
8632 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
8633 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
8634 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
8635 for a list of possible format specs.
8638 @kindex W T e (Summary)
8639 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
8640 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
8641 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
8642 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
8643 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). It looks something like:
8646 X-Sent: 6 weeks, 4 days, 1 hour, 3 minutes, 8 seconds ago
8649 The value of @code{gnus-article-date-lapsed-new-header} determines
8650 whether this header will just be added below the old Date one, or will
8653 An advantage of using Gnus to read mail is that it converts simple bugs
8654 into wonderful absurdities.
8656 If you want to have this line updated continually, you can put
8659 (gnus-start-date-timer)
8662 in your @file{.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
8663 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
8667 @kindex W T o (Summary)
8668 @findex gnus-article-date-original
8669 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
8670 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
8671 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
8672 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
8673 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
8677 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to display the date in your
8678 preferred format automatically.
8681 @node Article Display
8682 @subsection Article Display
8687 These commands add various frivolous display gimmicks to the article
8688 buffer in Emacs versions that support them.
8690 @code{X-Face} headers are small black-and-white images supplied by the
8691 message headers (@pxref{X-Face}).
8693 Picons, on the other hand, reside on your own system, and Gnus will
8694 try to match the headers to what you have (@pxref{Picons}).
8696 Smileys are those little @samp{:-)} symbols that people like to litter
8697 their messages with (@pxref{Smileys}).
8699 All these functions are toggles--if the elements already exist,
8704 @kindex W D x (Summary)
8705 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
8706 Display an @code{X-Face} in the @code{From} header.
8707 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}).
8710 @kindex W D s (Summary)
8711 @findex gnus-treat-smiley
8712 Display smileys (@code{gnus-treat-smiley}).
8715 @kindex W D f (Summary)
8716 @findex gnus-treat-from-picon
8717 Piconify the @code{From} header (@code{gnus-treat-from-picon}).
8720 @kindex W D m (Summary)
8721 @findex gnus-treat-mail-picon
8722 Piconify all mail headers (i. e., @code{Cc}, @code{To})
8723 (@code{gnus-treat-mail-picon}).
8726 @kindex W D n (Summary)
8727 @findex gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon
8728 Piconify all news headers (i. e., @code{Newsgroups} and
8729 @code{Followup-To}) (@code{gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon}).
8732 @kindex W D D (Summary)
8733 @findex gnus-article-remove-images
8734 Remove all images from the article buffer
8735 (@code{gnus-article-remove-images}).
8741 @node Article Signature
8742 @subsection Article Signature
8744 @cindex article signature
8746 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
8747 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
8748 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
8749 that says what is to be considered a signature is
8750 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
8751 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
8752 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
8753 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
8754 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
8757 (setq gnus-signature-separator
8758 '("^-- $" ; The standard
8759 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
8760 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
8761 ; line of dashes. Shame!
8762 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
8763 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
8764 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
8767 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
8770 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
8771 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
8772 signature when displaying articles.
8776 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
8779 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
8782 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
8783 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
8785 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
8786 in question is not a signature.
8789 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
8790 listed above. Here's an example:
8793 (setq gnus-signature-limit
8794 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
8797 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
8798 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
8799 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
8800 signature after all.
8803 @node Article Miscellania
8804 @subsection Article Miscellania
8808 @kindex A t (Summary)
8809 @findex gnus-article-babel
8810 Translate the article from one language to another
8811 (@code{gnus-article-babel}).
8817 @section MIME Commands
8818 @cindex MIME decoding
8820 @cindex viewing attachments
8822 The following commands all understand the numerical prefix. For
8823 instance, @kbd{3 b} means ``view the third @sc{mime} part''.
8829 @kindex K v (Summary)
8830 View the @sc{mime} part.
8833 @kindex K o (Summary)
8834 Save the @sc{mime} part.
8837 @kindex K c (Summary)
8838 Copy the @sc{mime} part.
8841 @kindex K e (Summary)
8842 View the @sc{mime} part externally.
8845 @kindex K i (Summary)
8846 View the @sc{mime} part internally.
8849 @kindex K | (Summary)
8850 Pipe the @sc{mime} part to an external command.
8853 The rest of these @sc{mime} commands do not use the numerical prefix in
8858 @kindex K b (Summary)
8859 Make all the @sc{mime} parts have buttons in front of them. This is
8860 mostly useful if you wish to save (or perform other actions) on inlined
8864 @kindex K m (Summary)
8865 @findex gnus-summary-repair-multipart
8866 Some multipart messages are transmitted with missing or faulty headers.
8867 This command will attempt to ``repair'' these messages so that they can
8868 be viewed in a more pleasant manner
8869 (@code{gnus-summary-repair-multipart}).
8872 @kindex X m (Summary)
8873 @findex gnus-summary-save-parts
8874 Save all parts matching a @sc{mime} type to a directory
8875 (@code{gnus-summary-save-parts}). Understands the process/prefix
8876 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
8879 @kindex M-t (Summary)
8880 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized
8881 Toggle the buttonized display of the article buffer
8882 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized}).
8885 @kindex W M w (Summary)
8886 @findex gnus-article-decode-mime-words
8887 Decode RFC 2047-encoded words in the article headers
8888 (@code{gnus-article-decode-mime-words}).
8891 @kindex W M c (Summary)
8892 @findex gnus-article-decode-charset
8893 Decode encoded article bodies as well as charsets
8894 (@code{gnus-article-decode-charset}).
8896 This command looks in the @code{Content-Type} header to determine the
8897 charset. If there is no such header in the article, you can give it a
8898 prefix, which will prompt for the charset to decode as. In regional
8899 groups where people post using some common encoding (but do not
8900 include @sc{mime} headers), you can set the @code{charset} group/topic
8901 parameter to the required charset (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
8904 @kindex W M v (Summary)
8905 @findex gnus-mime-view-all-parts
8906 View all the @sc{mime} parts in the current article
8907 (@code{gnus-mime-view-all-parts}).
8914 @item gnus-ignored-mime-types
8915 @vindex gnus-ignored-mime-types
8916 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8917 this list will be completely ignored by Gnus. The default value is
8920 To have all Vcards be ignored, you'd say something like this:
8923 (setq gnus-ignored-mime-types
8927 @item gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
8928 @vindex gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
8929 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8930 this list won't have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
8931 displayed or this variable is overridden by
8932 @code{gnus-buttonized-mime-types}. The default value is
8935 @item gnus-buttonized-mime-types
8936 @vindex gnus-buttonized-mime-types
8937 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8938 this list will have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
8939 displayed. This variable overrides
8940 @code{gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types}. The default value is @code{nil}.
8942 To see e.g. security buttons but no other buttons, you could set this
8943 variable to @code{("multipart/signed")} and leave
8944 @code{gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types} at the default value.
8946 @item gnus-inhibit-mime-unbuttonizing
8947 @vindex gnus-inhibit-mime-unbuttonizing
8948 If this is non-nil, then all @sc{mime} parts get buttons. The default
8949 value is @code{nil}.
8951 @item gnus-article-mime-part-function
8952 @vindex gnus-article-mime-part-function
8953 For each @sc{mime} part, this function will be called with the @sc{mime}
8954 handle as the parameter. The function is meant to be used to allow
8955 users to gather information from the article (e. g., add Vcard info to
8956 the bbdb database) or to do actions based on parts (e. g., automatically
8957 save all jpegs into some directory).
8959 Here's an example function the does the latter:
8962 (defun my-save-all-jpeg-parts (handle)
8963 (when (equal (car (mm-handle-type handle)) "image/jpeg")
8965 (insert (mm-get-part handle))
8966 (write-region (point-min) (point-max)
8967 (read-file-name "Save jpeg to: ")))))
8968 (setq gnus-article-mime-part-function
8969 'my-save-all-jpeg-parts)
8972 @vindex gnus-mime-multipart-functions
8973 @item gnus-mime-multipart-functions
8974 Alist of @sc{mime} multipart types and functions to handle them.
8976 @vindex mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8977 @item mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8978 List of functions used for rewriting file names of @sc{mime} parts.
8979 Each function takes a file name as input and returns a file name.
8981 Ready-made functions include@*
8982 @code{mm-file-name-delete-whitespace},
8983 @code{mm-file-name-trim-whitespace},
8984 @code{mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace}, and
8985 @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace}. The later uses the value of
8986 the variable @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace} to replace each
8987 whitespace character in a file name with that string; default value
8988 is @code{"_"} (a single underscore).
8989 @findex mm-file-name-delete-whitespace
8990 @findex mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
8991 @findex mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
8992 @findex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
8993 @vindex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
8995 The standard functions @code{capitalize}, @code{downcase},
8996 @code{upcase}, and @code{upcase-initials} may be useful, too.
8998 Everybody knows that whitespace characters in file names are evil,
8999 except those who don't know. If you receive lots of attachments from
9000 such unenlightened users, you can make live easier by adding
9003 (setq mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
9004 '(mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
9005 mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
9006 mm-file-name-replace-whitespace))
9010 to your @file{.gnus} file.
9019 People use different charsets, and we have @sc{mime} to let us know what
9020 charsets they use. Or rather, we wish we had. Many people use
9021 newsreaders and mailers that do not understand or use @sc{mime}, and
9022 just send out messages without saying what character sets they use. To
9023 help a bit with this, some local news hierarchies have policies that say
9024 what character set is the default. For instance, the @samp{fj}
9025 hierarchy uses @code{iso-2022-jp-2}.
9027 @vindex gnus-group-charset-alist
9028 This knowledge is encoded in the @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}
9029 variable, which is an alist of regexps (use the first item to match full
9030 group names) and default charsets to be used when reading these groups.
9032 In addition, some people do use soi-disant @sc{mime}-aware agents that
9033 aren't. These blithely mark messages as being in @code{iso-8859-1}
9034 even if they really are in @code{koi-8}. To help here, the
9035 @code{gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets} variable can be used. The
9036 charsets that are listed here will be ignored. The variable can be
9037 set on a group-by-group basis using the group parameters (@pxref{Group
9038 Parameters}). The default value is @code{(unknown-8bit x-unknown)},
9039 which includes values some agents insist on having in there.
9041 @vindex gnus-group-posting-charset-alist
9042 When posting, @code{gnus-group-posting-charset-alist} is used to
9043 determine which charsets should not be encoded using the @sc{mime}
9044 encodings. For instance, some hierarchies discourage using
9045 quoted-printable header encoding.
9047 This variable is an alist of regexps and permitted unencoded charsets
9048 for posting. Each element of the alist has the form @code{(}@var{test
9049 header body-list}@code{)}, where:
9053 is either a regular expression matching the newsgroup header or a
9056 is the charset which may be left unencoded in the header (@code{nil}
9057 means encode all charsets),
9059 is a list of charsets which may be encoded using 8bit content-transfer
9060 encoding in the body, or one of the special values @code{nil} (always
9061 encode using quoted-printable) or @code{t} (always use 8bit).
9068 @cindex coding system aliases
9069 @cindex preferred charset
9071 Other charset tricks that may be useful, although not Gnus-specific:
9073 If there are several @sc{mime} charsets that encode the same Emacs
9074 charset, you can choose what charset to use by saying the following:
9077 (put-charset-property 'cyrillic-iso8859-5
9078 'preferred-coding-system 'koi8-r)
9081 This means that Russian will be encoded using @code{koi8-r} instead of
9082 the default @code{iso-8859-5} @sc{mime} charset.
9084 If you want to read messages in @code{koi8-u}, you can cheat and say
9087 (define-coding-system-alias 'koi8-u 'koi8-r)
9090 This will almost do the right thing.
9092 And finally, to read charsets like @code{windows-1251}, you can say
9096 (codepage-setup 1251)
9097 (define-coding-system-alias 'windows-1251 'cp1251)
9101 @node Article Commands
9102 @section Article Commands
9109 @kindex A P (Summary)
9110 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
9111 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
9112 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
9113 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will
9114 be run just before printing the buffer. An alternative way to print
9115 article is to use Muttprint (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
9120 @node Summary Sorting
9121 @section Summary Sorting
9122 @cindex summary sorting
9124 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
9125 can't really see why you'd want that.
9130 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
9131 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
9132 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
9135 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
9136 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
9137 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
9140 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
9141 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
9142 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
9145 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
9146 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
9147 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
9150 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
9151 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
9152 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
9155 @kindex C-c C-s C-c (Summary)
9156 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-chars
9157 Sort by article length (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-chars}).
9160 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
9161 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
9162 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
9165 @kindex C-c C-s C-r (Summary)
9166 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-random
9167 Randomize (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-random}).
9170 @kindex C-c C-s C-o (Summary)
9171 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-original
9172 Sort using the default sorting method
9173 (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-original}).
9176 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
9177 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
9178 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
9179 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
9180 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
9184 @node Finding the Parent
9185 @section Finding the Parent
9186 @cindex parent articles
9187 @cindex referring articles
9192 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
9193 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
9194 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
9195 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
9196 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
9197 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
9198 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
9199 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
9200 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
9202 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
9203 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
9204 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, gnus will fetch the parent, the
9205 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
9206 @kbd{-3 ^}, gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
9210 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
9211 @kindex A R (Summary)
9212 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
9213 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
9216 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
9217 @kindex A T (Summary)
9218 Display the full thread where the current article appears
9219 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
9220 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
9221 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
9222 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
9223 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
9224 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
9226 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
9227 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
9228 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
9229 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
9230 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
9231 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
9234 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
9235 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
9237 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
9238 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
9239 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
9240 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
9241 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
9242 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
9243 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
9246 The current select method will be used when fetching by
9247 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
9248 by giving this command a prefix.
9250 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
9251 If the group you are reading is located on a back end that does not
9252 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
9253 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
9254 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
9255 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
9258 It can also be a list of select methods, as well as the special symbol
9259 @code{current}, which means to use the current select method. If it
9260 is a list, Gnus will try all the methods in the list until it finds a
9263 Here's an example setting that will first try the current method, and
9264 then ask Google if that fails:
9267 (setq gnus-refer-article-method
9269 (nnweb "google" (nnweb-type google))))
9272 Most of the mail back ends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but
9273 do not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox},
9274 @code{nnbabyl}, and @code{nnmaildir} are able to locate articles from
9275 any groups, while @code{nnml}, @code{nnfolder}, and @code{nnimap} are
9276 only able to locate articles that have been posted to the current group.
9277 (Anything else would be too time consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not
9278 support this at all.
9281 @node Alternative Approaches
9282 @section Alternative Approaches
9284 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
9285 gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
9288 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
9289 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
9294 @subsection Pick and Read
9295 @cindex pick and read
9297 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
9298 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
9299 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
9300 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
9302 @findex gnus-pick-mode
9303 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
9304 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
9305 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
9306 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
9307 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
9309 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
9314 @findex gnus-pick-article-or-thread
9315 Pick the article or thread on the current line
9316 (@code{gnus-pick-article-or-thread}). If the variable
9317 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key selects the
9318 entire thread when used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise,
9319 it selects just the article. If given a numerical prefix, go to that
9320 thread or article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
9321 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
9324 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
9325 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
9326 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
9327 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
9331 @findex gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread.
9332 Unpick the thread or article
9333 (@code{gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread}). If the variable
9334 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key unpicks the
9335 thread if used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise it unpicks
9336 just the article. You can give this key a numerical prefix to unpick
9337 the thread or article at that line.
9341 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
9342 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
9343 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
9344 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
9345 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
9346 will still be visible when you are reading.
9350 All the normal summary mode commands are still available in the
9351 pick-mode, with the exception of @kbd{u}. However @kbd{!} is available
9352 which is mapped to the same function
9353 @code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}.
9355 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
9358 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
9361 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
9362 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
9364 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
9365 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
9366 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
9368 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
9369 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
9370 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
9371 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
9372 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
9373 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
9374 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
9378 @subsection Binary Groups
9379 @cindex binary groups
9381 @findex gnus-binary-mode
9382 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
9383 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
9384 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
9385 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
9386 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
9387 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
9390 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
9391 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
9392 command, when you have turned on this mode
9393 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
9395 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
9396 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
9400 @section Tree Display
9403 @vindex gnus-use-trees
9404 If you don't like the normal gnus summary display, you might try setting
9405 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
9406 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
9409 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
9412 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
9413 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
9414 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
9416 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
9417 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
9418 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
9419 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
9420 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
9422 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
9423 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
9424 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
9425 default is @code{modeline}.
9427 @item gnus-tree-line-format
9428 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
9429 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
9430 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
9431 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
9432 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
9433 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
9439 The name of the poster.
9441 The @code{From} header.
9443 The number of the article.
9445 The opening bracket.
9447 The closing bracket.
9452 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
9454 Variables related to the display are:
9457 @item gnus-tree-brackets
9458 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
9459 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
9460 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @code{((@var{real-open} . @var{real-close})
9461 (@var{sparse-open} . @var{sparse-close}) (@var{dummy-open} . @var{dummy-close}))}, and the
9462 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
9464 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
9465 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
9466 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
9467 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
9471 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
9472 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
9473 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, gnus will try to keep the tree
9474 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other gnus
9475 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
9476 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
9477 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
9478 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
9479 other windows displayed next to it.
9481 You may also wish to add the following hook to keep the window minimized
9485 (add-hook 'gnus-configure-windows-hook
9486 'gnus-tree-perhaps-minimize)
9489 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
9490 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
9491 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
9492 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
9493 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
9494 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
9495 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
9499 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
9502 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
9512 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
9516 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
9517 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
9519 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
9521 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
9526 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
9527 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
9528 following to your @file{.gnus.el} file:
9531 (setq gnus-use-trees t
9532 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
9533 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
9534 (gnus-add-configuration
9538 (summary 0.75 point)
9543 @xref{Window Layout}.
9546 @node Mail Group Commands
9547 @section Mail Group Commands
9548 @cindex mail group commands
9550 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
9551 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
9553 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
9554 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9559 @kindex B e (Summary)
9560 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
9561 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
9562 process (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}). That is, delete all
9563 expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
9564 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
9567 @kindex B C-M-e (Summary)
9568 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
9569 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
9570 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
9571 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
9572 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
9575 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
9576 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
9577 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
9578 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
9579 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
9580 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
9583 @kindex B m (Summary)
9585 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
9586 @vindex gnus-preserve-marks
9587 Move the article from one mail group to another
9588 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}). Marks will be preserved if
9589 @code{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
9592 @kindex B c (Summary)
9594 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
9595 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
9596 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
9597 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}). Marks will be preserved if
9598 @code{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
9601 @kindex B B (Summary)
9602 @cindex crosspost mail
9603 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
9604 Crosspost the current article to some other group
9605 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
9606 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
9607 be properly updated.
9610 @kindex B i (Summary)
9611 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
9612 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
9613 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
9614 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
9617 @kindex B I (Summary)
9618 @findex gnus-summary-create-article
9619 Create an empty article in the current mail newsgroups
9620 (@code{gnus-summary-create-article}). You will be prompted for a
9621 @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
9624 @kindex B r (Summary)
9625 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
9626 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-respool-article}).
9627 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
9628 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
9629 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
9630 Marks will be preserved if @code{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil}
9631 (which is the default).
9635 @kindex B w (Summary)
9637 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
9638 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
9639 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article-done
9640 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
9641 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
9642 (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
9643 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, gnus won't re-highlight the article.
9646 @kindex B q (Summary)
9647 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
9648 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
9649 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
9650 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
9653 @kindex B t (Summary)
9654 @findex gnus-summary-respool-trace
9655 Similarly, this command will display all fancy splitting patterns used
9656 when repooling, if any (@code{gnus-summary-respool-trace}).
9659 @kindex B p (Summary)
9660 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
9661 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
9662 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
9663 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
9664 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
9665 article from your news server (or rather, from
9666 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
9667 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
9668 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
9669 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
9670 just not have arrived yet.
9673 @kindex K E (Summary)
9674 @findex gnus-article-encrypt-body
9675 @vindex gnus-article-encrypt-protocol
9676 Encrypt the body of an article (@code{gnus-article-encrypt-body}).
9677 The body is encrypted with the encryption protocol specified by the
9678 variable @code{gnus-article-encrypt-protocol}.
9682 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
9683 @cindex moving articles
9684 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have gnus
9685 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
9686 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
9687 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
9688 suggestions you find reasonable. (Note that
9689 @code{gnus-move-split-methods} uses group names where
9690 @code{gnus-split-methods} uses file names.)
9693 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
9694 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
9695 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
9696 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
9700 @node Various Summary Stuff
9701 @section Various Summary Stuff
9704 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
9705 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
9706 * Summary Generation Commands::
9707 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
9711 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
9712 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
9713 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
9715 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
9716 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
9717 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
9718 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
9719 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
9720 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
9723 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
9724 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
9725 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
9726 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
9727 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
9729 @vindex gnus-summary-prepared-hook
9730 @item gnus-summary-prepared-hook
9731 A hook called as the very last thing after the summary buffer has been
9734 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
9735 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
9736 When gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
9737 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
9738 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
9739 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
9740 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), gnus will rename the
9741 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
9742 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
9743 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
9745 @vindex gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
9746 @item gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
9747 This function, which takes two parameters (the group name and the list
9748 of articles to be selected), is called to allow the user to alter the
9749 list of articles to be selected.
9751 For instance, the following function adds the list of cached articles to
9752 the list in one particular group:
9755 (defun my-add-cached-articles (group articles)
9756 (if (string= group "some.group")
9757 (append gnus-newsgroup-cached articles)
9761 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-variables
9762 @item gnus-newsgroup-variables
9763 A list of newsgroup (summary buffer) local variables, or cons of
9764 variables and their default values (when the default values are not
9765 nil), that should be made global while the summary buffer is active.
9766 These variables can be used to set variables in the group parameters
9767 while still allowing them to affect operations done in other
9768 buffers. For example:
9771 (setq gnus-newsgroup-variables
9772 '(message-use-followup-to
9773 (gnus-visible-headers .
9774 "^From:\\|^Newsgroups:\\|^Subject:\\|^Date:\\|^To:")))
9780 @node Summary Group Information
9781 @subsection Summary Group Information
9786 @kindex H f (Summary)
9787 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
9788 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
9789 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
9790 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
9791 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
9792 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
9793 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
9794 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
9795 be used for fetching the file.
9798 @kindex H d (Summary)
9799 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
9800 Give a brief description of the current group
9801 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
9802 rereading the description from the server.
9805 @kindex H h (Summary)
9806 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
9807 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
9808 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
9811 @kindex H i (Summary)
9812 @findex gnus-info-find-node
9813 Go to the gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
9817 @node Searching for Articles
9818 @subsection Searching for Articles
9823 @kindex M-s (Summary)
9824 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
9825 Search through all subsequent (raw) articles for a regexp
9826 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
9829 @kindex M-r (Summary)
9830 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
9831 Search through all previous (raw) articles for a regexp
9832 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
9836 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
9837 This command will prompt you for a header, a regular expression to match
9838 on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
9839 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If the header is an empty
9840 string, the match is done on the entire article. If given a prefix,
9841 search backward instead.
9843 For instance, @kbd{& RET some.*string #} will put the process mark on
9844 all articles that have heads or bodies that match @samp{some.*string}.
9847 @kindex M-& (Summary)
9848 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
9849 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
9850 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
9853 @node Summary Generation Commands
9854 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
9859 @kindex Y g (Summary)
9860 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
9861 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
9864 @kindex Y c (Summary)
9865 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
9866 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
9867 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
9870 @kindex Y d (Summary)
9871 @findex gnus-summary-insert-dormant-articles
9872 Pull all dormant articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
9873 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-dormant-articles}).
9878 @node Really Various Summary Commands
9879 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
9885 @kindex C-d (Summary)
9886 @kindex A D (Summary)
9887 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
9888 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
9889 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
9890 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
9891 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
9892 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
9893 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
9894 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
9898 @kindex C-M-d (Summary)
9899 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
9900 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
9901 several documents into one biiig group
9902 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
9903 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
9904 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
9905 command understands the process/prefix convention
9906 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9909 @kindex C-t (Summary)
9910 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
9911 Toggle truncation of summary lines
9912 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
9913 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
9914 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
9918 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
9919 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
9920 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
9923 @kindex C-M-e (Summary)
9924 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
9925 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
9926 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
9929 @kindex C-M-a (Summary)
9930 @findex gnus-summary-customize-parameters
9931 Customize the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
9932 group (@code{gnus-summary-customize-parameters}).
9937 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
9938 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
9939 @cindex summary exit
9940 @cindex exiting groups
9942 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
9943 group and return you to the group buffer.
9949 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
9951 @findex gnus-summary-exit
9952 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
9953 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
9954 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
9955 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
9956 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
9957 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
9958 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
9959 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
9960 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
9961 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
9965 @kindex Z E (Summary)
9967 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
9968 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
9969 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
9973 @kindex Z c (Summary)
9975 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
9976 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
9977 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
9978 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
9981 @kindex Z C (Summary)
9982 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
9983 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
9984 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
9987 @kindex Z n (Summary)
9988 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
9989 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
9990 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
9993 @kindex Z R (Summary)
9994 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
9995 Exit this group, and then enter it again
9996 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
9997 all articles, both read and unread.
10001 @kindex Z G (Summary)
10002 @kindex M-g (Summary)
10003 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
10004 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
10005 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
10006 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
10007 articles, both read and unread.
10010 @kindex Z N (Summary)
10011 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
10012 Exit the group and go to the next group
10013 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
10016 @kindex Z P (Summary)
10017 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
10018 Exit the group and go to the previous group
10019 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
10022 @kindex Z s (Summary)
10023 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
10024 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
10025 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
10026 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
10027 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
10030 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
10031 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current group
10032 with an ``updating'' exit. For instance @kbd{Q}
10033 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}) does not call this hook.
10035 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
10036 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
10037 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
10038 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
10039 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
10040 If you do that, gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
10041 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
10042 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
10043 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
10044 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
10045 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
10046 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
10048 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
10050 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
10051 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
10052 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
10053 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
10054 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
10055 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
10056 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
10057 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
10058 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
10061 @node Crosspost Handling
10062 @section Crosspost Handling
10066 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
10067 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
10068 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
10069 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
10070 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
10071 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
10074 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
10075 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
10076 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
10077 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
10078 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
10080 @cindex cross-posting
10083 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
10084 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
10085 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
10086 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
10087 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
10088 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
10089 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
10090 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
10091 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
10092 the cross reference mechanism.
10094 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
10095 @cindex overview.fmt
10096 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
10097 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
10098 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
10099 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
10100 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
10101 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
10104 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
10105 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
10106 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
10111 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
10114 @node Duplicate Suppression
10115 @section Duplicate Suppression
10117 By default, gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
10118 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
10119 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
10120 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various
10125 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
10126 is evil and not very common.
10129 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
10130 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
10133 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
10134 different @sc{nntp} servers.
10137 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
10140 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
10141 well, but these four are the most common situations.
10143 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
10144 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
10145 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
10146 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
10147 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
10148 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
10149 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
10152 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
10153 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
10154 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
10155 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
10156 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
10157 saw the article in.
10160 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
10161 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
10162 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
10164 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
10165 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
10166 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
10167 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
10168 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single gnus
10169 session are suppressed.
10171 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
10172 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
10173 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
10174 suppression list. The default is 10000.
10176 @item gnus-duplicate-file
10177 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
10178 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
10179 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
10182 If you have a tendency to stop and start gnus often, setting
10183 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
10184 you leave gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
10185 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
10186 so that means that if you stop and start gnus often, you should set
10187 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
10188 to you to figure out, I think.
10193 Gnus is able to verify signed messages or decrypt encrypted messages.
10194 The formats that are supported are PGP, @sc{pgp/mime} and @sc{s/mime},
10195 however you need some external programs to get things to work:
10199 To handle PGP messages, you have to install mailcrypt or gpg.el as
10200 well as a OpenPGP implementation (such as GnuPG).
10203 To handle @sc{s/mime} message, you need to install OpenSSL. OpenSSL 0.9.6
10204 or newer is recommended.
10208 More information on how to set things up can be found in the message
10209 manual (@pxref{Security, ,Security, message, Message Manual}).
10212 @item mm-verify-option
10213 @vindex mm-verify-option
10214 Option of verifying signed parts. @code{never}, not verify;
10215 @code{always}, always verify; @code{known}, only verify known
10216 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
10218 @item mm-decrypt-option
10219 @vindex mm-decrypt-option
10220 Option of decrypting encrypted parts. @code{never}, no decryption;
10221 @code{always}, always decrypt; @code{known}, only decrypt known
10222 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
10227 @section Mailing List
10229 @kindex A M (summary)
10230 @findex gnus-mailing-list-insinuate
10231 Gnus understands some mailing list fields of RFC 2369. To enable it,
10232 either add a `to-list' group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}),
10233 possibly using @kbd{A M} (@code{gnus-mailing-list-insinuate}) in the
10234 summary buffer, or say:
10237 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'turn-on-gnus-mailing-list-mode)
10240 That enables the following commands to the summary buffer:
10245 @kindex C-c C-n h (Summary)
10246 @findex gnus-mailing-list-help
10247 Send a message to fetch mailing list help, if List-Help field exists.
10250 @kindex C-c C-n s (Summary)
10251 @findex gnus-mailing-list-subscribe
10252 Send a message to subscribe the mailing list, if List-Subscribe field exists.
10255 @kindex C-c C-n u (Summary)
10256 @findex gnus-mailing-list-unsubscribe
10257 Send a message to unsubscribe the mailing list, if List-Unsubscribe
10261 @kindex C-c C-n p (Summary)
10262 @findex gnus-mailing-list-post
10263 Post to the mailing list, if List-Post field exists.
10266 @kindex C-c C-n o (Summary)
10267 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
10268 Send a message to the mailing list owner, if List-Owner field exists.
10271 @kindex C-c C-n a (Summary)
10272 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
10273 Browse the mailing list archive, if List-Archive field exists.
10277 @node Article Buffer
10278 @chapter Article Buffer
10279 @cindex article buffer
10281 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
10282 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
10283 tell gnus otherwise.
10286 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
10287 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
10288 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
10289 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
10290 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
10294 @node Hiding Headers
10295 @section Hiding Headers
10296 @cindex hiding headers
10297 @cindex deleting headers
10299 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
10300 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
10302 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
10303 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
10304 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
10305 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
10306 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
10307 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
10308 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
10309 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
10310 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
10312 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
10316 @item gnus-visible-headers
10317 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
10318 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
10319 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
10320 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
10322 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
10323 the article and the subject, you'd say:
10326 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
10329 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
10332 @item gnus-ignored-headers
10333 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
10334 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
10335 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
10336 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
10337 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
10339 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} field
10340 and the @code{Xref} field, you might say:
10343 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
10346 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
10349 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
10350 variable will have no effect.
10354 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
10355 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
10356 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
10357 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
10358 the headers are to be displayed.
10360 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
10361 and then the subject, you might say something like:
10364 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
10367 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
10368 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed in this variable.
10370 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
10371 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
10372 You can hide further boring headers by setting
10373 @code{gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers} to @code{head}. What this function
10374 does depends on the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a
10375 list, but this list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is
10376 lists various @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove
10379 These conditions are:
10382 Remove all empty headers.
10384 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
10385 @code{Newsgroups} header.
10387 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
10388 @code{From} header.
10390 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
10393 Remove the @code{To} header if it only contains the address identical to
10394 the current groups's @code{to-address} parameter.
10396 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
10399 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
10401 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
10404 To include these three elements, you could say something like:
10407 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
10408 '(empty followup-to reply-to))
10411 This is also the default value for this variable.
10415 @section Using MIME
10418 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
10419 while people stand around yawning.
10421 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
10422 while all newsreaders die of fear.
10424 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
10425 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
10426 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
10428 @vindex gnus-show-mime
10429 @vindex gnus-article-display-method-for-mime
10430 @findex gnus-article-display-mime-message
10431 Gnus handles @sc{mime} by pushing the articles through
10432 @code{gnus-article-display-method-for-mime}, which is
10433 @code{gnus-article-display-mime-message} by default. This function
10434 calls the @sc{semi} MIME-View program to actually do the work. For more
10435 information on @sc{semi} MIME-View, see its manual page (however it is
10436 not existed yet, sorry).
10438 Set @code{gnus-show-mime} to @code{t} if you want to use
10439 @sc{mime} all the time. If you have @code{gnus-show-mime} set, then
10440 you'll see some unfortunate display glitches in the article buffer.
10441 These can't be avoided.
10443 In GNUS or Gnus, it might be best to just use the toggling functions
10444 from the summary buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance,
10445 you enter the group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it,
10446 @sc{mime} has decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible
10447 sing-a-long song comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find
10448 the volume button, because there isn't one, and people are starting to
10449 look at you, and you try to stop the program, but you can't, and you
10450 can't find the program to control the volume, and everybody else in the
10451 room suddenly decides to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel
10454 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
10456 To avoid such kind of situation, gnus stops to use
10457 @code{metamail-buffer}. So now, you can set @code{gnus-show-mime} to
10458 non-@code{nil} every-time, then you can push button in the article
10459 buffer when there are nobody else.
10461 Also see @pxref{MIME Commands}.
10464 @node Customizing Articles
10465 @section Customizing Articles
10466 @cindex article customization
10468 A slew of functions for customizing how the articles are to look like
10469 exist. You can call these functions interactively, or you can have them
10470 called automatically when you select the articles.
10472 To have them called automatically, you should set the corresponding
10473 ``treatment'' variable. For instance, to have headers hidden, you'd set
10474 @code{gnus-treat-hide-headers}. Below is a list of variables that can
10475 be set, but first we discuss the values these variables can have.
10477 Note: Some values, while valid, make little sense. Check the list below
10478 for sensible values.
10482 @code{nil}: Don't do this treatment.
10485 @code{t}: Do this treatment on all body parts.
10488 @code{head}: Do the treatment on the headers.
10491 @code{last}: Do this treatment on the last part.
10494 An integer: Do this treatment on all body parts that have a length less
10498 A list of strings: Do this treatment on all body parts that are in
10499 articles that are read in groups that have names that match one of the
10500 regexps in the list.
10503 A list where the first element is not a string:
10505 The list is evaluated recursively. The first element of the list is a
10506 predicate. The following predicates are recognized: @code{or},
10507 @code{and}, @code{not} and @code{typep}. Here's an example:
10511 (typep "text/x-vcard"))
10515 @code{mime}: Do this treatment if the value of @code{gnus-show-mime}' is
10520 You may have noticed that the word @dfn{part} is used here. This refers
10521 to the fact that some messages are @sc{mime} multipart articles that may
10522 be divided into several parts. Articles that are not multiparts are
10523 considered to contain just a single part.
10525 @vindex gnus-article-treat-types
10526 Are the treatments applied to all sorts of multipart parts? Yes, if you
10527 want to, but by default, only @samp{text/plain} parts are given the
10528 treatment. This is controlled by the @code{gnus-article-treat-types}
10529 variable, which is a list of regular expressions that are matched to the
10530 type of the part. This variable is ignored if the value of the
10531 controlling variable is a predicate list, as described above.
10533 The following treatment options are available. The easiest way to
10534 customize this is to examine the @code{gnus-article-treat} customization
10535 group. Values in parenthesis are suggested sensible values. Others are
10536 possible but those listed are probably sufficient for most people.
10539 @item gnus-treat-buttonize (t, integer)
10540 @item gnus-treat-buttonize-head (head)
10542 @xref{Article Buttons}.
10544 @item gnus-treat-capitalize-sentences (t, integer)
10545 @item gnus-treat-overstrike (t, integer)
10546 @item gnus-treat-strip-cr (t, integer)
10547 @item gnus-treat-strip-headers-in-body (t, integer)
10548 @item gnus-treat-strip-leading-blank-lines (t, integer)
10549 @item gnus-treat-strip-multiple-blank-lines (t, integer)
10550 @item gnus-treat-strip-pem (t, last, integer)
10551 @item gnus-treat-strip-pgp (t, last, integer)
10552 @item gnus-treat-strip-trailing-blank-lines (t, last, integer)
10553 @item gnus-treat-unsplit-urls (t, integer)
10554 @item gnus-treat-wash-html (t, integer)
10555 @item gnus-treat-decode-article-as-default-mime-charset (t, integer)
10557 @xref{Article Washing}.
10559 @item gnus-treat-date-english (head)
10560 @item gnus-treat-date-iso8601 (head)
10561 @item gnus-treat-date-lapsed (head)
10562 @item gnus-treat-date-local (head)
10563 @item gnus-treat-date-original (head)
10564 @item gnus-treat-date-user-defined (head)
10565 @item gnus-treat-date-ut (head)
10567 @xref{Article Date}.
10569 @item gnus-treat-from-picon (head)
10570 @item gnus-treat-mail-picon (head)
10571 @item gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon (head)
10575 @item gnus-treat-display-smileys (t, integer)
10577 @item gnus-treat-body-boundary (head)
10579 @vindex gnus-body-boundary-delimiter
10580 Adds a delimiter between header and body, the string used as delimiter
10581 is controlled by @code{gnus-body-boundary-delimiter}.
10585 @item gnus-treat-display-xface (head)
10589 @item gnus-treat-emphasize (t, head, integer)
10590 @item gnus-treat-fill-article (t, integer)
10591 @item gnus-treat-fill-long-lines (t, integer)
10592 @item gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers (head)
10593 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation (t, integer)
10594 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation-maybe (t, integer)
10595 @item gnus-treat-hide-headers (head)
10596 @item gnus-treat-hide-signature (t, last)
10598 @xref{Article Hiding}.
10600 @item gnus-treat-highlight-citation (t, integer)
10601 @item gnus-treat-highlight-headers (head)
10602 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature (t, last, integer)
10604 @xref{Article Highlighting}.
10606 @item gnus-treat-play-sounds
10607 @item gnus-treat-translate
10608 @item gnus-treat-x-pgp-sig (head)
10610 @item gnus-treat-unfold-headers (head)
10611 @item gnus-treat-fold-headers (head)
10612 @item gnus-treat-fold-newsgroups (head)
10613 @item gnus-treat-leading-whitespace (head)
10615 @xref{Article Header}.
10620 @vindex gnus-part-display-hook
10621 You can, of course, write your own functions to be called from
10622 @code{gnus-part-display-hook}. The functions are called narrowed to the
10623 part, and you can do anything you like, pretty much. There is no
10624 information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can change
10628 @node Article Keymap
10629 @section Article Keymap
10631 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
10632 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
10633 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
10634 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
10637 A few additional keystrokes are available:
10642 @kindex SPACE (Article)
10643 @findex gnus-article-next-page
10644 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
10647 @kindex DEL (Article)
10648 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
10649 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
10652 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
10653 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
10654 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
10655 @kbd{C-c ^}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
10656 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
10659 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
10660 @findex gnus-article-mail
10661 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
10662 given a prefix, include the mail.
10665 @kindex s (Article)
10666 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
10667 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
10668 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
10671 @kindex ? (Article)
10672 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
10673 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
10674 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
10677 @kindex TAB (Article)
10678 @findex gnus-article-next-button
10679 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
10680 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
10683 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
10684 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
10685 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
10688 @kindex R (Article)
10689 @findex gnus-article-reply-with-original
10690 Send a reply to the current article and yank the current article
10691 (@code{gnus-article-reply-with-original}). If given a prefix, make a
10692 wide reply. If the region is active, only yank the text in the
10696 @kindex F (Article)
10697 @findex gnus-article-followup-with-original
10698 Send a followup to the current article and yank the current article
10699 (@code{gnus-article-followup-with-original}). If given a prefix, make
10700 a wide reply. If the region is active, only yank the text in the
10708 @section Misc Article
10712 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
10713 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
10714 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
10715 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
10718 @vindex gnus-article-decode-hook
10719 @item gnus-article-decode-hook
10721 Hook used to decode @sc{mime} articles. The default value is
10722 @code{(article-decode-charset article-decode-encoded-words)}
10724 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
10725 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
10726 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
10727 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
10728 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
10729 the contents of the article buffer.
10731 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
10732 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
10733 Hook called in article mode buffers.
10735 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
10736 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
10737 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
10738 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
10740 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
10741 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
10742 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
10743 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
10744 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with two
10750 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
10751 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
10752 performed. The characters and their meaning:
10757 Displayed when cited text may be hidden in the article buffer.
10760 Displayed when headers are hidden in the article buffer.
10763 Displayed when article is digitally signed or encrypted, and Gnus has
10764 hidden the security headers. (N.B. does not tell anything about
10765 security status, i.e. good or bad signature.)
10768 Displayed when the signature has been hidden in the Article buffer.
10771 Displayed when Gnus has treated overstrike characters in the article buffer.
10774 Displayed when Gnus has treated emphasised strings in the article buffer.
10779 The number of @sc{mime} parts in the article.
10783 @vindex gnus-break-pages
10785 @item gnus-break-pages
10786 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
10787 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
10788 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
10789 paging will not be done.
10791 @item gnus-page-delimiter
10792 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
10793 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
10798 @node Composing Messages
10799 @chapter Composing Messages
10800 @cindex composing messages
10803 @cindex sending mail
10808 @cindex using s/mime
10809 @cindex using smime
10811 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
10812 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
10813 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the
10814 article by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Overview, message,
10815 Message Manual}. Where the message will be posted/mailed to depends
10816 on your setup (@pxref{Posting Server}).
10819 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
10820 * Posting Server:: What server should you post and mail via?
10821 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
10822 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
10823 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
10824 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
10825 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
10826 * Signing and encrypting:: How to compose secure messages.
10829 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
10830 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
10836 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
10839 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
10840 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
10841 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
10842 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched. If
10843 @code{nil} include all headers.
10845 @item gnus-add-to-list
10846 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
10847 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
10848 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
10850 @item gnus-confirm-mail-reply-to-news
10851 @vindex gnus-confirm-mail-reply-to-news
10852 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus requests confirmation when replying to news.
10853 If you find yourself never wanting to reply to mail, but occasionally
10854 press R anyway, this variable might be for you.
10859 @node Posting Server
10860 @section Posting Server
10862 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
10863 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
10865 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
10867 It can be quite complicated.
10869 @vindex gnus-post-method
10870 When posting news, Message usually invokes @code{message-send-news}
10871 (@pxref{News Variables, , News Variables, message, Message Manual}).
10872 Normally, Gnus will post using the same select method as you're
10873 reading from (which might be convenient if you're reading lots of
10874 groups from different private servers). However. If the server
10875 you're reading from doesn't allow posting, just reading, you probably
10876 want to use some other server to post your (extremely intelligent and
10877 fabulously interesting) articles. You can then set the
10878 @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
10881 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
10884 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
10885 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
10886 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
10887 the ``current'' server, to get back the default behavior, for posting.
10889 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
10890 gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
10892 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
10893 If that's the case, gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
10896 Finally, if you want to always post using the native select method,
10897 you can set this variable to @code{native}.
10899 When sending mail, Message invokes @code{message-send-mail-function}.
10900 The default function, @code{message-send-mail-with-sendmail}, pipes
10901 your article to the @code{sendmail} binary for further queuing and
10902 sending. When your local system is not configured for sending mail
10903 using @code{sendmail}, and you have access to a remote @sc{smtp}
10904 server, you can set @code{message-send-mail-function} to
10905 @code{smtpmail-send-it} and make sure to setup the @code{smtpmail}
10906 package correctly. An example:
10909 (setq message-send-mail-function 'smtpmail-send-it
10910 smtpmail-default-smtp-server "YOUR SMTP HOST")
10913 To the thing similar to this, there is @code{message-smtpmail-send-it}.
10914 It is useful if your ISP requires the POP-before-SMTP authentication.
10915 See the documentation for the function @code{mail-source-touch-pop}.
10917 Other possible choices for @code{message-send-mail-function} includes
10918 @code{message-send-mail-with-mh}, @code{message-send-mail-with-qmail},
10919 and @code{feedmail-send-it}.
10921 @node Mail and Post
10922 @section Mail and Post
10924 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
10928 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
10929 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
10930 @cindex mailing lists
10932 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
10933 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
10934 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
10935 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
10936 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
10937 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
10938 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
10939 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
10940 still a pain, though.
10944 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
10945 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
10946 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
10949 @findex ispell-message
10951 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
10954 If you want to change the @code{ispell} dictionary based on what group
10955 you're in, you could say something like the following:
10958 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
10962 "^de\\." (gnus-group-real-name gnus-newsgroup-name))
10963 (ispell-change-dictionary "deutsch"))
10965 (ispell-change-dictionary "english")))))
10968 Modify to suit your needs.
10971 @node Archived Messages
10972 @section Archived Messages
10973 @cindex archived messages
10974 @cindex sent messages
10976 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
10977 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
10978 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
10979 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
10982 For archiving interesting messages in a group you read, see the
10983 @kbd{B c} (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}) command (@pxref{Mail
10986 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
10987 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server gnus is to
10988 use to store sent messages. The default is:
10991 (nnfolder "archive"
10992 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
10993 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
10994 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
10995 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
10998 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
10999 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likable select method
11000 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
11001 directory chosen, you could say something like:
11004 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
11005 '(nnfolder "archive"
11006 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
11007 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
11008 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
11011 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
11013 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
11014 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
11015 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
11017 This variable can be used to do the following:
11022 Messages will be saved in that group.
11024 Note that you can include a select method in the group name, then the
11025 message will not be stored in the select method given by
11026 @code{gnus-message-archive-method}, but in the select method specified
11027 by the group name, instead. Suppose @code{gnus-message-archive-method}
11028 has the default value shown above. Then setting
11029 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{"foo"} means that outgoing
11030 messages are stored in @samp{nnfolder+archive:foo}, but if you use the
11031 value @code{"nnml:foo"}, then outgoing messages will be stored in
11035 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
11037 an alist of regexps, functions and forms
11038 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
11041 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
11046 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
11048 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
11051 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
11053 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
11056 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
11058 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
11059 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
11060 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
11061 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
11064 More complex stuff:
11066 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
11067 '((if (message-news-p)
11072 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
11073 messages in one file per month:
11076 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
11077 '((if (message-news-p)
11079 (concat "mail." (format-time-string "%Y-%m")))))
11082 @c (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
11083 @c use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
11085 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
11086 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
11087 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
11088 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
11089 gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
11090 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
11091 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
11092 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
11093 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
11094 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
11096 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
11097 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
11098 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
11099 this will disable archiving.
11102 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
11103 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
11104 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
11105 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
11106 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
11109 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
11110 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
11111 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
11114 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
11115 but the latter is the preferred method.
11117 @item gnus-gcc-mark-as-read
11118 @vindex gnus-gcc-mark-as-read
11119 If non-@code{nil}, automatically mark @code{Gcc} articles as read.
11121 @item gnus-gcc-externalize-attachments
11122 @vindex gnus-gcc-externalize-attachments
11123 If @code{nil}, attach files as normal parts in Gcc copies; if a regexp
11124 and matches the Gcc group name, attach files as external parts; if it is
11125 @code{all}, attach local files as external parts; if it is other
11126 non-@code{nil}, the behavior is the same as @code{all}, but it may be
11127 changed in the future.
11132 @node Posting Styles
11133 @section Posting Styles
11134 @cindex posting styles
11137 All them variables, they make my head swim.
11139 So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
11140 on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
11141 and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
11144 @vindex gnus-posting-styles
11145 One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
11146 variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
11147 came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
11148 a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
11153 (signature "Peace and happiness")
11154 (organization "What me?"))
11156 (signature "Death to everybody"))
11157 ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
11158 (organization "Emacs is it")))
11161 As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
11162 @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
11163 ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
11164 over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
11165 applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
11166 the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
11167 @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
11168 signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
11170 The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
11171 string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
11172 If it is the form @code{(header MATCH REGEXP)}, then Gnus will look in
11173 the original article for a header whose name is MATCH and compare that
11174 REGEXP. MATCH and REGEXP are strings. (There original article is the
11175 one you are replying or following up to. If you are not composing a
11176 reply or a followup, then there is nothing to match against.) If the
11177 @code{match} is a function symbol, that function will be called with no
11178 arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the variable will be
11179 referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be @code{eval}ed. In
11180 any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value, then the style is said
11183 Each style may contain an arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
11184 attribute consists of a @code{(@var{name} @var{value})} pair. The
11185 attribute name can be one of @code{signature}, @code{signature-file},
11186 @code{x-face-file}, @code{address} (overriding
11187 @code{user-mail-address}), @code{name} (overriding
11188 @code{(user-full-name)}) or @code{body}. The attribute name can also
11189 be a string or a symbol. In that case, this will be used as a header
11190 name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the article; if
11191 the value is @code{nil}, the header name will be removed. If the
11192 attribute name is @code{eval}, the form is evaluated, and the result
11195 The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function with
11196 zero arguments (the return value will be used), a variable (its value
11197 will be used) or a list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value
11198 will be used). The functions and sexps are called/@code{eval}ed in the
11199 message buffer that is being set up. The headers of the current article
11200 are available through the @code{message-reply-headers} variable, which
11201 is a vector of the following headers: number subject from date id
11202 references chars lines xref extra.
11204 @vindex message-reply-headers
11206 If you wish to check whether the message you are about to compose is
11207 meant to be a news article or a mail message, you can check the values
11208 of the @code{message-news-p} and @code{message-mail-p} functions.
11210 @findex message-mail-p
11211 @findex message-news-p
11213 So here's a new example:
11216 (setq gnus-posting-styles
11218 (signature-file "~/.signature")
11220 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
11221 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
11223 (signature my-funny-signature-randomizer))
11224 ((equal (system-name) "gnarly") ;; A form
11225 (signature my-quote-randomizer))
11226 (message-news-p ;; A function symbol
11227 (signature my-news-signature))
11228 (window-system ;; A value symbol
11229 ("X-Window-System" (format "%s" window-system)))
11230 ;; If I'm replying to Larsi, set the Organization header.
11231 ((header "from" "larsi.*org")
11232 (Organization "Somewhere, Inc."))
11233 ((posting-from-work-p) ;; A user defined function
11234 (signature-file "~/.work-signature")
11235 (address "user@@bar.foo")
11236 (body "You are fired.\n\nSincerely, your boss.")
11237 (organization "Important Work, Inc"))
11239 (From (save-excursion
11240 (set-buffer gnus-article-buffer)
11241 (message-fetch-field "to"))))
11243 (signature-file "~/.mail-signature"))))
11246 The @samp{nnml:.*} rule means that you use the @code{To} address as the
11247 @code{From} address in all your outgoing replies, which might be handy
11248 if you fill many roles.
11250 Setting the @code{gnus-named-posting-styles} variable will make
11251 posting-styles allow to have distinctive names. You can specify an
11252 arbitrary posting-style when article posting with @kbd{S P} in the
11253 summary buffer. @code{gnus-named-posting-styles} is an alist which maps
11254 the names to styles. Once a posting-style is added to the alist, we can
11255 import it from @code{gnus-posting-styles}. If an attribute whose name
11256 is @code{import} is found, Gnus will look for the attribute value in
11257 @code{gnus-named-posting-styles} and expand it in place.
11262 (setq gnus-named-posting-styles
11264 (signature-file "~/.signature")
11266 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
11267 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
11270 (organization "The Church of Emacs"))))
11273 The posting-style named "Emacs" will inherit all the attributes from
11274 "Default" except @code{organization}.
11281 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
11282 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
11283 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
11284 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
11285 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
11287 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
11288 some sort using the gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
11289 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
11290 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
11291 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
11295 @vindex nndraft-directory
11296 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
11297 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
11298 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
11299 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
11300 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
11301 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
11303 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
11304 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
11307 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
11308 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
11309 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
11310 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
11311 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
11312 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
11313 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
11314 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
11315 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
11316 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
11317 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
11318 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
11319 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
11320 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
11322 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
11323 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
11324 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
11326 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
11327 @kindex D e (Draft)
11328 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
11329 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
11330 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
11332 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
11335 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
11336 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
11337 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
11338 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
11339 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
11340 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
11341 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
11344 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
11345 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
11346 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
11349 @node Rejected Articles
11350 @section Rejected Articles
11351 @cindex rejected articles
11353 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
11354 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
11355 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
11356 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
11358 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of gnus.
11359 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
11360 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
11361 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So gnus saves these
11362 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
11364 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
11365 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
11366 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
11368 @node Signing and encrypting
11369 @section Signing and encrypting
11371 @cindex using s/mime
11372 @cindex using smime
11374 Gnus can digitally sign and encrypt your messages, using vanilla PGP
11375 format or @sc{pgp/mime} or @sc{s/mime}. For decoding such messages,
11376 see the @code{mm-verify-option} and @code{mm-decrypt-option} options
11377 (@pxref{Security}).
11379 For PGP, Gnus supports two external libraries, @sc{gpg.el} and
11380 @sc{Mailcrypt}, you need to install at least one of them. The
11381 @sc{s/mime} support in Gnus requires the external program OpenSSL.
11383 Often, you would like to sign replies to people who send you signed
11384 messages. Even more often, you might want to encrypt messages which
11385 are in reply to encrypted messages. Gnus offers
11386 @code{gnus-message-replysign} to enable the former, and
11387 @code{gnus-message-replyencrypt} for the latter. In addition, setting
11388 @code{gnus-message-replysignencrypted} (on by default) will sign
11389 automatically encrypted messages.
11391 Instructing MML to perform security operations on a @sc{mime} part is
11392 done using the @kbd{C-c C-m s} key map for signing and the @kbd{C-c
11393 C-m c} key map for encryption, as follows.
11398 @kindex C-c C-m s s
11399 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-smime
11401 Digitally sign current message using @sc{s/mime}.
11404 @kindex C-c C-m s o
11405 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-pgp
11407 Digitally sign current message using PGP.
11410 @kindex C-c C-m s p
11411 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-pgp
11413 Digitally sign current message using @sc{pgp/mime}.
11416 @kindex C-c C-m c s
11417 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-smime
11419 Digitally encrypt current message using @sc{s/mime}.
11422 @kindex C-c C-m c o
11423 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-pgp
11425 Digitally encrypt current message using PGP.
11428 @kindex C-c C-m c p
11429 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-pgpmime
11431 Digitally encrypt current message using @sc{pgp/mime}.
11434 @kindex C-c C-m C-n
11435 @findex mml-unsecure-message
11436 Remove security related MML tags from message.
11440 Also @xref{Security, ,Security, message, Message Manual}.
11442 @node Select Methods
11443 @chapter Select Methods
11444 @cindex foreign groups
11445 @cindex select methods
11447 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
11448 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
11449 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
11450 personal mail group.
11452 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
11453 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
11454 list where the first element says what back end to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
11455 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
11456 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
11457 value may have special meaning for the back end in question.
11459 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
11460 we do just that (@pxref{Server Buffer}).
11462 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the back end will recognize the
11465 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
11466 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
11467 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
11468 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
11469 back end just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
11471 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
11474 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
11475 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
11476 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
11477 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
11478 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
11479 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
11480 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
11481 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
11485 @node Server Buffer
11486 @section Server Buffer
11488 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
11489 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
11490 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
11491 one back end or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
11492 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
11493 back end represents a virtual server.
11495 For instance, the @code{nntp} back end may be used to connect to several
11496 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
11497 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which back end to
11498 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
11500 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
11501 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
11502 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
11503 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
11504 Anyway, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
11505 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
11506 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
11508 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
11509 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
11512 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
11513 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
11514 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
11515 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
11516 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
11517 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
11518 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
11521 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
11522 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
11525 @node Server Buffer Format
11526 @subsection Server Buffer Format
11527 @cindex server buffer format
11529 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
11530 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
11531 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
11532 variable, with some simple extensions:
11537 How the news is fetched---the back end name.
11540 The name of this server.
11543 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
11546 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
11549 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
11550 The mode line can also be customized by using the
11551 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
11552 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
11562 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
11565 @node Server Commands
11566 @subsection Server Commands
11567 @cindex server commands
11573 @findex gnus-server-add-server
11574 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
11578 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
11579 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
11582 @kindex SPACE (Server)
11583 @findex gnus-server-read-server
11584 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
11588 @findex gnus-server-exit
11589 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
11593 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
11594 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
11598 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
11599 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
11603 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
11604 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
11608 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
11609 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
11613 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
11614 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
11615 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
11620 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
11621 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
11622 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
11623 a mail back end that has gotten out of sync.
11628 @node Example Methods
11629 @subsection Example Methods
11631 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
11634 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
11637 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
11643 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
11644 back end, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
11647 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
11648 @code{(@var{variable} @var{form})} pairs.
11650 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
11651 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
11655 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
11658 You should read the documentation to each back end to find out what
11659 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
11661 @code{nnmh} is a mail back end that reads a spool-like structure. Say
11662 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
11663 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
11667 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
11670 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
11673 Here's the method for a public spool:
11677 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
11678 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
11684 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
11685 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
11686 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
11687 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
11688 should probably look something like this:
11692 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet)
11693 (nntp-via-address "the.firewall.machine")
11694 (nntp-address "the.real.nntp.host")
11695 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
11698 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
11699 compressed connection over the modem line, you could add the following
11700 configuration to the example above:
11703 (nntp-via-rlogin-command "ssh")
11706 See also @code{nntp-via-rlogin-command-switches}.
11708 If you're behind a firewall, but have direct access to the outside world
11709 through a wrapper command like "runsocks", you could open a socksified
11710 telnet connection to the news server as follows:
11714 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
11715 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-telnet)
11716 (nntp-address "the.news.server")
11717 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
11720 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
11721 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
11722 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
11723 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
11726 @node Creating a Virtual Server
11727 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
11729 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
11730 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
11732 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
11733 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
11734 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
11736 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
11738 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
11739 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
11740 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
11741 will contain the following:
11751 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
11752 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
11753 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
11756 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
11757 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
11758 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
11761 @node Server Variables
11762 @subsection Server Variables
11764 One sticky point when defining variables (both on back ends and in Emacs
11765 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
11766 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
11767 change the "base" variable after the variables have been loaded, you
11768 won't change the "derived" variables.
11770 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
11771 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
11772 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
11773 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
11774 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
11775 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
11776 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
11777 variables for each back end, see each back end's section later in this
11778 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
11782 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
11783 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
11784 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
11788 @node Servers and Methods
11789 @subsection Servers and Methods
11791 Wherever you would normally use a select method
11792 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
11793 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
11794 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
11798 @node Unavailable Servers
11799 @subsection Unavailable Servers
11801 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
11802 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
11803 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
11804 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
11805 actually the case or not.
11807 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
11808 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
11809 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
11810 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
11811 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
11812 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
11813 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
11814 it will regard that server as ``down''.
11816 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
11817 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
11819 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{Server Buffer}) and poke it
11820 with the following commands:
11826 @findex gnus-server-open-server
11827 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
11828 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
11832 @findex gnus-server-close-server
11833 Close the connection (if any) to the server
11834 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
11838 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
11839 Mark the current server as unreachable
11840 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
11843 @kindex M-o (Server)
11844 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
11845 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
11846 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
11849 @kindex M-c (Server)
11850 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
11851 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
11852 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
11856 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
11857 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
11858 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
11862 @findex gnus-server-offline-server
11863 Set server status to offline (@code{gnus-server-offline-server}).
11869 @section Getting News
11870 @cindex reading news
11871 @cindex news back ends
11873 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
11874 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
11875 or it can read from a local spool.
11878 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
11879 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
11887 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
11888 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
11889 server as the, uhm, address.
11891 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
11892 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
11893 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
11894 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
11896 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
11897 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
11898 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
11900 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
11905 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
11906 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
11907 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
11909 @cindex authentification
11910 @cindex nntp authentification
11911 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
11912 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
11913 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
11914 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
11915 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
11916 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
11917 present in this hook.
11919 @item nntp-authinfo-function
11920 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
11921 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
11922 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
11923 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
11924 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
11925 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
11926 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
11927 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
11928 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
11929 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
11930 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
11934 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
11937 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs.
11939 The valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password},
11940 @samp{default}. In addition Gnus introduces two new tokens, not present
11941 in the original @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp} syntax, namely @samp{port} and
11942 @samp{force}. (This is the only way the @file{.authinfo} file format
11943 deviates from the @file{.netrc} file format.) @samp{port} is used to
11944 indicate what port on the server the credentials apply to and
11945 @samp{force} is explained below.
11949 Here's an example file:
11952 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
11953 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
11956 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
11957 have to be first, for instance.
11959 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
11960 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
11961 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
11962 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
11963 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
11964 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
11965 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
11967 You can also add @samp{default} lines that will apply to all servers
11968 that don't have matching @samp{machine} lines.
11974 This will force sending @samp{AUTHINFO} commands to all servers not
11975 previously mentioned.
11977 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
11979 @item nntp-server-action-alist
11980 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
11981 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
11982 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
11983 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
11986 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
11987 '(("innd" (ding))))
11990 You probably don't want to do that, though.
11992 The default value is
11995 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
11996 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook
11997 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
12000 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
12001 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
12003 @item nntp-maximum-request
12004 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
12005 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this back end
12006 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
12007 speed things up, the back end sends lots of these commands without
12008 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
12009 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
12010 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
12012 @item nntp-connection-timeout
12013 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
12014 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
12015 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
12016 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
12017 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
12018 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
12019 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} back end should wait for a
12020 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
12021 no timeouts are done.
12023 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
12024 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
12025 @c @cindex PPP connections
12026 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
12027 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
12028 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
12029 @c changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
12030 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
12031 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
12032 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
12033 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
12034 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
12035 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
12037 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
12038 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
12039 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
12040 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
12041 @c described above.
12043 @item nntp-server-hook
12044 @vindex nntp-server-hook
12045 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
12048 @item nntp-buggy-select
12049 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
12050 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
12052 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
12053 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
12054 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
12055 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
12058 @item nntp-xover-commands
12059 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
12062 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
12063 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
12067 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
12068 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
12069 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
12070 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
12071 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
12072 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
12073 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
12074 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
12075 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
12076 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
12077 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
12079 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
12080 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
12081 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
12083 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
12084 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
12085 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
12086 server closes connection.
12088 @item nntp-record-commands
12089 @vindex nntp-record-commands
12090 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
12091 @sc{nntp} server (along with a timestamp) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
12092 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@sc{nntp} connection
12093 that doesn't seem to work.
12095 @item nntp-open-connection-function
12096 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
12097 It is possible to customize how the connection to the nntp server will
12098 be opened. If you specify an @code{nntp-open-connection-function}
12099 parameter, Gnus will use that function to establish the connection.
12100 Five pre-made functions are supplied. These functions can be grouped in
12101 two categories: direct connection functions (three pre-made), and
12102 indirect ones (two pre-made).
12104 @item nntp-prepare-post-hook
12105 @vindex nntp-prepare-post-hook
12106 A hook run just before posting an article. If there is no
12107 @code{Message-ID} header in the article and the news server provides the
12108 recommended ID, it will be added to the article before running this
12109 hook. It is useful to make @code{Cancel-Lock} headers even if you
12110 inhibit Gnus to add a @code{Message-ID} header, you could say:
12113 (add-hook 'nntp-prepare-post-hook 'canlock-insert-header)
12116 Note that not all servers support the recommended ID. This works for
12117 INN versions 2.3.0 and later, for instance.
12119 @item nntp-list-options
12120 @vindex nntp-list-options
12121 List of newsgroup name used for a option of the LIST command to restrict
12122 the listing output to only the specified newsgroups. Each newsgroup name
12123 can be a shell-style wildcard, for instance, @dfn{fj.*}, @dfn{japan.*},
12124 etc. Fortunately, if the server can accept such a option, it will
12125 probably make gnus run faster. You may use it as a server variable as
12129 (setq gnus-select-method
12130 '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"
12131 (nntp-list-options ("fj.*" "japan.*"))))
12134 @item nntp-options-subscribe
12135 @vindex nntp-options-subscribe
12136 Regexp matching the newsgroup names which will be subscribed
12137 unconditionally. Use @dfn{ } instead of @dfn{$} for a regexp string.
12138 It may be effective as well as @code{nntp-list-options} even though the
12139 server could not accept a shell-style wildcard as a option of the LIST
12140 command. You may use it as a server variable as follows:
12143 (setq gnus-select-method
12144 '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"
12145 (nntp-options-subscribe "^fj\\.\\|^japan\\.")))
12148 @item nntp-options-not-subscribe
12149 @vindex nntp-options-not-subscribe
12150 Regexp matching the newsgroup names which will not be subscribed
12151 unconditionally. Use @dfn{ } instead of @dfn{$} for a regexp string.
12152 It may be effective as well as @code{nntp-list-options} even though the
12153 server could not accept a shell-style wildcard as a option of the LIST
12154 command. You may use it as a server variable as follows:
12157 (setq gnus-select-method
12158 '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"
12159 (nntp-options-not-subscribe "\\.binaries\\.")))
12164 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
12165 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
12166 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
12170 @node Direct Functions
12171 @subsubsection Direct Functions
12172 @cindex direct connection functions
12174 These functions are called direct because they open a direct connection
12175 between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server. The behavior of these
12176 functions is also affected by commonly understood variables
12177 (@pxref{Common Variables}).
12180 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
12181 @item nntp-open-network-stream
12182 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
12185 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
12186 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
12187 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use
12188 this you must have OpenSSL (@uref{http://www.openssl.org}) or SSLeay
12189 installed (@uref{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}, and you also
12190 need @file{ssl.el} (from the W3 distribution, for instance). You then
12191 define a server as follows:
12194 ;; Type `C-c C-c' after you've finished editing.
12196 ;; "snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
12197 ;; however, openssl s_client -port doesn't like named ports
12199 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
12200 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
12201 (nntp-port-number 563)
12202 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
12205 @findex nntp-open-telnet-stream
12206 @item nntp-open-telnet-stream
12207 Opens a connection to an @sc{nntp} server by simply @samp{telnet}'ing
12208 it. You might wonder why this function exists, since we have the
12209 default @code{nntp-open-network-stream} which would do the job. (One
12210 of) the reason(s) is that if you are behind a firewall but have direct
12211 connections to the outside world thanks to a command wrapper like
12212 @code{runsocks}, you can use it like this:
12216 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
12217 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-telnet-stream)
12218 (nntp-address "the.news.server"))
12221 With the default method, you would need to wrap your whole Emacs
12222 session, which is not a good idea.
12226 @node Indirect Functions
12227 @subsubsection Indirect Functions
12228 @cindex indirect connection functions
12230 These functions are called indirect because they connect to an
12231 intermediate host before actually connecting to the @sc{nntp} server.
12232 All of these functions and related variables are also said to belong to
12233 the "via" family of connection: they're all prefixed with "via" to make
12234 things cleaner. The behavior of these functions is also affected by
12235 commonly understood variables (@pxref{Common Variables}).
12238 @item nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
12239 @findex nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
12240 Does an @samp{rlogin} on a remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet}
12241 to the real @sc{nntp} server from there. This is useful for instance if
12242 you need to connect to a firewall machine first.
12244 @code{nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet}-specific variables:
12247 @item nntp-via-rlogin-command
12248 @vindex nntp-via-rlogin-command
12249 Command used to log in on the intermediate host. The default is
12250 @samp{rsh}, but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
12252 @item nntp-via-rlogin-command-switches
12253 @vindex nntp-via-rlogin-command-switches
12254 List of strings to be used as the switches to
12255 @code{nntp-via-rlogin-command}. The default is @code{nil}. If you use
12256 @samp{ssh} for `nntp-via-rlogin-command', you may set this to
12257 @samp{("-C")} in order to compress all data connections, otherwise set
12258 this to @samp{("-t")} or @samp{("-C" "-t")} if the telnet command
12259 requires a pseudo-tty allocation on an intermediate host.
12262 @item nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
12263 @findex nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
12264 Does essentially the same, but uses @samp{telnet} instead of
12265 @samp{rlogin} to connect to the intermediate host.
12267 @code{nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet}-specific variables:
12270 @item nntp-via-telnet-command
12271 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-command
12272 Command used to @code{telnet} the intermediate host. The default is
12275 @item nntp-via-telnet-switches
12276 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-switches
12277 List of strings to be used as the switches to the
12278 @code{nntp-via-telnet-command} command. The default is @samp{("-8")}.
12280 @item nntp-via-user-password
12281 @vindex nntp-via-user-password
12282 Password to use when logging in on the intermediate host.
12284 @item nntp-via-envuser
12285 @vindex nntp-via-envuser
12286 If non-@code{nil}, the intermediate @code{telnet} session (client and
12287 server both) will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for
12288 login name. This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
12290 @item nntp-via-shell-prompt
12291 @vindex nntp-via-shell-prompt
12292 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the intermediate host. The default
12293 is @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
12300 Here are some additional variables that are understood by all the above
12305 @item nntp-via-user-name
12306 @vindex nntp-via-user-name
12307 User name to use when connecting to the intermediate host.
12309 @item nntp-via-address
12310 @vindex nntp-via-address
12311 Address of the intermediate host to connect to.
12316 @node Common Variables
12317 @subsubsection Common Variables
12319 The following variables affect the behavior of all, or several of the
12320 pre-made connection functions. When not specified, all functions are
12325 @item nntp-pre-command
12326 @vindex nntp-pre-command
12327 A command wrapper to use when connecting through a non native connection
12328 function (all except @code{nntp-open-network-stream} and
12329 @code{nntp-open-ssl-stream}. This is where you would put a @samp{SOCKS}
12330 wrapper for instance.
12333 @vindex nntp-address
12334 The address of the @sc{nntp} server.
12336 @item nntp-port-number
12337 @vindex nntp-port-number
12338 Port number to connect to the @sc{nntp} server. The default is @samp{nntp}.
12339 If you use @sc{nntp} over @sc{ssl}, you may want to use integer ports rather
12340 than named ports (i.e, use @samp{563} instead of @samp{snews}), because
12341 external SSL tools may not work with named ports.
12343 @item nntp-end-of-line
12344 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
12345 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
12346 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
12347 using a non native connection function.
12349 @item nntp-telnet-command
12350 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
12351 Command to use when connecting to the @sc{nntp} server through
12352 @samp{telnet}. This is NOT for an intermediate host. This is just for
12353 the real @sc{nntp} server. The default is @samp{telnet}.
12355 @item nntp-telnet-switches
12356 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
12357 A list of switches to pass to @code{nntp-telnet-command}. The default
12364 @subsection News Spool
12368 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
12369 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
12370 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
12373 Anyway, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
12374 anything else) as the address.
12376 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
12377 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
12378 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
12379 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
12383 @item nnspool-inews-program
12384 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
12385 Program used to post an article.
12387 @item nnspool-inews-switches
12388 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
12389 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
12391 @item nnspool-spool-directory
12392 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
12393 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
12394 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
12396 @item nnspool-nov-directory
12397 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
12398 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
12399 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
12401 @item nnspool-lib-dir
12402 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
12403 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
12405 @item nnspool-active-file
12406 @vindex nnspool-active-file
12407 The path to the active file.
12409 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
12410 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
12411 The path to the group descriptions file.
12413 @item nnspool-history-file
12414 @vindex nnspool-history-file
12415 The path to the news history file.
12417 @item nnspool-active-times-file
12418 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
12419 The path to the active date file.
12421 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
12422 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
12423 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
12426 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
12427 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
12429 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
12430 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
12431 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
12437 @section Getting Mail
12438 @cindex reading mail
12441 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
12445 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
12446 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
12447 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
12448 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
12449 * Mail Back End Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
12450 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
12451 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
12452 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
12453 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
12454 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
12455 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
12456 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail back ends for reading other files.
12457 * Choosing a Mail Back End:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
12461 @node Mail in a Newsreader
12462 @subsection Mail in a Newsreader
12464 If you are used to traditional mail readers, but have decided to switch
12465 to reading mail with Gnus, you may find yourself experiencing something
12466 of a culture shock.
12468 Gnus does not behave like traditional mail readers. If you want to make
12469 it behave that way, you can, but it's an uphill battle.
12471 Gnus, by default, handles all its groups using the same approach. This
12472 approach is very newsreaderly---you enter a group, see the new/unread
12473 messages, and when you read the messages, they get marked as read, and
12474 you don't see them any more. (Unless you explicitly ask for them.)
12476 In particular, you do not do anything explicitly to delete messages.
12478 Does this mean that all the messages that have been marked as read are
12479 deleted? How awful!
12481 But, no, it means that old messages are @dfn{expired} according to some
12482 scheme or other. For news messages, the expire process is controlled by
12483 the news administrator; for mail, the expire process is controlled by
12484 you. The expire process for mail is covered in depth in @pxref{Expiring
12487 What many Gnus users find, after using it a while for both news and
12488 mail, is that the transport mechanism has very little to do with how
12489 they want to treat a message.
12491 Many people subscribe to several mailing lists. These are transported
12492 via @sc{smtp}, and are therefore mail. But we might go for weeks without
12493 answering, or even reading these messages very carefully. We may not
12494 need to save them because if we should need to read one again, they are
12495 archived somewhere else.
12497 Some people have local news groups which have only a handful of readers.
12498 These are transported via @sc{nntp}, and are therefore news. But we may need
12499 to read and answer a large fraction of the messages very carefully in
12500 order to do our work. And there may not be an archive, so we may need
12501 to save the interesting messages the same way we would personal mail.
12503 The important distinction turns out to be not the transport mechanism,
12504 but other factors such as how interested we are in the subject matter,
12505 or how easy it is to retrieve the message if we need to read it again.
12507 Gnus provides many options for sorting mail into ``groups'' which behave
12508 like newsgroups, and for treating each group (whether mail or news)
12511 Some users never get comfortable using the Gnus (ahem) paradigm and wish
12512 that Gnus should grow up and be a male, er, mail reader. It is possible
12513 to whip Gnus into a more mailreaderly being, but, as said before, it's
12514 not easy. People who prefer proper mail readers should try @sc{vm}
12515 instead, which is an excellent, and proper, mail reader.
12517 I don't mean to scare anybody off, but I want to make it clear that you
12518 may be required to learn a new way of thinking about messages. After
12519 you've been subjected to The Gnus Way, you will come to love it. I can
12520 guarantee it. (At least the guy who sold me the Emacs Subliminal
12521 Brain-Washing Functions that I've put into Gnus did guarantee it. You
12522 Will Be Assimilated. You Love Gnus. You Love The Gnus Mail Way.
12526 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
12527 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
12529 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
12530 mail back end of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
12531 and things will happen automatically.
12533 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a "one file per
12534 mail" back end), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
12537 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
12540 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this back end will be queried for new
12541 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
12542 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
12543 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
12544 like any other group.
12546 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
12549 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12550 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12551 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
12555 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
12556 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
12557 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
12560 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
12561 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
12562 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Back End} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
12565 @node Splitting Mail
12566 @subsection Splitting Mail
12567 @cindex splitting mail
12568 @cindex mail splitting
12570 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
12571 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
12572 to be split into groups.
12575 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12576 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12577 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
12578 ("mail.other" "")))
12581 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
12582 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
12583 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
12584 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
12585 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
12586 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
12587 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
12590 ("list.\\1" "From:.* \\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
12593 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
12594 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
12595 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
12596 mail belongs in that group.
12598 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
12599 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any mails
12600 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
12601 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
12602 rule to make a match will "win", unless you have crossposting enabled.
12603 In that case, all matching rules will "win".)
12605 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
12606 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
12607 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
12608 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
12609 thinks should carry this mail message.
12611 Note that the mail back ends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
12612 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
12613 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
12614 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
12616 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
12617 The mail back ends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
12618 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
12619 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
12620 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
12622 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
12625 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
12626 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
12627 links. If that's the case for you, set
12628 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
12629 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
12631 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
12632 @kindex nnmail-split-history
12633 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
12634 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command. If you wish to see
12635 where re-spooling messages would put the messages, you can use
12636 @code{gnus-summary-respool-trace} and related commands (@pxref{Mail
12639 @vindex nnmail-split-header-length-limit
12640 Header lines longer than the value of
12641 @code{nnmail-split-header-length-limit} are excluded from the split
12644 @vindex nnmail-mail-splitting-charset
12645 @vindex nnmail-mail-splitting-decodes
12646 By default the splitting codes MIME decodes headers so you can match
12647 on non-ASCII strings. The @code{nnmail-mail-splitting-charset}
12648 variable specifies the default charset for decoding. The behaviour
12649 can be turned off completely by binding
12650 @code{nnmail-mail-splitting-decodes} to nil, which is useful if you
12651 want to match articles based on the raw header data.
12653 @vindex nnmail-resplit-incoming
12654 By default, splitting is performed on all incoming messages. If
12655 you specify a @code{directory} entry for the variable
12656 @code{mail-sources} @pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}, however, then
12657 splitting does @emph{not} happen by default. You can set the variable
12658 @code{nnmail-resplit-incoming} to a non-nil value to make splitting
12659 happen even in this case. (This variable has no effect on other kinds
12662 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
12663 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
12664 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
12665 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
12666 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
12667 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
12668 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
12669 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
12670 month's rent money.
12674 @subsection Mail Sources
12676 Mail can be gotten from many different sources---the mail spool, from a
12677 POP mail server, from a procmail directory, or from a maildir, for
12681 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
12682 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
12683 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
12687 @node Mail Source Specifiers
12688 @subsubsection Mail Source Specifiers
12690 @cindex mail server
12693 @cindex mail source
12695 You tell Gnus how to fetch mail by setting @code{mail-sources}
12696 (@pxref{Fetching Mail}) to a @dfn{mail source specifier}.
12701 (pop :server "pop3.mailserver.com" :user "myname")
12704 As can be observed, a mail source specifier is a list where the first
12705 element is a @dfn{mail source type}, followed by an arbitrary number of
12706 @dfn{keywords}. Keywords that are not explicitly specified are given
12709 The following mail source types are available:
12713 Get mail from a single file; typically from the mail spool.
12719 The path of the file. Defaults to the value of the @code{MAIL}
12720 environment variable or the value of @code{rmail-spool-directory}
12721 (usually something like @file{/usr/mail/spool/user-name}).
12724 An example file mail source:
12727 (file :path "/usr/spool/mail/user-name")
12730 Or using the default path:
12736 If the mail spool file is not located on the local machine, it's best to
12737 use POP or @sc{imap} or the like to fetch the mail. You can not use ange-ftp
12738 file names here---it has no way to lock the mail spool while moving the
12741 If it's impossible to set up a proper server, you can use ssh instead.
12745 '((file :prescript "ssh host bin/getmail >%t")))
12748 The @samp{getmail} script would look something like the following:
12752 # getmail - move mail from spool to stdout
12755 MOVEMAIL=/usr/lib/emacs/20.3/i386-redhat-linux/movemail
12757 rm -f $TMP; $MOVEMAIL $MAIL $TMP >/dev/null && cat $TMP
12760 Alter this script to fit find the @samp{movemail} you want to use.
12764 @vindex nnmail-scan-directory-mail-source-once
12765 Get mail from several files in a directory. This is typically used when
12766 you have procmail split the incoming mail into several files. That is,
12767 there is a one-to-one correspondence between files in that directory and
12768 groups, so that mail from the file @file{foo.bar.spool} will be put in
12769 the group @code{foo.bar}. (You can change the suffix to be used instead
12770 of @code{.spool}.) Setting
12771 @code{nnmail-scan-directory-mail-source-once} to non-nil forces Gnus to
12772 scan the mail source only once. This is particularly useful if you want
12773 to scan mail groups at a specified level.
12775 @vindex nnmail-resplit-incoming
12776 There is also the variable @code{nnmail-resplit-incoming}, if you set
12777 that to a non-nil value, then the normal splitting process is applied
12778 to all the files from the directory, @ref{Splitting Mail}.
12784 The path of the directory where the files are. There is no default
12788 Only files ending with this suffix are used. The default is
12792 Only files that have this predicate return non-@code{nil} are returned.
12793 The default is @code{identity}. This is used as an additional
12794 filter---only files that have the right suffix @emph{and} satisfy this
12795 predicate are considered.
12799 Script run before/after fetching mail.
12803 An example directory mail source:
12806 (directory :path "/home/user-name/procmail-dir/"
12811 Get mail from a POP server.
12817 The name of the POP server. The default is taken from the
12818 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
12821 The port number of the POP server. This can be a number (eg,
12822 @samp{:port 1234}) or a string (eg, @samp{:port "pop3"}). If it is a
12823 string, it should be a service name as listed in @file{/etc/services} on
12824 Unix systems. The default is @samp{"pop3"}. On some systems you might
12825 need to specify it as @samp{"pop-3"} instead.
12828 The user name to give to the POP server. The default is the login
12832 The password to give to the POP server. If not specified, the user is
12836 The program to use to fetch mail from the POP server. This should be
12837 a @code{format}-like string. Here's an example:
12840 fetchmail %u@@%s -P %p %t
12843 The valid format specifier characters are:
12847 The name of the file the mail is to be moved to. This must always be
12848 included in this string.
12851 The name of the server.
12854 The port number of the server.
12857 The user name to use.
12860 The password to use.
12863 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
12864 corresponding keywords.
12867 A script to be run before fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
12868 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
12871 A script to be run after fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
12872 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
12875 The function to use to fetch mail from the POP server. The function is
12876 called with one parameter---the name of the file where the mail should
12879 @item :authentication
12880 This can be either the symbol @code{password} or the symbol @code{apop}
12881 and says what authentication scheme to use. The default is
12885 What stream to use for connecting to the server, this can be the symbol
12886 @code{ssl}, the symbol @code{tls} or others. The default is @code{nil}
12887 and use insecure connections. Note that for SSL/TLS, you need external
12888 programs and libraries:
12892 @dfn{ssl:} Connect through SSL@. Requires OpenSSL (the program
12893 @samp{openssl}) or SSLeay (@samp{s_client}) as well as the external
12894 library @samp{ssl.el}.
12896 @dfn{starttls:} Connect via the STARTTLS extension (similar to SSL)@.
12897 Requires the external library @samp{starttls.el} and program
12902 Non-@code{nil} if mail is to be left on the server and UIDL used for
12903 message retrieval. The default is @code{nil}.
12907 If the @code{:program} and @code{:function} keywords aren't specified,
12908 @code{pop3-movemail} will be used.
12910 Here are some examples. Fetch from the default POP server, using the
12911 default user name, and default fetcher:
12917 Fetch from a named server with a named user and password:
12920 (pop :server "my.pop.server"
12921 :user "user-name" :password "secret")
12924 Use @samp{movemail} to move the mail:
12927 (pop :program "movemail po:%u %t %p")
12931 Get mail from a maildir. This is a type of mailbox that is supported by
12932 at least qmail and postfix, where each file in a special directory
12933 contains exactly one mail.
12939 The path of the directory where the mails are stored. The default is
12940 taken from the @code{MAILDIR} environment variable or
12943 The subdirectories of the Maildir. The default is
12944 @samp{("new" "cur")}.
12946 @c If you sometimes look at your mail through a pop3 daemon before fetching
12947 @c them with Gnus, you may also have to fetch your mails from the
12948 @c @code{cur} directory inside the maildir, like in the first example
12951 You can also get mails from remote hosts (because maildirs don't suffer
12952 from locking problems).
12956 Two example maildir mail sources:
12959 (maildir :path "/home/user-name/Maildir/"
12960 :subdirs ("cur" "new"))
12964 (maildir :path "/user@@remotehost.org:~/Maildir/"
12969 Get mail from a @sc{imap} server. If you don't want to use @sc{imap}
12970 as intended, as a network mail reading protocol (ie with nnimap), for
12971 some reason or other, Gnus let you treat it similar to a POP server
12972 and fetches articles from a given @sc{imap} mailbox. @xref{IMAP}, for
12975 Note that for the Kerberos, GSSAPI, SSL/TLS and STARTTLS support you
12976 may need external programs and libraries, @xref{IMAP}.
12982 The name of the @sc{imap} server. The default is taken from the
12983 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
12986 The port number of the @sc{imap} server. The default is @samp{143}, or
12987 @samp{993} for SSL/TLS connections.
12990 The user name to give to the @sc{imap} server. The default is the login
12994 The password to give to the @sc{imap} server. If not specified, the user is
12998 What stream to use for connecting to the server, this is one of the
12999 symbols in @code{imap-stream-alist}. Right now, this means
13000 @samp{gssapi}, @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{starttls}, @samp{ssl},
13001 @samp{shell} or the default @samp{network}.
13003 @item :authentication
13004 Which authenticator to use for authenticating to the server, this is
13005 one of the symbols in @code{imap-authenticator-alist}. Right now,
13006 this means @samp{gssapi}, @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{digest-md5},
13007 @samp{cram-md5}, @samp{anonymous} or the default @samp{login}.
13010 When using the `shell' :stream, the contents of this variable is
13011 mapped into the `imap-shell-program' variable. This should be a
13012 @code{format}-like string (or list of strings). Here's an example:
13018 The valid format specifier characters are:
13022 The name of the server.
13025 User name from `imap-default-user'.
13028 The port number of the server.
13031 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
13032 corresponding keywords.
13035 The name of the mailbox to get mail from. The default is @samp{INBOX}
13036 which normally is the mailbox which receive incoming mail.
13039 The predicate used to find articles to fetch. The default, @samp{UNSEEN
13040 UNDELETED}, is probably the best choice for most people, but if you
13041 sometimes peek in your mailbox with a @sc{imap} client and mark some
13042 articles as read (or; SEEN) you might want to set this to @samp{1:*}.
13043 Then all articles in the mailbox is fetched, no matter what. For a
13044 complete list of predicates, see RFC 2060 section 6.4.4.
13047 How to flag fetched articles on the server, the default @samp{\Deleted}
13048 will mark them as deleted, an alternative would be @samp{\Seen} which
13049 would simply mark them as read. These are the two most likely choices,
13050 but more flags are defined in RFC 2060 section 2.3.2.
13053 If non-nil, don't remove all articles marked as deleted in the mailbox
13054 after finishing the fetch.
13058 An example @sc{imap} mail source:
13061 (imap :server "mail.mycorp.com"
13063 :fetchflag "\\Seen")
13067 Get mail from a webmail server, such as @uref{www.hotmail.com},
13068 @uref{webmail.netscape.com}, @uref{www.netaddress.com},
13069 @uref{mail.yahoo..com}.
13071 NOTE: Webmail largely depends cookies. A "one-line-cookie" patch is
13072 required for url "4.0pre.46".
13074 WARNING: Mails may be lost. NO WARRANTY.
13080 The type of the webmail server. The default is @code{hotmail}. The
13081 alternatives are @code{netscape}, @code{netaddress}, @code{my-deja}.
13084 The user name to give to the webmail server. The default is the login
13088 The password to give to the webmail server. If not specified, the user is
13092 If non-nil, only fetch unread articles and don't move them to trash
13093 folder after finishing the fetch.
13097 An example webmail source:
13100 (webmail :subtype 'hotmail
13102 :password "secret")
13107 @item Common Keywords
13108 Common keywords can be used in any type of mail source.
13114 If non-nil, fetch the mail even when Gnus is unplugged. If you use
13115 directory source to get mail, you can specify it as in this example:
13119 '((directory :path "/home/pavel/.Spool/"
13124 Gnus will then fetch your mail even when you are unplugged. This is
13125 useful when you use local mail and news.
13130 @subsubsection Function Interface
13132 Some of the above keywords specify a Lisp function to be executed.
13133 For each keyword @code{:foo}, the Lisp variable @code{foo} is bound to
13134 the value of the keyword while the function is executing. For example,
13135 consider the following mail-source setting:
13138 (setq mail-sources '((pop :user "jrl"
13139 :server "pophost" :function fetchfunc)))
13142 While the function @code{fetchfunc} is executing, the symbol @code{user}
13143 is bound to @code{"jrl"}, and the symbol @code{server} is bound to
13144 @code{"pophost"}. The symbols @code{port}, @code{password},
13145 @code{program}, @code{prescript}, @code{postscript}, @code{function},
13146 and @code{authentication} are also bound (to their default values).
13148 See above for a list of keywords for each type of mail source.
13151 @node Mail Source Customization
13152 @subsubsection Mail Source Customization
13154 The following is a list of variables that influence how the mail is
13155 fetched. You would normally not need to set or change any of these
13159 @item mail-source-crash-box
13160 @vindex mail-source-crash-box
13161 File where mail will be stored while processing it. The default is
13162 @file{~/.emacs-mail-crash-box}.
13164 @item mail-source-delete-incoming
13165 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
13166 If non-@code{nil}, delete incoming files after handling them.
13168 @item mail-source-directory
13169 @vindex mail-source-directory
13170 Directory where files (if any) will be stored. The default is
13171 @file{~/Mail/}. At present, the only thing this is used for is to say
13172 where the incoming files will be stored if the previous variable is
13175 @item mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
13176 @vindex mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
13177 Prefix for file name for storing incoming mail. The default is
13178 @file{Incoming}, in which case files will end up with names like
13179 @file{Incoming30630D_} or @file{Incoming298602ZD}. This is really only
13180 relevant if @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} is @code{nil}.
13182 @item mail-source-default-file-modes
13183 @vindex mail-source-default-file-modes
13184 All new mail files will get this file mode. The default is 384.
13186 @item mail-source-movemail-program
13187 @vindex mail-source-movemail-program
13188 If non-nil, name of program for fetching new mail. If nil,
13189 @code{movemail} in @var{exec-directory}.
13194 @node Fetching Mail
13195 @subsubsection Fetching Mail
13197 @vindex mail-sources
13198 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
13199 The way to actually tell Gnus where to get new mail from is to set
13200 @code{mail-sources} to a list of mail source specifiers
13201 (@pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}).
13203 If this variable (and the obsolescent @code{nnmail-spool-file}) is
13204 @code{nil}, the mail back ends will never attempt to fetch mail by
13207 If you want to fetch mail both from your local spool as well as a POP
13208 mail server, you'd say something like:
13213 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
13214 :password "secret")))
13217 Or, if you don't want to use any of the keyword defaults:
13221 '((file :path "/var/spool/mail/user-name")
13222 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
13225 :password "secret")))
13229 When you use a mail back end, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
13230 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
13231 mail if you're not using a mail back end---you have to do a lot of magic
13232 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
13233 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
13234 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
13238 @node Mail Back End Variables
13239 @subsection Mail Back End Variables
13241 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
13245 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
13246 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
13247 The mail back ends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
13248 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
13250 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
13251 @item nnmail-split-hook
13252 @findex article-decode-encoded-words
13253 @findex RFC 1522 decoding
13254 @findex RFC 2047 decoding
13255 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
13256 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
13257 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
13258 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
13259 in the buffer will show up in any files.
13260 @code{gnus-article-decode-encoded-words} is one likely function to add
13263 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
13264 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
13265 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
13266 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
13267 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
13268 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
13269 starting to handle the new mail) and
13270 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
13271 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
13272 default file modes the new mail files get:
13275 (add-hook 'nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
13276 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
13278 (add-hook 'nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
13279 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
13282 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
13283 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
13284 If non-@code{nil}, the mail back ends will use long file and directory
13285 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
13286 (assuming use of @code{nnml} back end) or files (assuming use of
13287 @code{nnfolder} back end) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
13288 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
13290 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
13291 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
13292 @findex delete-file
13293 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
13295 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
13296 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
13297 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
13298 the back end (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
13299 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
13301 @item nnmail-cache-ignore-groups
13302 @vindex nnmail-cache-ignore-groups
13303 This can be a regular expression or a list of regular expressions.
13304 Group names that match any of the regular expressions will never be
13305 recorded in the @code{Message-ID} cache.
13307 This can be useful, for example, when using Fancy Splitting
13308 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}) together with the function
13309 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent}.
13314 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
13315 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
13316 @cindex mail splitting
13317 @cindex fancy mail splitting
13319 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
13320 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
13321 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
13322 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
13323 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
13324 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
13326 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
13329 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
13330 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
13331 ;; from real errors.
13332 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
13334 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
13335 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
13336 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
13337 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
13338 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
13339 ;; Other mailing lists...
13340 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
13341 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
13342 ;; Both lists below have the same suffix, so prevent
13343 ;; cross-posting to mkpkg.list of messages posted only to
13344 ;; the bugs- list, but allow cross-posting when the
13345 ;; message was really cross-posted.
13346 (any "bugs-mypackage@@somewhere" "mypkg.bugs")
13347 (any "mypackage@@somewhere\" - "bugs-mypackage" "mypkg.list")
13349 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
13350 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
13354 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
13355 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
13356 the five possible split syntaxes:
13361 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group
13362 name. Normal regexp match expansion will be done. See below for
13366 @code{(@var{field} @var{value} @code{[-} @var{restrict}
13367 @code{[@dots{}]}@code{]} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, the
13368 first element of which is a string, then store the message as
13369 specified by @var{split}, if header @var{field} (a regexp) contains
13370 @var{value} (also a regexp). If @var{restrict} (yet another regexp)
13371 matches some string after @var{field} and before the end of the
13372 matched @var{value}, the @var{split} is ignored. If none of the
13373 @var{restrict} clauses match, @var{split} is processed.
13376 @code{(| @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
13377 element is @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each @var{split} until
13378 one of them matches. A @var{split} is said to match if it will cause
13379 the mail message to be stored in one or more groups.
13382 @code{(& @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
13383 element is @code{&}, then process all @var{split}s in the list.
13386 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
13387 (i.e., delete) this message. Use with extreme caution.
13390 @code{(: @var{function} @var{arg1} @var{arg2} @dots{})}: If the split is
13391 a list, and the first element is @code{:}, then the second element will
13392 be called as a function with @var{args} given as arguments. The
13393 function should return a @var{split}.
13396 For instance, the following function could be used to split based on the
13397 body of the messages:
13400 (defun split-on-body ()
13402 (set-buffer " *nnmail incoming*")
13403 (goto-char (point-min))
13404 (when (re-search-forward "Some.*string" nil t)
13408 The @samp{" *nnmail incoming*"} is narrowed to the message in question
13409 when the @code{:} function is run.
13412 @code{(! @var{func} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, and the first
13413 element is @code{!}, then SPLIT will be processed, and FUNC will be
13414 called as a function with the result of SPLIT as argument. FUNC should
13418 @code{nil}: If the split is @code{nil}, it is ignored.
13422 In these splits, @var{field} must match a complete field name.
13423 @var{value} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
13424 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
13425 field names or words. In other words, all @var{value}'s are wrapped in
13426 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
13428 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
13429 @var{field} and @var{value} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
13430 are expanded as specified by the variable
13431 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
13432 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
13435 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
13436 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
13437 when all this splitting is performed.
13439 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
13440 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
13441 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
13444 (any "debian-\\b\\(\\w+\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
13447 In this example, messages sent to @samp{debian-foo@@lists.debian.org}
13448 will be filed in @samp{mail.debian.foo}.
13450 If the string contains the element @samp{\&}, then the previously
13451 matched string will be substituted. Similarly, the elements @samp{\\1}
13452 up to @samp{\\9} will be substituted with the text matched by the
13453 groupings 1 through 9.
13455 @findex nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent
13456 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} is a function which allows you to
13457 split followups into the same groups their parents are in. Sometimes
13458 you can't make splitting rules for all your mail. For example, your
13459 boss might send you personal mail regarding different projects you are
13460 working on, and as you can't tell your boss to put a distinguishing
13461 string into the subject line, you have to resort to manually moving the
13462 messages into the right group. With this function, you only have to do
13463 it once per thread.
13465 To use this feature, you have to set @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} and
13466 @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} to a non-nil value. And then
13467 you can include @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} using the colon
13470 (setq nnmail-treat-duplicates 'warn ; or 'delete
13471 nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids t
13473 '(| (: nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent)
13474 ;; other splits go here
13478 This feature works as follows: when @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} is
13479 non-nil, Gnus records the message id of every message it sees in the
13480 file specified by the variable @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file},
13481 together with the group it is in (the group is omitted for non-mail
13482 messages). When mail splitting is invoked, the function
13483 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} then looks at the References (and
13484 In-Reply-To) header of each message to split and searches the file
13485 specified by @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file} for the message ids.
13486 When it has found a parent, it returns the corresponding group name
13487 unless the group name matches the regexp
13488 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent-ignore-groups}. It is recommended
13489 that you set @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length} to a somewhat higher
13490 number than the default so that the message ids are still in the cache.
13491 (A value of 5000 appears to create a file some 300 kBytes in size.)
13492 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
13493 When @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus
13494 also records the message ids of moved articles, so that the followup
13495 messages goes into the new group.
13497 Also see the variable @code{nnmail-cache-ignore-groups} if you don't
13498 want certain groups to be recorded in the cache. For example, if all
13499 outgoing messages are written to an `outgoing' group, you could set
13500 @code{nnmail-cache-ignore-groups} to match that group name.
13501 Otherwise, answers to all your messages would end up in the
13505 @node Group Mail Splitting
13506 @subsection Group Mail Splitting
13507 @cindex mail splitting
13508 @cindex group mail splitting
13510 @findex gnus-group-split
13511 If you subscribe to dozens of mailing lists but you don't want to
13512 maintain mail splitting rules manually, group mail splitting is for you.
13513 You just have to set @var{to-list} and/or @var{to-address} in group
13514 parameters or group customization and set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to
13515 @code{gnus-group-split}. This splitting function will scan all groups
13516 for those parameters and split mail accordingly, i.e., messages posted
13517 from or to the addresses specified in the parameters @var{to-list} or
13518 @var{to-address} of a mail group will be stored in that group.
13520 Sometimes, mailing lists have multiple addresses, and you may want mail
13521 splitting to recognize them all: just set the @var{extra-aliases} group
13522 parameter to the list of additional addresses and it's done. If you'd
13523 rather use a regular expression, set @var{split-regexp}.
13525 All these parameters in a group will be used to create an
13526 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split, in which the @var{field} is @samp{any},
13527 the @var{value} is a single regular expression that matches
13528 @var{to-list}, @var{to-address}, all of @var{extra-aliases} and all
13529 matches of @var{split-regexp}, and the @var{split} is the name of the
13530 group. @var{restrict}s are also supported: just set the
13531 @var{split-exclude} parameter to a list of regular expressions.
13533 If you can't get the right split to be generated using all these
13534 parameters, or you just need something fancier, you can set the
13535 parameter @var{split-spec} to an @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split. In
13536 this case, all other aforementioned parameters will be ignored by
13537 @code{gnus-group-split}. In particular, @var{split-spec} may be set to
13538 @code{nil}, in which case the group will be ignored by
13539 @code{gnus-group-split}.
13541 @vindex gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group
13542 @code{gnus-group-split} will do cross-posting on all groups that match,
13543 by defining a single @code{&} fancy split containing one split for each
13544 group. If a message doesn't match any split, it will be stored in the
13545 group named in @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}, unless
13546 some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all}, in which case
13547 that group is used as the catch-all group. Even though this variable is
13548 often used just to name a group, it may also be set to an arbitrarily
13549 complex fancy split (after all, a group name is a fancy split), and this
13550 may be useful to split mail that doesn't go to any mailing list to
13551 personal mail folders. Note that this fancy split is added as the last
13552 element of a @code{|} split list that also contains a @code{&} split
13553 with the rules extracted from group parameters.
13555 It's time for an example. Assume the following group parameters have
13560 ((to-address . "bar@@femail.com")
13561 (split-regexp . ".*@@femail\\.com"))
13563 ((to-list . "foo@@nowhere.gov")
13564 (extra-aliases "foo@@localhost" "foo-redist@@home")
13565 (split-exclude "bugs-foo" "rambling-foo")
13566 (admin-address . "foo-request@@nowhere.gov"))
13568 ((split-spec . catch-all))
13571 Setting @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{gnus-group-split} will
13572 behave as if @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been selected and variable
13573 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been set as follows:
13576 (| (& (any "\\(bar@@femail\\.com\\|.*@@femail\\.com\\)" "mail.bar")
13577 (any "\\(foo@@nowhere\\.gov\\|foo@@localhost\\|foo-redist@@home\\)"
13578 - "bugs-foo" - "rambling-foo" "mail.foo"))
13582 @findex gnus-group-split-fancy
13583 If you'd rather not use group splitting for all your mail groups, you
13584 may use it for only some of them, by using @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
13588 (: gnus-group-split-fancy GROUPS NO-CROSSPOST CATCH-ALL)
13591 @var{groups} may be a regular expression or a list of group names whose
13592 parameters will be scanned to generate the output split.
13593 @var{no-crosspost} can be used to disable cross-posting; in this case, a
13594 single @code{|} split will be output. @var{catch-all} is the fallback
13595 fancy split, used like @var{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}.
13596 If @var{catch-all} is @code{nil}, or if @var{split-regexp} matches the
13597 empty string in any selected group, no catch-all split will be issued.
13598 Otherwise, if some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all},
13599 this group will override the value of the @var{catch-all} argument.
13601 @findex gnus-group-split-setup
13602 Unfortunately, scanning all groups and their parameters can be quite
13603 slow, especially considering that it has to be done for every message.
13604 But don't despair! The function @code{gnus-group-split-setup} can be
13605 used to enable @code{gnus-group-split} in a much more efficient way. It
13606 sets @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy} and sets
13607 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} to the split produced by
13608 @code{gnus-group-split-fancy}. Thus, the group parameters are only
13609 scanned once, no matter how many messages are split.
13611 @findex gnus-group-split-update
13612 However, if you change group parameters, you'd have to update
13613 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} manually. You can do it by running
13614 @code{gnus-group-split-update}. If you'd rather have it updated
13615 automatically, just tell @code{gnus-group-split-setup} to do it for
13616 you. For example, add to your @file{.gnus}:
13619 (gnus-group-split-setup AUTO-UPDATE CATCH-ALL)
13622 If @var{auto-update} is non-@code{nil}, @code{gnus-group-split-update}
13623 will be added to @code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook}, so you won't ever
13624 have to worry about updating @code{nnmail-split-fancy} again. If you
13625 don't omit @var{catch-all} (it's optional, equivalent to @code{nil}),
13626 @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group} will be set to its
13629 @vindex gnus-group-split-updated-hook
13630 Because you may want to change @code{nnmail-split-fancy} after it is set
13631 by @code{gnus-group-split-update}, this function will run
13632 @code{gnus-group-split-updated-hook} just before finishing.
13634 @node Incorporating Old Mail
13635 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
13636 @cindex incorporating old mail
13637 @cindex import old mail
13639 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
13640 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
13641 back ends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
13644 Doing so can be quite easy.
13646 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
13647 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
13648 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
13649 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
13650 your @code{nnml} groups.
13656 Go to the group buffer.
13659 Type `G f' and give the path to the mbox file when prompted to create an
13660 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
13663 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
13666 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
13667 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
13670 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
13671 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
13674 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
13675 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
13676 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
13677 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
13678 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
13680 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
13681 back end to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
13682 using the new mail back end.
13685 @node Expiring Mail
13686 @subsection Expiring Mail
13687 @cindex article expiry
13689 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
13690 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
13691 different approach to mail reading.
13693 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
13694 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
13695 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
13696 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
13697 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
13698 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
13701 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
13702 articles as @dfn{expirable}. (With the default keybindings, this means
13703 that you have to type @kbd{E}.) This does not mean that the articles
13704 will disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
13705 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
13706 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
13707 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
13708 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
13709 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
13711 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Gnus provides
13712 two features, called `auto-expire' and `total-expire', that can help you
13713 with this. In a nutshell, `auto-expire' means that Gnus hits @kbd{E}
13714 for you when you select an article. And `total-expire' means that Gnus
13715 considers all articles as expirable that are read. So, in addition to
13716 the articles marked @samp{E}, also the articles marked @samp{r},
13717 @samp{R}, @samp{O}, @samp{K}, @samp{Y} and so on are considered
13720 When should either auto-expire or total-expire be used? Most people
13721 who are subscribed to mailing lists split each list into its own group
13722 and then turn on auto-expire or total-expire for those groups.
13723 (@xref{Splitting Mail}, for more information on splitting each list
13724 into its own group.)
13726 Which one is better, auto-expire or total-expire? It's not easy to
13727 answer. Generally speaking, auto-expire is probably faster. Another
13728 advantage of auto-expire is that you get more marks to work with: for
13729 the articles that are supposed to stick around, you can still choose
13730 between tick and dormant and read marks. But with total-expire, you
13731 only have dormant and ticked to choose from. The advantage of
13732 total-expire is that it works well with adaptive scoring @pxref{Adaptive
13733 Scoring}. Auto-expire works with normal scoring but not with adaptive
13736 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
13737 Groups that match the regular expression
13738 @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will have all articles that you
13739 read marked as expirable automatically. All articles marked as
13740 expirable have an @samp{E} in the first column in the summary buffer.
13742 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
13743 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
13744 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
13745 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
13748 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
13750 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
13751 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
13752 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
13755 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
13756 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
13757 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
13758 articles expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
13759 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
13761 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
13762 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
13765 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
13766 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
13769 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
13770 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
13772 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
13773 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
13774 don't really mix very well.
13776 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
13777 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
13778 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
13779 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
13782 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
13783 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
13784 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
13785 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
13788 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
13790 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
13792 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
13794 ((string= group "mail.junk")
13796 ((string= group "important")
13802 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
13803 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
13805 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
13806 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
13807 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
13810 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
13811 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
13813 @vindex nnmail-expiry-target
13814 The normal action taken when expiring articles is to delete them.
13815 However, in some circumstances it might make more sense to move them
13816 to other groups instead of deleting them. The variable
13817 @code{nnmail-expiry-target} (and the @code{expiry-target} group
13818 parameter) controls this. The variable supplies a default value for
13819 all groups, which can be overridden for specific groups by the group
13820 parameter. default value is @code{delete}, but this can also be a
13821 string (which should be the name of the group the message should be
13822 moved to), or a function (which will be called in a buffer narrowed to
13823 the message in question, and with the name of the group being moved
13824 from as its parameter) which should return a target -- either a group
13825 name or @code{delete}.
13827 Here's an example for specifying a group name:
13829 (setq nnmail-expiry-target "nnml:expired")
13832 @findex nnmail-fancy-expiry-target
13833 @vindex nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets
13834 Gnus provides a function @code{nnmail-fancy-expiry-target} which will
13835 expire mail to groups according to the variable
13836 @code{nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets}. Here's an example:
13839 (setq nnmail-expiry-target 'nnmail-fancy-expiry-target
13840 nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets
13841 '((to-from "boss" "nnfolder:Work")
13842 ("subject" "IMPORTANT" "nnfolder:IMPORTANT.%Y.%b")
13843 ("from" ".*" "nnfolder:Archive-%Y")))
13846 With this setup, any mail that has @code{IMPORTANT} in its Subject
13847 header and was sent in the year @code{YYYY} and month @code{MMM}, will
13848 get expired to the group @code{nnfolder:IMPORTANT.YYYY.MMM}. If its
13849 From or To header contains the string @code{boss}, it will get expired
13850 to @code{nnfolder:Work}. All other mail will get expired to
13851 @code{nnfolder:Archive-YYYY}.
13853 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
13854 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
13855 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
13856 easier for procmail users.
13858 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
13859 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
13860 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
13861 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
13862 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
13863 caution. Even more dangerous is the
13864 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
13865 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
13866 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
13867 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
13868 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
13869 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
13870 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
13873 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
13875 @vindex gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire
13876 If @code{gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire} is non-@code{nil}, user marking
13877 commands will not mark an article as expirable, even if the group has
13878 auto-expire turned on.
13882 @subsection Washing Mail
13883 @cindex mail washing
13884 @cindex list server brain damage
13885 @cindex incoming mail treatment
13887 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
13888 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC 822 doesn't explicitly
13889 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
13890 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
13891 Yes, but RFC 822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
13892 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
13894 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
13895 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
13896 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
13899 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
13900 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
13901 storing the mail to disk. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
13902 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
13905 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
13906 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
13907 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
13908 grand, sweeping gestures. It is called in a buffer that contains all
13909 the new, incoming mail. Functions to be used include:
13912 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
13913 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
13914 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
13915 Emacs running on MS machines.
13919 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
13920 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
13921 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
13922 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
13925 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
13926 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
13927 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
13928 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
13930 (Note that this function works on both the header on the body of all
13931 messages, so it is a potentially dangerous function to use (if a body
13932 of a message contains something that looks like a header line). So
13933 rather than fix the bug, it is of course the right solution to make it
13934 into a feature by documenting it.)
13936 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
13937 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
13938 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
13939 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
13940 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
13941 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
13942 also be a list of regexp. @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} may not contain
13945 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
13946 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
13949 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
13950 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
13953 This can also be done non-destructively with
13954 @code{gnus-list-identifiers}, @xref{Article Hiding}.
13956 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
13957 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
13958 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
13960 @item nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
13961 @findex nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
13963 Eudora produces broken @code{References} headers, but OK
13964 @code{In-Reply-To} headers. This function will get rid of the
13965 @code{References} headers.
13969 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
13970 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
13971 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
13975 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
13976 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
13977 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
13984 @subsection Duplicates
13986 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
13987 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
13988 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
13989 @cindex duplicate mails
13990 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
13991 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
13992 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
13993 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
13994 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
13995 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
13996 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
13997 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
13998 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
13999 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
14000 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
14001 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
14002 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
14004 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
14005 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
14006 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
14007 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
14009 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
14012 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
14013 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
14017 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
14018 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
14019 ("gnus-warning" "duplicat\\(e\\|ion\\) of message" "duplicate")
14020 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
14021 (any mail "mail.misc")
14028 (setq nnmail-split-methods
14029 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:.*duplicate")
14034 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
14035 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
14036 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
14037 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
14038 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
14041 @node Not Reading Mail
14042 @subsection Not Reading Mail
14044 If you start using any of the mail back ends, they have the annoying
14045 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
14046 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
14048 If you set @code{mail-sources} and @code{nnmail-spool-file} to
14049 @code{nil}, none of the back ends will ever attempt to read incoming
14050 mail, which should help.
14052 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
14053 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
14054 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
14055 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
14056 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
14057 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
14058 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
14059 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All back ends have
14060 variables called back-end-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
14061 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
14062 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
14064 All the mail back ends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
14065 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
14069 @node Choosing a Mail Back End
14070 @subsection Choosing a Mail Back End
14072 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
14073 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
14074 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
14076 There are six different mail back ends in the standard Gnus, and more
14077 back ends are available separately. The mail back end most people use
14078 (because it is possibly the fastest) is @code{nnml} (@pxref{Mail
14079 Spool}). You might notice that only five back ends are listed below;
14080 @code{nnmaildir}'s documentation has not yet been completely
14081 incorporated into this manual. Until it is, you can find it at
14082 @uref{http://multivac.cwru.edu./nnmaildir/}.
14085 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
14086 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
14087 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
14088 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like back end.
14089 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
14090 * Comparing Mail Back Ends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
14094 @node Unix Mail Box
14095 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
14097 @cindex unix mail box
14099 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
14100 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
14101 The @dfn{nnmbox} back end will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
14102 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
14103 which group it belongs in.
14105 Virtual server settings:
14108 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
14109 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
14110 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory. Default is
14113 @item nnmbox-active-file
14114 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
14115 The name of the active file for the mail box. Default is
14116 @file{~/.mbox-active}.
14118 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
14119 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
14120 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
14121 into groups. Default is @code{t}.
14126 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
14130 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
14131 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
14132 The @dfn{nnbabyl} back end will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
14133 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each
14134 mail article to say which group it belongs in.
14136 Virtual server settings:
14139 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
14140 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
14141 The name of the rmail mbox file. The default is @file{~/RMAIL}
14143 @item nnbabyl-active-file
14144 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
14145 The name of the active file for the rmail box. The default is
14146 @file{~/.rmail-active}
14148 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
14149 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
14150 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail. Default is
14156 @subsubsection Mail Spool
14158 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
14160 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
14161 format. It should be used with some caution.
14163 @vindex nnml-directory
14164 If you use this back end, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
14165 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
14166 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
14167 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
14169 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
14172 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
14173 in your account, you should not use this back end. As each mail gets its
14174 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
14175 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
14176 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
14177 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
14178 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
14179 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
14181 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest back end when it comes to article
14182 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
14183 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it possibly the
14184 fastest back end when it comes to reading mail.
14186 @cindex self contained nnml servers
14188 When the marks file is used (which it is by default), @code{nnml}
14189 servers have the property that you may backup them using @code{tar} or
14190 similar, and later be able to restore them into Gnus (by adding the
14191 proper @code{nnml} server) and have all your marks be preserved. Marks
14192 for a group is usually stored in the @code{.marks} file (but see
14193 @code{nnml-marks-file-name}) within each @code{nnml} group's directory.
14194 Individual @code{nnml} groups are also possible to backup, use @kbd{G m}
14195 to restore the group (after restoring the backup into the nnml
14198 If for some reason you believe your @file{.marks} files are screwed
14199 up, you can just delete them all. Gnus will then correctly regenerate
14200 them next time it starts.
14202 Virtual server settings:
14205 @item nnml-directory
14206 @vindex nnml-directory
14207 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
14208 The default is the value of `message-directory' (whose default value is
14211 @item nnml-active-file
14212 @vindex nnml-active-file
14213 The active file for the @code{nnml} server. The default is
14214 @file{~/Mail/active"}.
14216 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
14217 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
14218 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
14219 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups"}.
14221 @item nnml-get-new-mail
14222 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
14223 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail. The default is
14226 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
14227 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
14228 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{nov} files. The
14229 default is @code{nil}.
14231 @item nnml-nov-file-name
14232 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
14233 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
14235 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
14236 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
14237 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
14239 @item nnml-marks-is-evil
14240 @vindex nnml-marks-is-evil
14241 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{marks} files. The
14242 default is @code{nil}.
14244 @item nnml-marks-file-name
14245 @vindex nnml-marks-file-name
14246 The name of the @dfn{marks} files. The default is @file{.marks}.
14248 @item nnml-use-compressed-files
14249 @vindex nnml-use-compressed-files
14250 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will allow using compressed message
14255 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
14256 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
14257 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
14258 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
14259 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
14260 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
14261 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
14266 @subsubsection MH Spool
14268 @cindex mh-e mail spool
14270 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
14271 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file or marks file.
14272 This makes @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower back end than @code{nnml},
14273 but it also makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
14275 Virtual server settings:
14278 @item nnmh-directory
14279 @vindex nnmh-directory
14280 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory. The
14281 default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
14284 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
14285 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
14286 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail. The default is
14290 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
14291 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
14292 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
14293 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
14294 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
14295 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
14296 to set this variable to @code{t}. The default is @code{nil}.
14301 @subsubsection Mail Folders
14303 @cindex mbox folders
14304 @cindex mail folders
14306 @code{nnfolder} is a back end for storing each mail group in a separate
14307 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
14308 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
14311 @cindex self contained nnfolder servers
14313 When the marks file is used (which it is by default), @code{nnfolder}
14314 servers have the property that you may backup them using @code{tar} or
14315 similar, and later be able to restore them into Gnus (by adding the
14316 proper @code{nnfolder} server) and have all your marks be preserved.
14317 Marks for a group is usually stored in a file named as the mbox file
14318 with @code{.mrk} concatenated to it (but see
14319 @code{nnfolder-marks-file-suffix}) within the @code{nnfolder} directory.
14320 Individual @code{nnfolder} groups are also possible to backup, use
14321 @kbd{G m} to restore the group (after restoring the backup into the
14322 @code{nnfolder} directory).
14324 Virtual server settings:
14327 @item nnfolder-directory
14328 @vindex nnfolder-directory
14329 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
14330 The default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
14333 @item nnfolder-active-file
14334 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
14335 The name of the active file. The default is @file{~/Mail/active}.
14337 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
14338 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
14339 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
14340 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups"}
14342 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
14343 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
14344 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail. The default
14347 @item nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
14348 @vindex nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
14349 @cindex backup files
14350 Hook run before saving the folders. Note that Emacs does the normal
14351 backup renaming of files even with the @code{nnfolder} buffers. If you
14352 wish to switch this off, you could say something like the following in
14353 your @file{.emacs} file:
14356 (defun turn-off-backup ()
14357 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
14359 (add-hook 'nnfolder-save-buffer-hook 'turn-off-backup)
14362 @item nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
14363 @vindex nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
14364 Hook run in a buffer narrowed to the message that is to be deleted.
14365 This function can be used to copy the message to somewhere else, or to
14366 extract some information from it before removing it.
14368 @item nnfolder-nov-is-evil
14369 @vindex nnfolder-nov-is-evil
14370 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{nov} files. The
14371 default is @code{nil}.
14373 @item nnfolder-nov-file-suffix
14374 @vindex nnfolder-nov-file-suffix
14375 The extension for @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.nov}.
14377 @item nnfolder-nov-directory
14378 @vindex nnfolder-nov-directory
14379 The directory where the @sc{nov} files should be stored. If nil,
14380 @code{nnfolder-directory} is used.
14382 @item nnfolder-marks-is-evil
14383 @vindex nnfolder-marks-is-evil
14384 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{marks} files. The
14385 default is @code{nil}.
14387 @item nnfolder-marks-file-suffix
14388 @vindex nnfolder-marks-file-suffix
14389 The extension for @sc{marks} files. The default is @file{.mrk}.
14391 @item nnfolder-marks-directory
14392 @vindex nnfolder-marks-directory
14393 The directory where the @sc{marks} files should be stored. If nil,
14394 @code{nnfolder-directory} is used.
14399 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
14400 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
14401 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
14402 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
14403 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
14404 @code{nnfolder-directory}. This only works if you use long file names,
14407 @node Comparing Mail Back Ends
14408 @subsubsection Comparing Mail Back Ends
14410 First, just for terminology, the @dfn{back end} is the common word for a
14411 low-level access method---a transport, if you will, by which something
14412 is acquired. The sense is that one's mail has to come from somewhere,
14413 and so selection of a suitable back end is required in order to get that
14414 mail within spitting distance of Gnus.
14416 The same concept exists for Usenet itself: Though access to articles is
14417 typically done by @sc{nntp} these days, once upon a midnight dreary, everyone
14418 in the world got at Usenet by running a reader on the machine where the
14419 articles lay (the machine which today we call an @sc{nntp} server), and
14420 access was by the reader stepping into the articles' directory spool
14421 area directly. One can still select between either the @code{nntp} or
14422 @code{nnspool} back ends, to select between these methods, if one happens
14423 actually to live on the server (or can see its spool directly, anyway,
14426 The goal in selecting a mail back end is to pick one which
14427 simultaneously represents a suitable way of dealing with the original
14428 format plus leaving mail in a form that is convenient to use in the
14429 future. Here are some high and low points on each:
14434 UNIX systems have historically had a single, very common, and well-
14435 defined format. All messages arrive in a single @dfn{spool file}, and
14436 they are delineated by a line whose regular expression matches
14437 @samp{^From_}. (My notational use of @samp{_} is to indicate a space,
14438 to make it clear in this instance that this is not the RFC-specified
14439 @samp{From:} header.) Because Emacs and therefore Gnus emanate
14440 historically from the Unix environment, it is simplest if one does not
14441 mess a great deal with the original mailbox format, so if one chooses
14442 this back end, Gnus' primary activity in getting mail from the real spool
14443 area to Gnus' preferred directory is simply to copy it, with no
14444 (appreciable) format change in the process. It is the ``dumbest'' way
14445 to move mail into availability in the Gnus environment. This makes it
14446 fast to move into place, but slow to parse, when Gnus has to look at
14451 Once upon a time, there was the DEC-10 and DEC-20, running operating
14452 systems called TOPS and related things, and the usual (only?) mail
14453 reading environment was a thing called Babyl. I don't know what format
14454 was used for mail landing on the system, but Babyl had its own internal
14455 format to which mail was converted, primarily involving creating a
14456 spool-file-like entity with a scheme for inserting Babyl-specific
14457 headers and status bits above the top of each message in the file.
14458 RMAIL was Emacs' first mail reader, it was written by Richard Stallman,
14459 and Stallman came out of that TOPS/Babyl environment, so he wrote RMAIL
14460 to understand the mail files folks already had in existence. Gnus (and
14461 VM, for that matter) continue to support this format because it's
14462 perceived as having some good qualities in those mailer-specific
14463 headers/status bits stuff. RMAIL itself still exists as well, of
14464 course, and is still maintained by Stallman.
14466 Both of the above forms leave your mail in a single file on your
14467 file system, and they must parse that entire file each time you take a
14472 @code{nnml} is the back end which smells the most as though you were
14473 actually operating with an @code{nnspool}-accessed Usenet system. (In
14474 fact, I believe @code{nnml} actually derived from @code{nnspool} code,
14475 lo these years ago.) One's mail is taken from the original spool file,
14476 and is then cut up into individual message files, 1:1. It maintains a
14477 Usenet-style active file (analogous to what one finds in an INN- or
14478 CNews-based news system in (for instance) @file{/var/lib/news/active},
14479 or what is returned via the @samp{NNTP LIST} verb) and also creates
14480 @dfn{overview} files for efficient group entry, as has been defined for
14481 @sc{nntp} servers for some years now. It is slower in mail-splitting,
14482 due to the creation of lots of files, updates to the @code{nnml} active
14483 file, and additions to overview files on a per-message basis, but it is
14484 extremely fast on access because of what amounts to the indexing support
14485 provided by the active file and overviews.
14487 @code{nnml} costs @dfn{inodes} in a big way; that is, it soaks up the
14488 resource which defines available places in the file system to put new
14489 files. Sysadmins take a dim view of heavy inode occupation within
14490 tight, shared file systems. But if you live on a personal machine where
14491 the file system is your own and space is not at a premium, @code{nnml}
14494 It is also problematic using this back end if you are living in a
14495 FAT16-based Windows world, since much space will be wasted on all these
14500 The Rand MH mail-reading system has been around UNIX systems for a very
14501 long time; it operates by splitting one's spool file of messages into
14502 individual files, but with little or no indexing support -- @code{nnmh}
14503 is considered to be semantically equivalent to ``@code{nnml} without
14504 active file or overviews''. This is arguably the worst choice, because
14505 one gets the slowness of individual file creation married to the
14506 slowness of access parsing when learning what's new in one's groups.
14510 Basically the effect of @code{nnfolder} is @code{nnmbox} (the first
14511 method described above) on a per-group basis. That is, @code{nnmbox}
14512 itself puts *all* one's mail in one file; @code{nnfolder} provides a
14513 little bit of optimization to this so that each of one's mail groups has
14514 a Unix mail box file. It's faster than @code{nnmbox} because each group
14515 can be parsed separately, and still provides the simple Unix mail box
14516 format requiring minimal effort in moving the mail around. In addition,
14517 it maintains an ``active'' file making it much faster for Gnus to figure
14518 out how many messages there are in each separate group.
14520 If you have groups that are expected to have a massive amount of
14521 messages, @code{nnfolder} is not the best choice, but if you receive
14522 only a moderate amount of mail, @code{nnfolder} is probably the most
14523 friendly mail back end all over.
14527 @code{nnmaildir} is largely similar to @code{nnml}, with some notable
14528 differences. Each message is stored in a separate file, but the
14529 filename is unrelated to the article number in Gnus. @code{nnmaildir}
14530 also stores the equivalent of @code{nnml}'s overview files in one file
14531 per article, so it uses about twice as many inodes as @code{nnml}. (Use
14532 @code{df -i} to see how plentiful your inode supply is.) If this slows
14533 you down or takes up very much space, consider switching to ReiserFS
14534 (@uref{http://www.namesys.com/}) or another non-block-structured
14537 Since maildirs don't require locking for delivery, the maildirs you use
14538 as groups can also be the maildirs your mail is directly delivered to.
14539 This means you can skip Gnus's mail splitting if your mail is already
14540 organized into different mailboxes during delivery. A @code{directory}
14541 entry in @code{mail-sources} would have a similar effect, but would
14542 require one set of mailboxes for spooling deliveries (in mbox format,
14543 thus damaging message bodies), and another set to be used as groups (in
14544 whatever format you like). A maildir has a built-in spool, in the
14545 @code{new/} subdirectory. Beware that currently, mail moved from
14546 @code{new/} to @code{cur/} instead of via mail splitting will undergo
14547 treatment such as duplicate checking.
14549 An article will not necessarily keep the same number across Gnus
14550 sessions; articles are renumbered starting from 1 for each Gnus session
14551 (more precisely, each time you open the @code{nnmaildir} server). This
14552 way, you don't get gaps in your article number ranges, and when entering
14553 large groups, Gnus is likely to give a more accurate article count. The
14554 price is that @code{nnmaildir} doesn't work with the cache or agent.
14555 This will probably be changed in the future.
14557 @code{nnmaildir} stores article marks for a given group in the
14558 corresponding maildir, in a way designed so that it's easy to manipulate
14559 them from outside Gnus. You can tar up a maildir, unpack it somewhere
14560 else, and still have your marks. @code{nnml} also stores marks, but
14561 it's not as easy to work with them from outside Gnus as with
14564 For configuring expiry and other things, @code{nnmaildir} uses group
14565 parameters slightly different from those of other mail back ends.
14567 @code{nnmaildir} uses a significant amount of memory to speed things up.
14568 (It keeps in memory some of the things that @code{nnml} stores in files
14569 and that @code{nnmh} repeatedly parses out of message files.) If this
14570 is a problem for you, you can set the @code{nov-cache-size} group
14571 parameter to something small (0 would probably not work, but 1 probably
14572 would) to make it use less memory.
14574 Startup and shutdown are likely to be slower with @code{nnmaildir} than
14575 with other back ends. Everything in between is likely to be faster,
14576 depending in part on your file system.
14578 @code{nnmaildir} does not use @code{nnoo}, so you cannot use @code{nnoo}
14579 to write an @code{nnmaildir}-derived back end.
14584 @node Browsing the Web
14585 @section Browsing the Web
14587 @cindex browsing the web
14591 Web-based discussion forums are getting more and more popular. On many
14592 subjects, the web-based forums have become the most important forums,
14593 eclipsing the importance of mailing lists and news groups. The reason
14594 is easy to understand---they are friendly to new users; you just point
14595 and click, and there's the discussion. With mailing lists, you have to
14596 go through a cumbersome subscription procedure, and most people don't
14597 even know what a news group is.
14599 The problem with this scenario is that web browsers are not very good at
14600 being newsreaders. They do not keep track of what articles you've read;
14601 they do not allow you to score on subjects you're interested in; they do
14602 not allow off-line browsing; they require you to click around and drive
14603 you mad in the end.
14605 So---if web browsers suck at reading discussion forums, why not use Gnus
14608 Gnus has been getting a bit of a collection of back ends for providing
14609 interfaces to these sources.
14613 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
14614 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
14615 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
14616 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
14617 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
14618 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
14621 All the web sources require Emacs/w3 and the url library to work.
14623 The main caveat with all these web sources is that they probably won't
14624 work for a very long time. Gleaning information from the @sc{html} data
14625 is guesswork at best, and when the layout is altered, the Gnus back end
14626 will fail. If you have reasonably new versions of these back ends,
14627 though, you should be ok.
14629 One thing all these Web methods have in common is that the Web sources
14630 are often down, unavailable or just plain too slow to be fun. In those
14631 cases, it makes a lot of sense to let the Gnus Agent (@pxref{Gnus
14632 Unplugged}) handle downloading articles, and then you can read them at
14633 leisure from your local disk. No more World Wide Wait for you.
14635 @node Archiving Mail
14636 @subsection Archiving Mail
14637 @cindex archiving mail
14638 @cindex backup of mail
14640 Some of the back ends, notably @code{nnml}, @code{nnfolder}, and
14641 @code{nnmaildir}, now actually store the article marks with each group.
14642 For these servers, archiving and restoring a group while preserving
14643 marks is fairly simple.
14645 (Preserving the group level and group parameters as well still
14646 requires ritual dancing and sacrifices to the @file{.newsrc.eld} deity
14649 To archive an entire @code{nnml}, @code{nnfolder}, or @code{nnmaildir}
14650 server, take a recursive copy of the server directory. There is no need
14651 to shut down Gnus, so archiving may be invoked by @code{cron} or
14652 similar. You restore the data by restoring the directory tree, and
14653 adding a server definition pointing to that directory in Gnus. The
14654 @ref{Article Backlog}, @ref{Asynchronous Fetching} and other things
14655 might interfere with overwriting data, so you may want to shut down Gnus
14656 before you restore the data.
14658 It is also possible to archive individual @code{nnml},
14659 @code{nnfolder}, or @code{nnmaildir} groups, while preserving marks.
14660 For @code{nnml} or @code{nnmaildir}, you copy all files in the group's
14661 directory. For @code{nnfolder} you need to copy both the base folder
14662 file itself (@file{FOO}, say), and the marks file (@file{FOO.mrk} in
14663 this example). Restoring the group is done with @kbd{G m} from the Group
14664 buffer. The last step makes Gnus notice the new directory.
14665 @code{nnmaildir} notices the new directory automatically, so @kbd{G m}
14666 is unnecessary in that case.
14669 @subsection Web Searches
14674 @cindex Usenet searches
14675 @cindex searching the Usenet
14677 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
14678 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
14679 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
14680 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
14681 searches without having to use a browser.
14683 The @code{nnweb} back end allows an easy interface to the mighty search
14684 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
14685 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
14686 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
14687 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
14689 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
14690 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
14691 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
14692 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
14693 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
14694 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
14695 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
14696 engines (Google, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
14697 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
14698 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
14701 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
14702 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
14703 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
14704 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
14705 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
14706 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
14708 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
14709 to use @code{nnweb}.
14711 Virtual server variables:
14716 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
14717 are @code{google}, @code{dejanews}, and @code{gmane}. Note that
14718 @code{dejanews} is an alias to @code{google}.
14721 @vindex nnweb-search
14722 The search string to feed to the search engine.
14724 @item nnweb-max-hits
14725 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
14726 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
14729 @item nnweb-type-definition
14730 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
14731 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
14732 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
14737 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
14741 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
14744 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
14747 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
14751 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
14758 @subsection Slashdot
14762 Slashdot (@uref{http://slashdot.org/}) is a popular news site, with
14763 lively discussion following the news articles. @code{nnslashdot} will
14764 let you read this forum in a convenient manner.
14766 The easiest way to read this source is to put something like the
14767 following in your @file{.gnus.el} file:
14770 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
14771 '((nnslashdot "")))
14774 This will make Gnus query the @code{nnslashdot} back end for new comments
14775 and groups. The @kbd{F} command will subscribe each new news article as
14776 a new Gnus group, and you can read the comments by entering these
14777 groups. (Note that the default subscription method is to subscribe new
14778 groups as zombies. Other methods are available (@pxref{Subscription
14781 If you want to remove an old @code{nnslashdot} group, the @kbd{G DEL}
14782 command is the most handy tool (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
14784 When following up to @code{nnslashdot} comments (or posting new
14785 comments), some light @sc{html}izations will be performed. In
14786 particular, text quoted with @samp{> } will be quoted with
14787 @code{blockquote} instead, and signatures will have @code{br} added to
14788 the end of each line. Other than that, you can just write @sc{html}
14789 directly into the message buffer. Note that Slashdot filters out some
14792 The following variables can be altered to change its behavior:
14795 @item nnslashdot-threaded
14796 Whether @code{nnslashdot} should display threaded groups or not. The
14797 default is @code{t}. To be able to display threads, @code{nnslashdot}
14798 has to retrieve absolutely all comments in a group upon entry. If a
14799 threaded display is not required, @code{nnslashdot} will only retrieve
14800 the comments that are actually wanted by the user. Threading is nicer,
14801 but much, much slower than unthreaded.
14803 @item nnslashdot-login-name
14804 @vindex nnslashdot-login-name
14805 The login name to use when posting.
14807 @item nnslashdot-password
14808 @vindex nnslashdot-password
14809 The password to use when posting.
14811 @item nnslashdot-directory
14812 @vindex nnslashdot-directory
14813 Where @code{nnslashdot} will store its files. The default is
14814 @samp{~/News/slashdot/}.
14816 @item nnslashdot-active-url
14817 @vindex nnslashdot-active-url
14818 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the information on
14819 news articles and comments. The default is
14820 @samp{http://slashdot.org/search.pl?section=&min=%d}.
14822 @item nnslashdot-comments-url
14823 @vindex nnslashdot-comments-url
14824 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch comments. The
14826 @samp{http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=%s&threshold=%d&commentsort=%d&mode=flat&startat=%d}.
14828 @item nnslashdot-article-url
14829 @vindex nnslashdot-article-url
14830 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the news article. The
14832 @samp{http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=%s&mode=nocomment}.
14834 @item nnslashdot-threshold
14835 @vindex nnslashdot-threshold
14836 The score threshold. The default is -1.
14838 @item nnslashdot-group-number
14839 @vindex nnslashdot-group-number
14840 The number of old groups, in addition to the ten latest, to keep
14841 updated. The default is 0.
14848 @subsection Ultimate
14850 @cindex Ultimate Bulletin Board
14852 The Ultimate Bulletin Board (@uref{http://www.ultimatebb.com/}) is
14853 probably the most popular Web bulletin board system used. It has a
14854 quite regular and nice interface, and it's possible to get the
14855 information Gnus needs to keep groups updated.
14857 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnultimate} is to say
14858 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnultimate RET
14859 http://www.tcj.com/messboard/ubbcgi/ RET}. (Substitute the @sc{url}
14860 (not including @samp{Ultimate.cgi} or the like at the end) for a forum
14861 you're interested in; there's quite a list of them on the Ultimate web
14862 site.) Then subscribe to the groups you're interested in from the
14863 server buffer, and read them from the group buffer.
14865 The following @code{nnultimate} variables can be altered:
14868 @item nnultimate-directory
14869 @vindex nnultimate-directory
14870 The directory where @code{nnultimate} stores its files. The default is
14871 @samp{~/News/ultimate/}.
14876 @subsection Web Archive
14878 @cindex Web Archive
14880 Some mailing lists only have archives on Web servers, such as
14881 @uref{http://www.egroups.com/} and
14882 @uref{http://www.mail-archive.com/}. It has a quite regular and nice
14883 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
14886 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnwarchive} is to say
14887 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{M-x
14888 gnus-group-make-warchive-group RET an_egroup RET egroups RET
14889 www.egroups.com RET your@@email.address RET}. (Substitute the
14890 @sc{an_egroup} with the mailing list you subscribed, the
14891 @sc{your@@email.address} with your email address.), or to browse the
14892 back end by @kbd{B nnwarchive RET mail-archive RET}.
14894 The following @code{nnwarchive} variables can be altered:
14897 @item nnwarchive-directory
14898 @vindex nnwarchive-directory
14899 The directory where @code{nnwarchive} stores its files. The default is
14900 @samp{~/News/warchive/}.
14902 @item nnwarchive-login
14903 @vindex nnwarchive-login
14904 The account name on the web server.
14906 @item nnwarchive-passwd
14907 @vindex nnwarchive-passwd
14908 The password for your account on the web server.
14916 Some sites have RDF site summary (RSS)
14917 @uref{http://purl.org/rss/1.0/spec}. It has a quite regular and nice
14918 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
14921 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnrss} is to say something
14922 like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnrss RET RET}, then
14925 The following @code{nnrss} variables can be altered:
14928 @item nnrss-directory
14929 @vindex nnrss-directory
14930 The directory where @code{nnrss} stores its files. The default is
14931 @samp{~/News/rss/}.
14935 The following code may be helpful, if you want to show the description in
14936 the summary buffer.
14939 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-description-field)
14940 (setq gnus-summary-line-format "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-15,15f%]%) %s%uX\n")
14942 (defun gnus-user-format-function-X (header)
14944 (assq nnrss-description-field (mail-header-extra header))))
14945 (if descr (concat "\n\t" (cdr descr)) "")))
14948 The following code may be useful to open an nnrss url directly from the
14951 (require 'browse-url)
14953 (defun browse-nnrss-url( arg )
14955 (let ((url (assq nnrss-url-field
14958 (assq (gnus-summary-article-number)
14959 gnus-newsgroup-data))))))
14962 (browse-url (cdr url))
14963 (gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward 1))
14964 (gnus-summary-scroll-up arg))))
14966 (eval-after-load "gnus"
14967 #'(define-key gnus-summary-mode-map
14968 (kbd "<RET>") 'browse-nnrss-url))
14969 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-url-field)
14972 @node Customizing w3
14973 @subsection Customizing w3
14979 Gnus uses the url library to fetch web pages and Emacs/w3 to display web
14980 pages. Emacs/w3 is documented in its own manual, but there are some
14981 things that may be more relevant for Gnus users.
14983 For instance, a common question is how to make Emacs/w3 follow links
14984 using the @code{browse-url} functions (which will call some external web
14985 browser like Netscape). Here's one way:
14988 (eval-after-load "w3"
14990 (fset 'w3-fetch-orig (symbol-function 'w3-fetch))
14991 (defun w3-fetch (&optional url target)
14992 (interactive (list (w3-read-url-with-default)))
14993 (if (eq major-mode 'gnus-article-mode)
14995 (w3-fetch-orig url target)))))
14998 Put that in your @file{.emacs} file, and hitting links in w3-rendered
14999 @sc{html} in the Gnus article buffers will use @code{browse-url} to
15008 @sc{imap} is a network protocol for reading mail (or news, or ...),
15009 think of it as a modernized @sc{nntp}. Connecting to a @sc{imap}
15010 server is much similar to connecting to a news server, you just
15011 specify the network address of the server.
15013 @sc{imap} has two properties. First, @sc{imap} can do everything that
15014 POP can, it can hence be viewed as a POP++. Secondly, @sc{imap} is a
15015 mail storage protocol, similar to @sc{nntp} being a news storage
15016 protocol -- however, @sc{imap} offers more features than @sc{nntp}
15017 because news is more or less read-only whereas mail is read-write.
15019 If you want to use @sc{imap} as a POP++, use an imap entry in
15020 @code{mail-sources}. With this, Gnus will fetch mails from the
15021 @sc{imap} server and store them on the local disk. This is not the
15022 usage described in this section--@xref{Mail Sources}.
15024 If you want to use @sc{imap} as a mail storage protocol, use an nnimap
15025 entry in @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods}. With this, Gnus will
15026 manipulate mails stored on the @sc{imap} server. This is the kind of
15027 usage explained in this section.
15029 A server configuration in @code{~/.gnus} with a few @sc{imap} servers
15030 might look something like the following. (Note that for SSL/TLS, you
15031 need external programs and libraries, see below.)
15034 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
15035 '((nnimap "simpleserver") ; no special configuration
15036 ; perhaps a ssh port forwarded server:
15038 (nnimap-address "localhost")
15039 (nnimap-server-port 1430))
15040 ; a UW server running on localhost
15042 (nnimap-server-port 143)
15043 (nnimap-address "localhost")
15044 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "mail/*")))
15045 ; anonymous public cyrus server:
15046 (nnimap "cyrus.andrew.cmu.edu"
15047 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous)
15048 (nnimap-list-pattern "archive.*")
15049 (nnimap-stream network))
15050 ; a ssl server on a non-standard port:
15052 (nnimap-address "vic20.somewhere.com")
15053 (nnimap-server-port 9930)
15054 (nnimap-stream ssl))))
15057 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nnimap}
15062 @item nnimap-address
15063 @vindex nnimap-address
15065 The address of the remote @sc{imap} server. Defaults to the virtual
15066 server name if not specified.
15068 @item nnimap-server-port
15069 @vindex nnimap-server-port
15070 Port on server to contact. Defaults to port 143, or 993 for SSL.
15072 Note that this should be an integer, example server specification:
15075 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
15076 (nnimap-server-port 4711))
15079 @item nnimap-list-pattern
15080 @vindex nnimap-list-pattern
15081 String or list of strings of mailboxes to limit available groups to.
15082 This is used when the server has very many mailboxes and you're only
15083 interested in a few -- some servers export your home directory via
15084 @sc{imap}, you'll probably want to limit the mailboxes to those in
15085 @file{~/Mail/*} then.
15087 The string can also be a cons of REFERENCE and the string as above, what
15088 REFERENCE is used for is server specific, but on the University of
15089 Washington server it's a directory that will be concatenated with the
15092 Example server specification:
15095 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
15096 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "Mail/*" "alt.sex.*"
15097 ("~friend/Mail/" . "list/*"))))
15100 @item nnimap-stream
15101 @vindex nnimap-stream
15102 The type of stream used to connect to your server. By default, nnimap
15103 will detect and automatically use all of the below, with the exception
15104 of SSL/TLS. (@sc{imap} over SSL/TLS is being replaced by STARTTLS, which
15105 can be automatically detected, but it's not widely deployed yet.)
15107 Example server specification:
15110 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
15111 (nnimap-stream ssl))
15114 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-stream} is a symbol!
15118 @dfn{gssapi:} Connect with GSSAPI (usually Kerberos 5). Requires the
15119 @samp{imtest} program.
15121 @dfn{kerberos4:} Connect with Kerberos 4. Requires the @samp{imtest} program.
15123 @dfn{starttls:} Connect via the STARTTLS extension (similar to
15124 SSL). Requires the external library @samp{starttls.el} and program
15127 @dfn{ssl:} Connect through SSL. Requires OpenSSL (the program
15128 @samp{openssl}) or SSLeay (@samp{s_client}) as well as the external
15129 library @samp{ssl.el}.
15131 @dfn{shell:} Use a shell command to start @sc{imap} connection.
15133 @dfn{network:} Plain, TCP/IP network connection.
15136 @vindex imap-kerberos4-program
15137 The @samp{imtest} program is shipped with Cyrus IMAPD. If you're
15138 using @samp{imtest} from Cyrus IMAPD < 2.0.14 (which includes version
15139 1.5.x and 1.6.x) you need to frob @code{imap-process-connection-type}
15140 to make @code{imap.el} use a pty instead of a pipe when communicating
15141 with @samp{imtest}. You will then suffer from a line length
15142 restrictions on @sc{imap} commands, which might make Gnus seem to hang
15143 indefinitely if you have many articles in a mailbox. The variable
15144 @code{imap-kerberos4-program} contain parameters to pass to the imtest
15147 @vindex imap-ssl-program
15148 For SSL connections, the OpenSSL program is available from
15149 @uref{http://www.openssl.org/}. OpenSSL was formerly known as SSLeay,
15150 and nnimap support it too - although the most recent versions of
15151 SSLeay, 0.9.x, are known to have serious bugs making it
15152 useless. Earlier versions, especially 0.8.x, of SSLeay are known to
15153 work. The variable @code{imap-ssl-program} contain parameters to pass
15154 to OpenSSL/SSLeay. You also need @samp{ssl.el} (from the W3
15155 distribution, for instance).
15157 @vindex imap-shell-program
15158 @vindex imap-shell-host
15159 For @sc{imap} connections using the @code{shell} stream, the variable
15160 @code{imap-shell-program} specify what program to call.
15162 @item nnimap-authenticator
15163 @vindex nnimap-authenticator
15165 The authenticator used to connect to the server. By default, nnimap
15166 will use the most secure authenticator your server is capable of.
15168 Example server specification:
15171 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
15172 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous))
15175 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-authenticator} is a symbol!
15179 @dfn{gssapi:} GSSAPI (usually kerberos 5) authentication. Requires
15180 external program @code{imtest}.
15182 @dfn{kerberos4:} Kerberos 4 authentication. Requires external program
15185 @dfn{digest-md5:} Encrypted username/password via DIGEST-MD5. Requires
15186 external library @code{digest-md5.el}.
15188 @dfn{cram-md5:} Encrypted username/password via CRAM-MD5.
15190 @dfn{login:} Plain-text username/password via LOGIN.
15192 @dfn{anonymous:} Login as `anonymous', supplying your email address as password.
15195 @item nnimap-expunge-on-close
15197 @vindex nnimap-expunge-on-close
15198 Unlike Parmenides the @sc{imap} designers has decided that things that
15199 doesn't exist actually does exist. More specifically, @sc{imap} has
15200 this concept of marking articles @code{Deleted} which doesn't actually
15201 delete them, and this (marking them @code{Deleted}, that is) is what
15202 nnimap does when you delete a article in Gnus (with @kbd{B DEL} or
15205 Since the articles aren't really removed when we mark them with the
15206 @code{Deleted} flag we'll need a way to actually delete them. Feel like
15207 running in circles yet?
15209 Traditionally, nnimap has removed all articles marked as @code{Deleted}
15210 when closing a mailbox but this is now configurable by this server
15213 The possible options are:
15218 The default behavior, delete all articles marked as "Deleted" when
15221 Never actually delete articles. Currently there is no way of showing
15222 the articles marked for deletion in nnimap, but other @sc{imap} clients
15223 may allow you to do this. If you ever want to run the EXPUNGE command
15224 manually, @xref{Expunging mailboxes}.
15226 When closing mailboxes, nnimap will ask if you wish to expunge deleted
15231 @item nnimap-importantize-dormant
15232 @vindex nnimap-importantize-dormant
15234 If non-nil (the default), marks dormant articles as ticked (as well),
15235 for other @sc{imap} clients. Within Gnus, dormant articles will
15236 naturally still (only) be marked as dormant. This is to make dormant
15237 articles stand out, just like ticked articles, in other @sc{imap}
15238 clients. (In other words, Gnus has two ``Tick'' marks and @sc{imap}
15241 Probably the only reason for frobing this would be if you're trying
15242 enable per-user persistant dormant flags, using something like:
15245 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-flag-alist)
15246 (format "gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
15247 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-predicate-alist)
15248 (format "KEYWORD gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
15251 In this case, you would not want the per-user dormant flag showing up
15252 as ticked for other users.
15254 @item nnimap-expunge-search-string
15256 @vindex nnimap-expunge-search-string
15258 This variable contain the @sc{imap} search command sent to server when
15259 searching for articles eligible for expiring. The default is
15260 @code{"UID %s NOT SINCE %s"}, where the first @code{%s} is replaced by
15261 UID set and the second @code{%s} is replaced by a date.
15263 Probably the only useful value to change this to is
15264 @code{"UID %s NOT SENTSINCE %s"}, which makes nnimap use the Date: in
15265 messages instead of the internal article date. See section 6.4.4 of
15266 RFC 2060 for more information on valid strings.
15268 @item nnimap-authinfo-file
15269 @vindex nnimap-authinfo-file
15271 A file containing credentials used to log in on servers. The format is
15272 (almost) the same as the @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file. See the
15273 variable @code{nntp-authinfo-file} for exact syntax; also see
15279 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
15280 * Expiring in IMAP:: Expiring mail with nnimap.
15281 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
15282 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
15283 * A note on namespaces:: How to (not) use IMAP namespace in Gnus.
15288 @node Splitting in IMAP
15289 @subsection Splitting in IMAP
15290 @cindex splitting imap mail
15292 Splitting is something Gnus users has loved and used for years, and now
15293 the rest of the world is catching up. Yeah, dream on, not many
15294 @sc{imap} server has server side splitting and those that have splitting
15295 seem to use some non-standard protocol. This means that @sc{imap}
15296 support for Gnus has to do it's own splitting.
15300 Here are the variables of interest:
15304 @item nnimap-split-crosspost
15305 @cindex splitting, crosspost
15307 @vindex nnimap-split-crosspost
15309 If non-nil, do crossposting if several split methods match the mail. If
15310 nil, the first match in @code{nnimap-split-rule} found will be used.
15312 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-crosspost}.
15314 @item nnimap-split-inbox
15315 @cindex splitting, inbox
15317 @vindex nnimap-split-inbox
15319 A string or a list of strings that gives the name(s) of @sc{imap}
15320 mailboxes to split from. Defaults to nil, which means that splitting is
15324 (setq nnimap-split-inbox
15325 '("INBOX" ("~/friend/Mail" . "lists/*") "lists.imap"))
15328 No nnmail equivalent.
15330 @item nnimap-split-rule
15331 @cindex Splitting, rules
15332 @vindex nnimap-split-rule
15334 New mail found in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be split according to
15337 This variable contains a list of lists, where the first element in the
15338 sublist gives the name of the @sc{imap} mailbox to move articles
15339 matching the regexp in the second element in the sublist. Got that?
15340 Neither did I, we need examples.
15343 (setq nnimap-split-rule
15345 "^Sender: owner-nnimap@@vic20.globalcom.se")
15346 ("INBOX.junk" "^Subject:.*MAKE MONEY")
15347 ("INBOX.private" "")))
15350 This will put all articles from the nnimap mailing list into mailbox
15351 INBOX.nnimap, all articles containing MAKE MONEY in the Subject: line
15352 into INBOX.junk and everything else in INBOX.private.
15354 The first string may contain `\\1' forms, like the ones used by
15355 replace-match to insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For
15359 ("INBOX.lists.\\1" "^Sender: owner-\\([a-z-]+\\)@@")
15362 The first element can also be the symbol @code{junk} to indicate that
15363 matching messages should simply be deleted. Use with care.
15365 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
15366 called with the first element of the rule as the argument, in a buffer
15367 containing the headers of the article. It should return a non-nil value
15368 if it thinks that the mail belongs in that group.
15370 Nnmail users might recollect that the last regexp had to be empty to
15371 match all articles (like in the example above). This is not required in
15372 nnimap. Articles not matching any of the regexps will not be moved out
15373 of your inbox. (This might affect performance if you keep lots of
15374 unread articles in your inbox, since the splitting code would go over
15375 them every time you fetch new mail.)
15377 These rules are processed from the beginning of the alist toward the
15378 end. The first rule to make a match will "win", unless you have
15379 crossposting enabled. In that case, all matching rules will "win".
15381 This variable can also have a function as its value, the function will
15382 be called with the headers narrowed and should return a group where it
15383 thinks the article should be split to. See @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
15385 The splitting code tries to create mailboxes if it needs to.
15387 To allow for different split rules on different virtual servers, and
15388 even different split rules in different inboxes on the same server,
15389 the syntax of this variable have been extended along the lines of:
15392 (setq nnimap-split-rule
15393 '(("my1server" (".*" (("ding" "ding@@gnus.org")
15394 ("junk" "From:.*Simon")))
15395 ("my2server" ("INBOX" nnimap-split-fancy))
15396 ("my[34]server" (".*" (("private" "To:.*Simon")
15397 ("junk" my-junk-func)))))
15400 The virtual server name is in fact a regexp, so that the same rules
15401 may apply to several servers. In the example, the servers
15402 @code{my3server} and @code{my4server} both use the same rules.
15403 Similarly, the inbox string is also a regexp. The actual splitting
15404 rules are as before, either a function, or a list with group/regexp or
15405 group/function elements.
15407 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
15409 @item nnimap-split-predicate
15411 @vindex nnimap-split-predicate
15413 Mail matching this predicate in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be
15414 split, it is a string and the default is @samp{UNSEEN UNDELETED}.
15416 This might be useful if you use another @sc{imap} client to read mail in
15417 your inbox but would like Gnus to split all articles in the inbox
15418 regardless of readedness. Then you might change this to
15421 @item nnimap-split-fancy
15422 @cindex splitting, fancy
15423 @findex nnimap-split-fancy
15424 @vindex nnimap-split-fancy
15426 It's possible to set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
15427 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} if you want to use fancy
15428 splitting. @xref{Fancy Mail Splitting}.
15430 However, to be able to have different fancy split rules for nnmail and
15431 nnimap back ends you can set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
15432 @code{nnimap-split-fancy} and define the nnimap specific fancy split
15433 rule in @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
15438 (setq nnimap-split-rule 'nnimap-split-fancy
15439 nnimap-split-fancy ...)
15442 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-fancy}.
15446 @node Expiring in IMAP
15447 @subsection Expiring in IMAP
15448 @cindex expiring imap mail
15450 Even though @sc{nnimap} is not a proper @sc{nnmail} derived back end,
15451 it supports most features in regular expiring (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
15452 Unlike splitting in IMAP (@pxref{Splitting in IMAP}) it do not clone
15453 the @sc{nnmail} variables (i.e., creating @var{nnimap-expiry-wait})
15454 but reuse the @sc{nnmail} variables. What follows below are the
15455 variables used by the @sc{nnimap} expiry process.
15457 A note on how the expire mark is stored on the @sc{imap} server is
15458 appropriate here as well. The expire mark is translated into a
15459 @sc{imap} client specific mark, @code{gnus-expire}, and stored on the
15460 message. This means that likely only Gnus will understand and treat
15461 the @code{gnus-expire} mark properly, although other clients may allow
15462 you to view client specific flags on the message. It also means that
15463 your server must support permanent storage of client specific flags on
15464 messages. Most do, fortunately.
15468 @item nnmail-expiry-wait
15469 @item nnmail-expiry-wait-function
15471 These variables are fully supported. The expire value can be a
15472 number, the symbol @var{immediate} or @var{never}.
15474 @item nnmail-expiry-target
15476 This variable is supported, and internally implemented by calling the
15477 @sc{nnmail} functions that handle this. It contains an optimization
15478 that if the destination is a IMAP group on the same server, the
15479 article is copied instead of appended (that is, uploaded again).
15483 @node Editing IMAP ACLs
15484 @subsection Editing IMAP ACLs
15485 @cindex editing imap acls
15486 @cindex Access Control Lists
15487 @cindex Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
15489 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-edit-acl
15491 ACL stands for Access Control List. ACLs are used in @sc{imap} for
15492 limiting (or enabling) other users access to your mail boxes. Not all
15493 @sc{imap} servers support this, this function will give an error if it
15496 To edit a ACL for a mailbox, type @kbd{G l}
15497 (@code{gnus-group-edit-nnimap-acl}) and you'll be presented with a ACL
15498 editing window with detailed instructions.
15500 Some possible uses:
15504 Giving "anyone" the "lrs" rights (lookup, read, keep seen/unseen flags)
15505 on your mailing list mailboxes enables other users on the same server to
15506 follow the list without subscribing to it.
15508 At least with the Cyrus server, you are required to give the user
15509 "anyone" posting ("p") capabilities to have "plussing" work (that is,
15510 mail sent to user+mailbox@@domain ending up in the @sc{imap} mailbox
15514 @node Expunging mailboxes
15515 @subsection Expunging mailboxes
15519 @cindex Manual expunging
15521 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-expunge
15523 If you're using the @code{never} setting of @code{nnimap-expunge-on-close},
15524 you may want the option of expunging all deleted articles in a mailbox
15525 manually. This is exactly what @kbd{G x} does.
15527 Currently there is no way of showing deleted articles, you can just
15530 @node A note on namespaces
15531 @subsection A note on namespaces
15532 @cindex IMAP namespace
15535 The IMAP protocol has a concept called namespaces, described by the
15536 following text in the RFC:
15539 5.1.2. Mailbox Namespace Naming Convention
15541 By convention, the first hierarchical element of any mailbox name
15542 which begins with "#" identifies the "namespace" of the remainder of
15543 the name. This makes it possible to disambiguate between different
15544 types of mailbox stores, each of which have their own namespaces.
15546 For example, implementations which offer access to USENET
15547 newsgroups MAY use the "#news" namespace to partition the USENET
15548 newsgroup namespace from that of other mailboxes. Thus, the
15549 comp.mail.misc newsgroup would have an mailbox name of
15550 "#news.comp.mail.misc", and the name "comp.mail.misc" could refer
15551 to a different object (e.g. a user's private mailbox).
15554 While there is nothing in this text that warrants concern for the IMAP
15555 implementation in Gnus, some servers use namespace prefixes in a way
15556 that does not work with how Gnus uses mailbox names.
15558 Specifically, University of Washington's IMAP server uses mailbox
15559 names like @code{#driver.mbx/read-mail} which are valid only in the
15560 @sc{create} and @sc{append} commands. After the mailbox is created
15561 (or a messages is appended to a mailbox), it must be accessed without
15562 the namespace prefix, i.e @code{read-mail}. Since Gnus do not make it
15563 possible for the user to guarantee that user entered mailbox names
15564 will only be used with the CREATE and APPEND commands, you should
15565 simply not use the namespace prefixed mailbox names in Gnus.
15567 See the UoW @sc{imapd} documentation for the @code{#driver.*/} prefix
15568 for more information on how to use the prefixes. They are a power
15569 tool and should be used only if you are sure what the effects are.
15571 @node Other Sources
15572 @section Other Sources
15574 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
15575 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
15579 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
15580 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
15581 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
15582 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
15583 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
15587 @node Directory Groups
15588 @subsection Directory Groups
15590 @cindex directory groups
15592 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
15593 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
15596 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
15597 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
15598 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
15599 back end to read directories. Big deal.
15601 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
15602 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
15603 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
15604 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
15605 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
15607 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
15609 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' back end---you can't delete or expire
15610 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
15611 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
15612 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
15615 @node Anything Groups
15616 @subsection Anything Groups
15619 From the @code{nndir} back end (which reads a single spool-like
15620 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
15621 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
15624 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
15625 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
15626 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
15627 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're forgetting.
15628 @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it snoops each
15629 file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e., the first
15630 few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head. If this is
15631 just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source file),
15632 @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It will use
15633 file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
15636 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
15637 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
15638 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
15639 in the article buffer, just as usual.
15641 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
15642 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
15643 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
15644 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
15646 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
15647 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
15648 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
15649 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
15650 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
15651 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
15652 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
15653 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
15658 @item nneething-map-file-directory
15659 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
15660 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
15661 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
15663 @item nneething-exclude-files
15664 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
15665 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
15666 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
15668 @item nneething-include-files
15669 @vindex nneething-include-files
15670 Regexp saying what files to include in the group. If this variable is
15671 non-@code{nil}, only files matching this regexp will be included.
15673 @item nneething-map-file
15674 @vindex nneething-map-file
15675 Name of the map files.
15679 @node Document Groups
15680 @subsection Document Groups
15682 @cindex documentation group
15685 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
15686 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
15693 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
15698 The standard Unix mbox file.
15700 @cindex MMDF mail box
15702 The MMDF mail box format.
15705 Several news articles appended into a file.
15708 @cindex rnews batch files
15709 The rnews batch transport format.
15710 @cindex forwarded messages
15713 Forwarded articles.
15716 Netscape mail boxes.
15719 @sc{mime} multipart messages.
15721 @item standard-digest
15722 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
15725 A @sc{mime} digest of messages.
15727 @item lanl-gov-announce
15728 Announcement messages from LANL Gov Announce.
15730 @item rfc822-forward
15731 A message forwarded according to RFC822.
15734 The Outlook mail box.
15737 The Outlook Express dbx mail box.
15740 A bounce message from the Exim MTA.
15743 A message forwarded according to informal rules.
15746 An RFC934-forwarded message.
15752 A digest of Clarinet brief news items.
15755 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
15761 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
15762 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
15763 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
15766 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
15767 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
15768 group. And that's it.
15770 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
15771 new & spiffy Gnus mail back end, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
15772 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
15773 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
15774 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
15775 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
15776 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
15777 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
15778 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
15779 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
15781 Virtual server variables:
15784 @item nndoc-article-type
15785 @vindex nndoc-article-type
15786 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
15787 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
15788 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts}, @code{standard-digest},
15789 @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs}, @code{nsmail}, @code{outlook},
15790 @code{oe-dbx}, @code{mailman}, and @code{mail-in-mail} or @code{guess}.
15792 @item nndoc-post-type
15793 @vindex nndoc-post-type
15794 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
15795 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
15800 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
15804 @node Document Server Internals
15805 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
15807 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
15808 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
15809 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
15810 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
15812 First, here's an example document type definition:
15816 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
15817 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
15820 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
15821 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
15822 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
15823 types can be defined with very few settings:
15826 @item first-article
15827 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
15828 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
15831 @item article-begin
15832 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
15833 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
15835 @item head-begin-function
15836 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
15839 @item nndoc-head-begin
15840 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
15843 @item nndoc-head-end
15844 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
15845 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
15847 @item body-begin-function
15848 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
15852 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
15855 @item body-end-function
15856 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
15860 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
15863 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
15864 regexp will be totally ignored.
15868 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
15869 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
15870 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
15871 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
15872 something that's palatable for Gnus:
15875 @item prepare-body-function
15876 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
15877 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
15878 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
15880 @item article-transform-function
15881 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
15882 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
15883 body of the article.
15885 @item generate-head-function
15886 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
15887 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
15888 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
15889 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
15893 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
15898 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
15899 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
15900 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
15901 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
15902 (head-end . "^ ?$")
15903 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
15904 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
15905 (subtype digest guess))
15908 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
15909 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
15910 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
15911 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
15912 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
15914 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
15915 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
15916 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
15917 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
15918 traversed sequentially, and @code{nndoc-TYPE-type-p} is called for a given type @code{TYPE}. So @code{nndoc-mmdf-type-p} is called to see whether a document
15919 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
15920 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
15921 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
15922 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
15923 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
15931 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
15932 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
15933 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
15935 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
15936 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
15937 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
15940 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something that's a bit
15941 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
15942 that interested in doing things properly.
15944 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
15945 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
15948 First some terminology:
15953 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
15954 get news and/or mail from.
15957 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
15958 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
15961 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
15965 @item message packets
15966 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
15967 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
15968 default, where @var{x} is a number.
15970 @item response packets
15971 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
15972 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
15973 default, where @var{x} is a number.
15983 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
15984 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
15985 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
15986 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
15989 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
15992 You put the packet in your home directory.
15995 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} back end as
15996 the native or secondary server.
15999 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
16000 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
16003 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
16007 You transfer this packet to the server.
16010 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
16013 You then repeat until you die.
16017 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
16018 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
16021 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
16022 * SOUP Groups:: A back end for reading @sc{soup} packets.
16023 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
16027 @node SOUP Commands
16028 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
16030 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
16034 @kindex G s b (Group)
16035 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
16036 Pack all unread articles in the current group
16037 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
16038 process/prefix convention.
16041 @kindex G s w (Group)
16042 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
16043 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
16046 @kindex G s s (Group)
16047 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
16048 Send all replies from the replies packet
16049 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
16052 @kindex G s p (Group)
16053 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
16054 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
16057 @kindex G s r (Group)
16058 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
16059 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
16062 @kindex O s (Summary)
16063 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
16064 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
16065 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
16066 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
16071 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
16076 @item gnus-soup-directory
16077 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
16078 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
16079 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
16081 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
16082 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
16083 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
16084 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
16086 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
16087 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
16088 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
16089 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
16091 @item gnus-soup-packer
16092 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
16093 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
16094 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
16096 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
16097 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
16098 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
16099 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
16101 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
16102 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
16103 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
16105 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
16106 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
16107 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
16108 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
16114 @subsubsection SOUP Groups
16117 @code{nnsoup} is the back end for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
16118 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
16119 you can read them at leisure.
16121 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
16125 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
16126 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
16127 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
16128 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
16130 @item nnsoup-directory
16131 @vindex nnsoup-directory
16132 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
16133 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
16135 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
16136 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
16137 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
16138 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
16140 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
16141 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
16142 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
16143 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
16144 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
16146 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
16147 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
16148 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
16149 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
16151 @item nnsoup-active-file
16152 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
16153 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
16154 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
16155 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
16156 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
16158 @item nnsoup-packer
16159 @vindex nnsoup-packer
16160 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
16161 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
16163 @item nnsoup-unpacker
16164 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
16165 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
16166 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
16168 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
16169 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
16170 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
16173 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
16174 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
16175 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
16178 @item nnsoup-always-save
16179 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
16180 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
16186 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
16188 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
16189 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
16190 more for that to happen.
16192 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
16193 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
16194 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
16197 In specific, this is what it does:
16200 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
16201 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
16204 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
16205 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
16206 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
16209 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
16210 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
16211 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
16214 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
16215 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
16216 The @code{nngateway} back end provides the interface.
16218 Note that you can't read anything from this back end---it can only be
16224 @item nngateway-address
16225 @vindex nngateway-address
16226 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
16228 @item nngateway-header-transformation
16229 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
16230 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
16231 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
16232 transformation should be called, and defaults to
16233 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
16234 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
16237 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
16238 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
16239 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
16242 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
16245 will get this @code{To} header inserted:
16248 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
16251 The following pre-defined functions exist:
16253 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
16256 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
16257 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
16258 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
16260 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
16262 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
16263 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
16264 @code{nngateway-address}.
16269 (setq gnus-post-method
16271 "mail2news@@replay.com"
16272 (nngateway-header-transformation
16273 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
16281 So, to use this, simply say something like:
16284 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
16289 @node Combined Groups
16290 @section Combined Groups
16292 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
16296 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
16297 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
16301 @node Virtual Groups
16302 @subsection Virtual Groups
16304 @cindex virtual groups
16305 @cindex merging groups
16307 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
16310 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
16311 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
16312 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
16314 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
16315 regexp to match component groups.
16317 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
16318 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
16319 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it
16320 came. (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be
16321 shown in the virtual group.). To create an empty virtual group, run
16322 @kbd{G V} (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}) in the group buffer
16323 and edit the method regexp with @kbd{M-e}
16324 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method})
16326 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
16327 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
16330 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
16333 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
16334 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
16336 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
16337 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
16338 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
16339 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
16342 "^nntp\\+server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
16345 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
16346 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
16347 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
16349 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
16350 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
16351 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
16352 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
16353 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
16355 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
16356 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
16357 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
16359 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
16360 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
16361 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
16362 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
16363 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
16364 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
16365 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
16366 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
16367 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
16368 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
16369 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
16371 @code{nnvirtual} can have both mail and news groups as component groups.
16372 When responding to articles in @code{nnvirtual} groups, @code{nnvirtual}
16373 has to ask the back end of the component group the article comes from
16374 whether it is a news or mail back end. However, when you do a @kbd{^},
16375 there is typically no sure way for the component back end to know this,
16376 and in that case @code{nnvirtual} tells Gnus that the article came from a
16377 not-news back end. (Just to be on the safe side.)
16379 @kbd{C-c C-n} in the message buffer will insert the @code{Newsgroups}
16380 line from the article you respond to in these cases.
16382 @code{nnvirtual} groups do not inherit anything but articles and marks
16383 from component groups---group parameters, for instance, are not
16387 @node Kibozed Groups
16388 @subsection Kibozed Groups
16392 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
16393 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a back end that will do this for
16394 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
16395 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
16397 @kindex G k (Group)
16398 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
16401 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
16402 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
16403 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
16404 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
16406 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
16407 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
16408 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
16410 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
16411 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
16412 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
16413 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
16414 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
16415 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
16416 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
16417 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
16419 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
16420 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
16421 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
16422 Stranger things have happened.
16424 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
16425 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
16427 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
16428 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
16429 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
16430 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
16431 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
16432 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
16434 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
16435 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
16438 @node Gnus Unplugged
16439 @section Gnus Unplugged
16444 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
16446 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
16447 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
16448 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
16449 read news. Believe it or not.
16451 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
16452 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
16453 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
16454 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
16455 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
16457 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
16458 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
16459 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
16460 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
16461 reading news on a machine.
16463 Setting up Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple. In
16464 fact, you don't even have to configure anything.
16466 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
16469 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
16470 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
16471 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
16472 * Agent as Cache:: The Agent is a big cache too.
16473 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
16474 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
16475 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
16476 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
16477 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
16478 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
16479 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
16484 @subsection Agent Basics
16486 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
16488 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
16489 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
16490 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
16491 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
16493 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
16494 connected to the net continuously.
16496 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
16497 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
16499 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
16504 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
16505 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
16506 already fetched while in this mode.
16509 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
16510 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
16511 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged} and use @kbd{g} to check for new mail
16512 as usual. To check for new mail in unplugged mode, see (@pxref{Mail
16513 Source Specifiers}).
16516 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
16517 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{g}
16518 to check if there are any new news and then @kbd{J
16519 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
16520 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
16523 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
16524 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
16525 then you read the news offline.
16528 And then you go to step 2.
16531 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
16537 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
16538 back end, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
16539 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
16540 @kbd{J a} on the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
16541 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}), or @kbd{J r} on automatically
16542 added servers you do not wish to have covered by the Agent. By default,
16543 all @code{nntp} and @code{nnimap} groups in @code{gnus-select-method} and
16544 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} are agentized.
16547 Decide on download policy. @xref{Agent Categories}.
16554 @node Agent Categories
16555 @subsection Agent Categories
16557 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
16558 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
16559 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
16560 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
16561 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
16562 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
16563 you're interested in the articles anyway.
16565 The main way to control what is to be downloaded is to create a
16566 @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all) groups to this category.
16567 Groups that do not belong in any other category belong to the
16568 @code{default} category. Gnus has its own buffer for creating and
16569 managing categories.
16572 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
16573 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
16574 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
16578 @node Category Syntax
16579 @subsubsection Category Syntax
16581 A category consists of two things.
16585 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
16586 are eligible for downloading; and
16589 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
16590 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
16591 score} is not necessarily related to normal scores.)
16594 A predicate in its simplest form can be a single predicate such as
16595 @code{true} or @code{false}. These two will download every available
16596 article or nothing respectively. In the case of these two special
16597 predicates an additional score rule is superfluous.
16599 Predicates of @code{high} or @code{low} download articles in respect of
16600 their scores in relationship to @code{gnus-agent-high-score} and
16601 @code{gnus-agent-low-score} as described below.
16603 To gain even finer control of what is to be regarded eligible for
16604 download a predicate can consist of a number of predicates with logical
16605 operators sprinkled in between.
16607 Perhaps some examples are in order.
16609 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
16610 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
16616 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
16617 short (for some value of ``short'').
16619 Here's a more complex predicate:
16628 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
16629 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
16632 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
16633 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
16634 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
16636 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
16637 you want to do, you can write your own.
16641 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
16642 lines; default 100.
16645 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
16646 lines; default 200.
16649 True iff the article has a download score less than
16650 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
16653 True iff the article has a download score greater than
16654 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
16657 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
16658 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
16659 checksum and sees whether articles match.
16668 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
16669 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
16670 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
16673 For example, you could decide that you don't want to download articles
16674 that were posted more than a certain number of days ago (e.g. posted
16675 more than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} ago) you might write a function
16676 something along the lines of the following:
16679 (defun my-article-old-p ()
16680 "Say whether an article is old."
16681 (< (time-to-days (date-to-time (mail-header-date gnus-headers)))
16682 (- (time-to-days (current-time)) gnus-agent-expire-days)))
16685 with the predicate then defined as:
16688 (not my-article-old-p)
16691 or you could append your predicate to the predefined
16692 @code{gnus-category-predicate-alist} in your @file{~/.gnus.el} or
16696 (require 'gnus-agent)
16697 (setq gnus-category-predicate-alist
16698 (append gnus-category-predicate-alist
16699 '((old . my-article-old-p))))
16702 and simply specify your predicate as:
16708 If/when using something like the above, be aware that there are many
16709 misconfigured systems/mailers out there and so an article's date is not
16710 always a reliable indication of when it was posted. Hell, some people
16711 just don't give a damn.
16713 The above predicates apply to *all* the groups which belong to the
16714 category. However, if you wish to have a specific predicate for an
16715 individual group within a category, or you're just too lazy to set up a
16716 new category, you can enter a group's individual predicate in it's group
16717 parameters like so:
16720 (agent-predicate . short)
16723 This is the group parameter equivalent of the agent category default.
16724 Note that when specifying a single word predicate like this, the
16725 @code{agent-predicate} specification must be in dotted pair notation.
16727 The equivalent of the longer example from above would be:
16730 (agent-predicate or high (and (not low) (not long)))
16733 The outer parenthesis required in the category specification are not
16734 entered here as, not being in dotted pair notation, the value of the
16735 predicate is assumed to be a list.
16738 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
16739 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
16740 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
16741 following headers can be scored on: @code{Subject}, @code{From},
16742 @code{Date}, @code{Message-ID}, @code{References}, @code{Chars},
16743 @code{Lines}, and @code{Xref}.
16745 As with predicates, the specification of the @code{download score rule}
16746 to use in respect of a group can be in either the category definition if
16747 it's to be applicable to all groups in therein, or a group's parameters
16748 if it's to be specific to that group.
16750 In both of these places the @code{download score rule} can take one of
16757 This has the same syntax as a normal gnus score file except only a
16758 subset of scoring keywords are available as mentioned above.
16764 Category specification
16768 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
16774 Group Parameter specification
16777 (agent-score ("from"
16778 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
16783 Again, note the omission of the outermost parenthesis here.
16789 These score files must *only* contain the permitted scoring keywords
16796 Category specification
16799 ("~/News/agent.SCORE")
16805 ("~/News/agent.SCORE" "~/News/agent.group.SCORE")
16809 Group Parameter specification
16812 (agent-score "~/News/agent.SCORE")
16815 Additional score files can be specified as above. Need I say anything
16820 Use @code{normal} score files
16822 If you don't want to maintain two sets of scoring rules for a group, and
16823 your desired @code{downloading} criteria for a group are the same as your
16824 @code{reading} criteria then you can tell the agent to refer to your
16825 @code{normal} score files when deciding what to download.
16827 These directives in either the category definition or a group's
16828 parameters will cause the agent to read in all the applicable score
16829 files for a group, *filtering out* those sections that do not
16830 relate to one of the permitted subset of scoring keywords.
16834 Category Specification
16841 Group Parameter specification
16844 (agent-score . file)
16849 @node Category Buffer
16850 @subsubsection Category Buffer
16852 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
16853 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
16854 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
16856 The following commands are available in this buffer:
16860 @kindex q (Category)
16861 @findex gnus-category-exit
16862 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
16865 @kindex k (Category)
16866 @findex gnus-category-kill
16867 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
16870 @kindex c (Category)
16871 @findex gnus-category-copy
16872 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
16875 @kindex a (Category)
16876 @findex gnus-category-add
16877 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
16880 @kindex p (Category)
16881 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
16882 Edit the predicate of the current category
16883 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
16886 @kindex g (Category)
16887 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
16888 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
16889 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
16892 @kindex s (Category)
16893 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
16894 Edit the download score rule of the current category
16895 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
16898 @kindex l (Category)
16899 @findex gnus-category-list
16900 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
16904 @node Category Variables
16905 @subsubsection Category Variables
16908 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
16909 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
16910 Hook run in category buffers.
16912 @item gnus-category-line-format
16913 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
16914 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
16915 Variables}). Valid elements are:
16919 The name of the category.
16922 The number of groups in the category.
16925 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
16926 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
16927 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
16929 @item gnus-agent-short-article
16930 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
16931 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
16933 @item gnus-agent-long-article
16934 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
16935 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
16937 @item gnus-agent-low-score
16938 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
16939 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
16942 @item gnus-agent-high-score
16943 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
16944 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
16950 @node Agent Commands
16951 @subsection Agent Commands
16953 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
16954 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged}) command works in all modes, and
16955 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
16959 * Group Agent Commands::
16960 * Summary Agent Commands::
16961 * Server Agent Commands::
16964 You can run a complete batch command from the command line with the
16965 following incantation:
16967 @cindex gnus-agent-batch
16969 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-agent-batch
16974 @node Group Agent Commands
16975 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
16979 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
16980 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
16981 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
16982 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
16985 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
16986 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
16987 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
16990 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
16991 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
16992 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
16993 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
16996 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
16997 @findex gnus-group-send-queue
16998 Send all sendable messages in the queue group
16999 (@code{gnus-group-send-queue}). @xref{Drafts}.
17002 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
17003 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
17004 Add the current group to an Agent category
17005 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}). This command understands the
17006 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
17009 @kindex J r (Agent Group)
17010 @findex gnus-agent-remove-group
17011 Remove the current group from its category, if any
17012 (@code{gnus-agent-remove-group}). This command understands the
17013 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
17016 @kindex J Y (Agent Group)
17017 @findex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
17018 Synchronize flags changed while unplugged with remote server, if any.
17024 @node Summary Agent Commands
17025 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
17029 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
17030 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
17031 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
17034 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
17035 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
17036 Remove the downloading mark from the article
17037 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
17040 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
17041 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
17042 Toggle whether to download the article (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}).
17045 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
17046 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
17047 Mark all undownloaded articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}).
17050 @kindex J u (Agent Summary)
17051 @findex gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group
17052 Download all downloadable articles in the current group
17053 (@code{gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group}).
17058 @node Server Agent Commands
17059 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
17063 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
17064 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
17065 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
17066 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
17069 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
17070 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
17071 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
17072 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
17077 @node Agent as Cache
17078 @subsection Agent as Cache
17080 When Gnus is plugged, it is not efficient to download headers or
17081 articles from the server again, if they are already stored in the
17082 Agent. So, Gnus normally only downloads headers once, and stores them
17083 in the Agent. These headers are later used when generating the summary
17084 buffer, regardless of whether you are plugged or unplugged. Articles
17085 are not cached in the Agent by default though (that would potentially
17086 consume lots of disk space), but if you have already downloaded an
17087 article into the Agent, Gnus will not download the article from the
17088 server again but use the locally stored copy instead.
17090 This behaviour can be controlled by @code{gnus-agent-cache}
17091 (@pxref{Agent Variables}).
17094 @subsection Agent Expiry
17096 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
17097 @findex gnus-agent-expire
17098 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire
17099 @cindex Agent expiry
17100 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
17103 @code{nnagent} doesn't handle expiry. Instead, there's a special
17104 @code{gnus-agent-expire} command that will expire all read articles that
17105 are older than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} days. It can be run
17106 whenever you feel that you're running out of space. It's not
17107 particularly fast or efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to
17108 interrupt it (with @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started it.
17110 @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} can also be a list of regexp/day pairs.
17111 The regexps will be matched against group names to allow differing
17112 expiry in different groups.
17115 (setq gnus-agent-expire-days
17121 If you use the list form, the last element must always be the default
17122 method---it must always match all groups.
17124 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
17125 If @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, this command will
17126 expire all articles---unread, read, ticked and dormant. If @code{nil}
17127 (which is the default), only read articles are eligible for expiry, and
17128 unread, ticked and dormant articles will be kept indefinitely.
17130 @findex gnus-agent-regenerate
17131 If you find that some articles eligible for expiry are never expired,
17132 perhaps some Gnus Agent files are corrupted. There's a special
17133 @code{gnus-agent-regenerate} command to fix possible problems.
17135 @node Agent and IMAP
17136 @subsection Agent and IMAP
17138 The Agent work with any Gnus back end, including nnimap. However,
17139 since there are some conceptual differences between @sc{nntp} and
17140 @sc{imap}, this section (should) provide you with some information to
17141 make Gnus Agent work smoother as a @sc{imap} Disconnected Mode client.
17143 The first thing to keep in mind is that all flags (read, ticked, etc)
17144 are kept on the @sc{imap} server, rather than in @code{.newsrc} as is the
17145 case for nntp. Thus Gnus need to remember flag changes when
17146 disconnected, and synchronize these flags when you plug back in.
17148 Gnus keeps track of flag changes when reading nnimap groups under the
17149 Agent. When you plug back in, Gnus will check if you have any changed
17150 any flags and ask if you wish to synchronize these with the server.
17151 The behavior is customizable by @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags}.
17153 @vindex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
17154 If @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} is @code{nil}, the Agent will
17155 never automatically synchronize flags. If it is @code{ask}, which is
17156 the default, the Agent will check if you made any changes and if so
17157 ask if you wish to synchronize these when you re-connect. If it has
17158 any other value, all flags will be synchronized automatically.
17160 If you do not wish to synchronize flags automatically when you
17161 re-connect, you can do it manually with the
17162 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} command that is bound to @kbd{J Y}
17163 in the group buffer.
17165 Some things are currently not implemented in the Agent that you'd might
17166 expect from a disconnected @sc{imap} client, including:
17171 Copying/moving articles into nnimap groups when unplugged.
17174 Creating/deleting nnimap groups when unplugged.
17178 Technical note: the synchronization algorithm does not work by "pushing"
17179 all local flags to the server, but rather incrementally update the
17180 server view of flags by changing only those flags that were changed by
17181 the user. Thus, if you set one flag on a article, quit the group and
17182 re-select the group and remove the flag; the flag will be set and
17183 removed from the server when you "synchronize". The queued flag
17184 operations can be found in the per-server @code{flags} file in the Agent
17185 directory. It's emptied when you synchronize flags.
17188 @node Outgoing Messages
17189 @subsection Outgoing Messages
17191 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
17192 stored in the draft group ``queue'' (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view
17193 them there after posting, and edit them at will.
17195 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
17196 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
17197 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
17198 messages in the draft group.
17202 @node Agent Variables
17203 @subsection Agent Variables
17206 @item gnus-agent-directory
17207 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
17208 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
17209 @file{~/News/agent/}.
17211 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
17212 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
17213 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
17214 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
17215 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
17218 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
17219 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
17220 Hook run when connecting to the network.
17222 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
17223 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
17224 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
17226 @item gnus-agent-fetched-hook
17227 @vindex gnus-agent-fetched-hook
17228 Hook run when after finishing fetching articles.
17230 @item gnus-agent-cache
17231 @vindex gnus-agent-cache
17232 Variable to control whether use the locally stored @sc{nov} and
17233 articles when plugged, e.g. essentially using the Agent as a cache.
17234 The default is non-nil, which means to use the Agent as a cache.
17236 @item gnus-agent-go-online
17237 @vindex gnus-agent-go-online
17238 If @code{gnus-agent-go-online} is @code{nil}, the Agent will never
17239 automatically switch offline servers into online status. If it is
17240 @code{ask}, the default, the Agent will ask if you wish to switch
17241 offline servers into online status when you re-connect. If it has any
17242 other value, all offline servers will be automatically switched into
17245 @item gnus-server-unopen-status
17246 @vindex gnus-server-unopen-status
17247 Perhaps not a Agent variable, but closely related to the Agent, this
17248 variable says what will happen if Gnus cannot open a server. If the
17249 Agent is enabled, the default, @code{nil}, makes Gnus ask the user
17250 whether to deny the server or whether to unplug the agent. If the
17251 Agent is disabled, Gnus always simply deny the server. Other choices
17252 for this variable include @code{denied} and @code{offline} the latter
17253 is only valid if the Agent is used.
17258 @node Example Setup
17259 @subsection Example Setup
17261 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
17262 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
17263 @file{.gnus.el} file to get started.
17266 ;;; Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over @sc{nntp}
17267 ;;; from your ISP's server.
17268 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.your-isp.com"))
17270 ;;; Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from
17271 ;;; your ISP's POP server.
17272 (setq mail-sources '((pop :server "pop.your-isp.com")))
17274 ;;; Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.
17275 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
17277 ;;; Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.
17278 ;;; (gnus-agentize) ; The obsolete setting.
17279 ;;; (setq gnus-agent t) ; Now the default.
17282 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
17283 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
17286 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
17287 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
17288 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
17289 @sc{nntp} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
17290 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
17293 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
17294 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
17295 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
17296 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
17297 back all the killed groups.)
17299 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
17300 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
17301 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
17304 @node Batching Agents
17305 @subsection Batching Agents
17307 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
17308 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
17309 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
17313 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null
17317 @node Agent Caveats
17318 @subsection Agent Caveats
17320 The Gnus Agent doesn't seem to work like most other offline
17321 newsreaders. Here are some common questions that some imaginary people
17325 @item If I read an article while plugged, do they get entered into the Agent?
17329 @item If I read an article while plugged, and the article already exists in the Agent, will it get downloaded once more?
17331 @strong{No}, unless @code{gnus-agent-cache} is `nil'.
17335 In short, when Gnus is unplugged, it only looks into the locally stored
17336 articles; when it's plugged, it only talks to your ISP and also uses the
17337 locally stored articles.
17344 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
17345 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
17346 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
17349 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
17350 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
17351 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
17352 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
17353 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
17355 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
17356 before generating the summary buffer.
17358 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
17359 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
17360 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
17362 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
17363 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
17364 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
17365 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
17368 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
17369 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
17370 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
17371 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
17372 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
17373 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
17374 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
17375 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
17376 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
17377 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
17378 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
17379 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
17380 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
17381 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
17382 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
17383 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
17384 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
17388 @node Summary Score Commands
17389 @section Summary Score Commands
17390 @cindex score commands
17392 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
17393 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
17394 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
17395 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
17396 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
17398 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
17399 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
17400 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
17401 score file the current one.
17403 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
17408 @kindex V s (Summary)
17409 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
17410 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
17413 @kindex V S (Summary)
17414 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
17415 Display the score of the current article
17416 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
17419 @kindex V t (Summary)
17420 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
17421 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
17422 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
17425 @kindex V w (Summary)
17426 @findex gnus-score-find-favourite-words
17427 List words used in scoring (@code{gnus-score-find-favourite-words}).
17430 @kindex V R (Summary)
17431 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
17432 Run the current summary through the scoring process
17433 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
17434 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
17435 effect you're having.
17438 @kindex V c (Summary)
17439 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
17440 Make a different score file the current
17441 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
17444 @kindex V e (Summary)
17445 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
17446 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
17447 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
17451 @kindex V f (Summary)
17452 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
17453 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
17454 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
17457 @kindex V F (Summary)
17458 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
17459 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
17460 after editing score files.
17463 @kindex V C (Summary)
17464 @findex gnus-score-customize
17465 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
17466 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
17470 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
17475 @kindex V m (Summary)
17476 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
17477 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
17478 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
17481 @kindex V x (Summary)
17482 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
17483 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
17484 expunge all articles below this score
17485 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
17488 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
17489 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
17492 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
17493 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
17497 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
17498 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
17500 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
17501 keys are available:
17505 Score on the author name.
17508 Score on the subject line.
17511 Score on the @code{Xref} line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
17514 Score on the @code{References} line.
17520 Score on the number of lines.
17523 Score on the @code{Message-ID} header.
17526 Score on an "extra" header, that is, one of those in gnus-extra-headers,
17527 if your @sc{nntp} server tracks additional header data in overviews.
17530 Score on followups---this matches the author name, and adds scores to
17531 the followups to this author. (Using this key leads to the creation of
17532 @file{ADAPT} files.)
17541 Score on thread. (Using this key leads to the creation of @file{ADAPT}
17547 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
17548 what headers you are scoring on.
17560 Substring matching.
17563 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
17592 Greater than number.
17597 The fourth and usually final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e.,
17598 expiring) score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry,
17599 or whether it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score
17604 Temporary score entry.
17607 Permanent score entry.
17610 Immediately scoring.
17614 If you are scoring on `e' (extra) headers, you will then be prompted for
17615 the header name on which you wish to score. This must be a header named
17616 in gnus-extra-headers, and @samp{TAB} completion is available.
17620 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
17621 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
17622 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
17623 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
17625 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
17626 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
17627 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
17628 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
17629 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
17631 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
17632 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
17633 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
17634 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
17635 current score file.
17637 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
17638 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
17639 pretend they are keymaps or not.
17642 @node Group Score Commands
17643 @section Group Score Commands
17644 @cindex group score commands
17646 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
17651 @kindex W f (Group)
17652 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
17653 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
17654 all the time. This command will flush the cache
17655 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
17659 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
17661 @findex gnus-batch-score
17662 @cindex batch scoring
17664 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-batch-score
17668 @node Score Variables
17669 @section Score Variables
17670 @cindex score variables
17674 @item gnus-use-scoring
17675 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
17676 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
17677 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
17679 @item gnus-kill-killed
17680 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
17681 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
17682 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
17683 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
17684 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
17685 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
17686 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
17688 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
17689 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
17690 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
17691 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
17692 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
17694 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
17695 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
17696 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
17697 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
17699 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
17700 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
17701 @cindex score cache
17702 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
17703 score files. However, if this might make your Emacs grow big and
17704 bloated, so this regexp can be used to weed out score files unlikely to be needed again. It would be a bad idea to deny caching of
17705 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
17706 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
17707 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
17710 @item gnus-save-score
17711 @vindex gnus-save-score
17712 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
17713 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
17714 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
17716 If you do not set this to @code{t}, then manual scores (like those set
17717 with @kbd{V s} (@code{gnus-summary-set-score})) will not be preserved
17718 across group visits.
17720 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
17721 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
17722 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
17723 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
17724 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
17725 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
17726 manually entered data.
17728 @item gnus-summary-default-score
17729 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
17730 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
17732 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
17733 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
17734 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
17735 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
17736 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
17737 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
17739 @item gnus-score-over-mark
17740 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
17741 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
17742 default. Default is @samp{+}.
17744 @item gnus-score-below-mark
17745 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
17746 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
17747 default. Default is @samp{-}.
17749 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
17750 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
17751 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
17752 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
17754 Predefined functions available are:
17757 @item gnus-score-find-single
17758 @findex gnus-score-find-single
17759 Only apply the group's own score file.
17761 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
17762 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
17763 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
17764 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
17765 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
17766 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
17767 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
17768 then a regexp match is done.
17770 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
17771 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
17773 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
17774 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
17775 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
17776 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
17778 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
17779 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
17780 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
17781 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
17782 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE} for each
17786 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all
17787 these functions will be called with the group name as argument, and
17788 all the returned lists of score files will be applied. These
17789 functions can also return lists of lists of score alists directly. In
17790 that case, the functions that return these non-file score alists
17791 should probably be placed before the ``real'' score file functions, to
17792 ensure that the last score file returned is the local score file.
17795 For example, to do hierarchical scoring but use a non-server-specific
17796 overall score file, you could use the value
17798 (list (lambda (group) ("all.SCORE"))
17799 'gnus-score-find-hierarchical)
17802 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
17803 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
17804 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
17805 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
17806 are expired. It's 7 by default.
17808 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
17809 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
17810 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, temporary score entries that have
17811 been triggered (matched) will have their dates updated. (This is how Gnus
17812 controls expiry---all non-matched-entries will become too old while
17813 matched entries will stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this
17814 variable to @code{nil}, even matched entries will grow old and will
17815 have to face that oh-so grim reaper.
17817 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
17818 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
17819 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
17821 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
17822 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
17823 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be simplified
17824 for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
17825 threading---according to the current value of
17826 gnus-simplify-subject-functions. If the scoring entry uses
17827 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
17828 simplified in this manner.
17833 @node Score File Format
17834 @section Score File Format
17835 @cindex score file format
17837 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
17838 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
17839 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
17841 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
17845 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
17847 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
17849 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
17851 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
17856 (mark-and-expunge -10)
17860 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
17861 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
17862 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
17863 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
17867 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
17868 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
17870 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
17871 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
17872 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
17874 Six keys are supported by this alist:
17879 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
17880 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
17881 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
17882 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
17883 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
17884 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
17885 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
17886 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
17887 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
17888 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
17889 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
17890 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
17891 to articles that matches these score entries.
17893 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
17894 score entry has one to four elements.
17898 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
17899 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
17903 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
17904 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
17905 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
17906 is successful. If this element is not present, the
17907 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
17908 instead. This is 1000 by default.
17911 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
17912 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
17913 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
17914 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
17915 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
17918 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
17919 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
17920 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
17921 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
17924 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
17925 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
17926 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
17927 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
17928 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
17929 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
17930 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
17931 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
17932 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
17933 instead, if you feel like.
17936 Just as for the standard string overview headers, if you are using
17937 gnus-extra-headers, you can score on these headers' values. In this
17938 case, there is a 5th element in the score entry, being the name of the
17939 header to be scored. The following entry is useful in your
17940 @file{all.SCORE} file in case of spam attacks from a single origin host,
17941 if your @sc{nntp} server tracks NNTP-Posting-Host in overviews:
17944 ("111.222.333.444" -1000 nil s "NNTP-Posting-Host")
17948 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
17949 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
17951 These predicates are true if
17954 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
17957 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
17958 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
17965 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
17966 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
17967 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
17968 it's not. I think.)
17970 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some back ends (like
17971 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
17972 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
17973 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
17976 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
17977 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
17978 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
17979 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
17980 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
17981 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
17982 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
17986 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
17987 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
17988 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
17989 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
17990 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
17991 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
17992 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
17993 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
17996 @item Head, Body, All
17997 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
18001 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
18002 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
18003 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
18004 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
18005 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
18006 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
18007 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
18011 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
18012 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread started by an
18013 article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{x}, then you add a @samp{thread}
18014 match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each article that
18015 has @var{x} in its @code{References} header. (These new @samp{thread}
18016 matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching articles.)
18017 This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an entire thread,
18018 even though some articles in the thread may not have complete
18019 @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
18020 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
18021 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
18025 @cindex Score File Atoms
18027 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
18028 lower than this number will be marked as read.
18031 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
18032 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
18034 @item mark-and-expunge
18035 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
18036 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
18039 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
18040 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
18041 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
18042 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
18043 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
18046 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
18047 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
18050 @item exclude-files
18051 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
18052 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
18056 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
18057 ignored when handling global score files.
18060 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
18061 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
18062 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
18063 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
18066 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
18067 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
18068 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
18069 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
18071 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
18075 (mark-and-expunge -100)
18078 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
18079 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
18080 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
18081 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
18082 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
18084 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where a few
18085 interesting threads which can't be found automatically by ordinary
18086 scoring rules exist.
18089 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
18090 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
18091 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
18092 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
18093 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
18094 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
18095 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
18096 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
18097 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
18098 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
18099 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
18103 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
18104 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
18105 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
18106 file for a number of groups.
18109 @cindex local variables
18110 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
18111 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
18112 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
18113 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
18114 much. Note that the @var{value} won't be evaluated.
18118 @node Score File Editing
18119 @section Score File Editing
18121 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
18122 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
18123 with a mode for that.
18125 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
18126 additional commands:
18131 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
18132 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
18133 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
18134 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
18137 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
18138 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
18139 Insert the current date in numerical format
18140 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
18141 you were wondering.
18144 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
18145 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
18146 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
18147 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
18148 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
18153 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
18155 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
18156 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
18158 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
18159 e} to begin editing score files.
18162 @node Adaptive Scoring
18163 @section Adaptive Scoring
18164 @cindex adaptive scoring
18166 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
18167 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
18168 stupidity, to be precise.
18170 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
18171 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
18172 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
18173 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
18174 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
18175 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
18176 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
18177 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
18178 variable to @code{(word line)}.
18180 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
18181 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
18182 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
18183 might look something like this:
18186 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
18187 '((gnus-unread-mark)
18188 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
18189 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
18190 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
18191 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
18192 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
18193 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
18194 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
18195 (gnus-ancient-mark)
18196 (gnus-low-score-mark)
18197 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
18200 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
18201 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
18202 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
18203 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
18204 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
18205 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
18208 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
18209 will be applied to each article.
18211 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
18212 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
18213 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
18214 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
18216 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
18217 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
18218 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
18219 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
18221 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
18222 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
18223 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
18224 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
18226 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
18227 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
18228 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
18229 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
18230 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
18231 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
18233 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
18234 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
18235 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
18236 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
18237 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
18238 aspirins afterwards.)
18240 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
18241 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
18242 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
18244 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
18245 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
18246 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
18248 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
18249 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
18250 let you use different rules in different groups.
18252 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
18253 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
18254 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
18257 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
18258 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
18259 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
18260 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
18261 the length of the match is less than
18262 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
18263 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
18266 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
18267 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
18268 headers. If you adapt on words, the
18269 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
18270 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
18273 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
18274 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
18275 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
18276 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
18277 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
18280 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
18281 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
18282 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
18283 score with 30 points.
18285 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
18286 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
18287 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
18288 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
18289 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
18291 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit
18292 Some may feel that short words shouldn't count when doing adaptive
18293 scoring. If so, you may set @code{gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit} to
18294 an integer. Words shorter than this number will be ignored. This
18295 variable defaults to @code{nil}.
18297 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
18298 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
18299 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
18300 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
18302 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
18303 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
18304 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
18305 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
18307 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words
18308 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words} is set to @code{t}, gnus
18309 won't adaptively word score any of the words in the group name. Useful
18310 for groups like @samp{comp.editors.emacs}, where most of the subject
18311 lines contain the word @samp{emacs}.
18313 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
18314 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
18315 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
18317 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
18318 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
18319 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
18320 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
18323 @node Home Score File
18324 @section Home Score File
18326 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
18327 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
18328 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
18329 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
18331 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
18332 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
18333 could perhaps use the same home score file.
18335 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
18336 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
18341 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
18345 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
18346 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
18350 A list. The elements in this list can be:
18354 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{file-name})}. If the @var{regexp} matches the
18355 group name, the @var{file-name} will be used as the home score file.
18358 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
18359 the home score file.
18362 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
18365 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
18370 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
18373 (setq gnus-home-score-file
18374 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
18377 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
18378 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
18380 @findex gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file
18382 (setq gnus-home-score-file
18383 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
18386 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
18387 Other functions include
18390 @item gnus-current-home-score-file
18391 @findex gnus-current-home-score-file
18392 Return the ``current'' regular score file. This will make scoring
18393 commands add entry to the ``innermost'' matching score file.
18397 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
18398 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
18399 their own home score files:
18402 (setq gnus-home-score-file
18403 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
18404 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
18405 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
18406 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
18409 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
18410 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
18411 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
18412 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
18413 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
18415 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
18416 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
18417 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
18418 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
18419 precedence over this variable.
18422 @node Followups To Yourself
18423 @section Followups To Yourself
18425 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
18426 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
18427 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
18428 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
18429 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
18430 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
18434 @item gnus-score-followup-article
18435 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
18436 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
18439 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
18440 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
18441 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
18445 @vindex message-sent-hook
18446 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
18447 @code{message-sent-hook}, like this:
18449 (add-hook 'message-sent-hook 'gnus-score-followup-thread)
18453 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
18454 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
18458 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
18459 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
18462 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
18463 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
18468 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore\\.no>"
18472 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
18473 is system-dependent.
18476 @node Scoring On Other Headers
18477 @section Scoring On Other Headers
18478 @cindex scoring on other headers
18480 Gnus is quite fast when scoring the ``traditional''
18481 headers---@samp{From}, @samp{Subject} and so on. However, scoring
18482 other headers requires writing a @code{head} scoring rule, which means
18483 that Gnus has to request every single article from the back end to find
18484 matches. This takes a long time in big groups.
18486 Now, there's not much you can do about this for news groups, but for
18487 mail groups, you have greater control. In the @pxref{To From
18488 Newsgroups} section of the manual, it's explained in greater detail what
18489 this mechanism does, but here's a cookbook example for @code{nnml} on
18490 how to allow scoring on the @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} headers.
18492 Put the following in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
18495 (setq gnus-extra-headers '(To Cc Newsgroups Keywords)
18496 nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
18499 Restart Gnus and rebuild your @code{nnml} overview files with the
18500 @kbd{M-x nnml-generate-nov-databases} command. This will take a long
18501 time if you have much mail.
18503 Now you can score on @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} as ``extra headers'' like
18504 so: @kbd{I e s p To RET <your name> RET}.
18510 @section Scoring Tips
18511 @cindex scoring tips
18517 @cindex scoring crossposts
18518 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
18519 the @code{Xref} header.
18521 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
18524 @item Multiple crossposts
18525 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
18526 more than, say, 3 groups:
18529 ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+"
18533 @item Matching on the body
18534 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
18535 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
18536 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
18537 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
18538 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
18539 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
18540 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
18543 @item Marking as read
18544 You will probably want to mark articles that have scores below a certain
18545 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
18546 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
18550 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
18552 @item Negated character classes
18553 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
18554 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
18555 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
18559 @node Reverse Scoring
18560 @section Reverse Scoring
18561 @cindex reverse scoring
18563 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
18564 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
18565 like this in your score file:
18569 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
18574 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
18575 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
18578 @node Global Score Files
18579 @section Global Score Files
18580 @cindex global score files
18582 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
18583 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
18584 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
18586 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
18587 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
18588 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
18590 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
18591 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
18592 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
18593 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
18594 files are applicable to which group.
18596 To use the score file
18597 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
18598 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory,
18602 (setq gnus-global-score-files
18603 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
18604 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
18607 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
18609 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
18610 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
18611 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
18612 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
18614 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
18615 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
18617 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
18618 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
18619 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
18620 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
18621 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
18622 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
18624 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
18630 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
18632 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
18634 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
18636 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
18637 lowered out of existence.
18639 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
18640 articles completely.
18643 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
18644 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
18645 old articles for a long time.
18648 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
18649 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
18650 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
18651 holding our breath yet?
18655 @section Kill Files
18658 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
18659 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
18660 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
18662 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
18663 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
18664 files into score files.
18666 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
18667 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
18668 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
18669 that isn't a very good idea.
18671 Normal kill files look like this:
18674 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
18675 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
18679 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
18680 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
18682 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
18683 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
18686 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
18691 @kindex M-k (Summary)
18692 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
18693 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
18696 @kindex M-K (Summary)
18697 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
18698 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
18701 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
18706 @kindex M-k (Group)
18707 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
18708 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
18711 @kindex M-K (Group)
18712 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
18713 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
18716 Kill file variables:
18719 @item gnus-kill-file-name
18720 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
18721 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
18722 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
18723 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
18724 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
18725 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
18727 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
18728 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
18729 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
18730 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
18733 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
18734 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
18735 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
18736 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
18737 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
18738 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
18739 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
18740 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
18741 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
18743 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
18744 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
18745 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
18750 @node Converting Kill Files
18751 @section Converting Kill Files
18753 @cindex converting kill files
18755 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
18756 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
18757 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
18760 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
18761 You can fetch it from
18762 @uref{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-various/gnus-kill-to-score.el}.
18764 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
18765 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
18766 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
18774 GroupLens (@uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/}) is a
18775 collaborative filtering system that helps you work together with other
18776 people to find the quality news articles out of the huge volume of
18777 news articles generated every day.
18779 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
18780 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
18781 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
18782 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
18783 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
18784 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
18785 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
18786 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
18789 @sc{Note:} Unfortunately the GroupLens system seems to have shut down,
18790 so this section is mostly of historical interest.
18793 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
18794 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
18795 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
18796 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
18800 @node Using GroupLens
18801 @subsection Using GroupLens
18803 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
18805 @uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
18806 better bit in town at the moment.
18808 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
18812 @item gnus-use-grouplens
18813 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
18814 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
18815 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
18817 @item grouplens-pseudonym
18818 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
18819 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
18820 with the Better Bit Bureau.
18822 @item grouplens-newsgroups
18823 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
18824 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
18828 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
18829 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
18830 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
18831 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
18832 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
18833 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
18836 @node Rating Articles
18837 @subsection Rating Articles
18839 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
18840 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
18841 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
18842 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
18845 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
18850 @kindex r (GroupLens)
18851 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
18852 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
18855 @kindex k (GroupLens)
18856 @findex grouplens-score-thread
18857 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
18858 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
18859 threads in rec.humor.
18863 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
18864 the score of the article you're reading.
18869 @kindex n (GroupLens)
18870 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
18871 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
18874 @kindex , (GroupLens)
18875 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
18876 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
18880 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
18881 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
18884 @node Displaying Predictions
18885 @subsection Displaying Predictions
18887 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
18888 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
18889 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
18890 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
18891 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
18893 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
18894 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
18895 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
18896 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
18897 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
18898 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
18899 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
18900 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
18901 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
18902 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
18903 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
18904 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
18905 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
18907 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
18908 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
18909 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
18910 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
18912 The following are valid values for that variable.
18915 @item prediction-spot
18916 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
18919 @item confidence-interval
18920 A numeric confidence interval.
18922 @item prediction-bar
18923 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
18925 @item confidence-bar
18926 Numerical confidence.
18928 @item confidence-spot
18929 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
18931 @item prediction-num
18932 Plain-old numeric value.
18934 @item confidence-plus-minus
18935 Prediction +/- confidence.
18940 @node GroupLens Variables
18941 @subsection GroupLens Variables
18945 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
18946 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
18947 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
18948 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23n%]%)
18951 @item grouplens-bbb-host
18952 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
18955 @item grouplens-bbb-port
18956 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
18958 @item grouplens-score-offset
18959 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
18960 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
18963 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
18964 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
18965 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
18970 @node Advanced Scoring
18971 @section Advanced Scoring
18973 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
18974 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
18975 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
18976 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
18977 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
18979 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
18983 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
18984 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
18985 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
18989 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
18990 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
18992 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
18993 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
18994 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
18995 non-@code{nil} value.
18997 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
18998 operator, and various match operators.
19005 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
19006 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
19007 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
19012 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
19013 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
19014 then this operator will return @code{false}.
19019 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
19020 logical negation of the value of its argument.
19024 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
19025 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
19026 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
19027 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
19028 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
19029 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
19030 the ancestry you want to go.
19032 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
19033 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
19034 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
19035 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
19036 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
19039 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
19040 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
19042 Please note that the following examples are score file rules. To
19043 make a complete score file from them, surround them with another pair
19046 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
19047 when he's talking about Gnus:
19051 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
19052 ("subject" "Gnus"))
19058 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
19062 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
19069 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
19070 really don't want to read what he's written:
19074 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
19075 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
19079 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
19080 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
19081 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
19088 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
19089 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
19090 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
19091 ("body" "white.*socks"))
19095 The possibilities are endless.
19098 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
19099 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
19101 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
19102 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
19103 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
19104 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
19105 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
19106 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
19107 @samp{subject}) first.
19109 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
19110 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
19121 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
19122 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
19128 ("subject" "Gnus")))
19135 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
19136 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
19141 @section Score Decays
19142 @cindex score decays
19145 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
19146 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
19147 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
19148 use them in any sensible way.
19150 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
19151 @findex gnus-decay-score
19152 @vindex gnus-decay-score-function
19153 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
19154 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
19155 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
19156 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
19157 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-decay-score-function}
19158 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
19159 definition of that function:
19162 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
19164 This is done according to `gnus-score-decay-constant'
19165 and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
19168 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
19170 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
19172 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
19175 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
19176 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
19177 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
19178 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
19182 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
19185 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
19188 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
19192 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
19193 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
19194 the new score, which should be an integer.
19196 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
19197 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
19202 @include message.texi
19203 @chapter Emacs MIME
19204 @include emacs-mime.texi
19206 @include sieve.texi
19208 @c @include pgg.texi
19216 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
19217 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
19218 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
19219 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
19220 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
19221 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
19222 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
19223 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
19224 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
19225 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
19226 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
19227 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
19228 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
19229 * Predicate Specifiers:: Specifying predicates.
19230 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
19231 * Image Enhancements:: Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
19232 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
19233 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
19234 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
19238 @node Process/Prefix
19239 @section Process/Prefix
19240 @cindex process/prefix convention
19242 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
19243 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
19245 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
19246 command to be performed on.
19250 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
19251 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
19252 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
19253 with the current one.
19255 @vindex transient-mark-mode
19256 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
19257 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
19259 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
19260 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
19263 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
19264 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
19266 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
19269 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
19270 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
19271 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
19272 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
19274 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
19275 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
19276 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
19277 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
19278 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
19279 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
19280 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
19281 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
19283 Many commands do not use the process/prefix convention. All commands
19284 that do explicitly say so in this manual. To apply the process/prefix
19285 convention to commands that do not use it, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
19286 command. For instance, to mark all the articles in the group as
19287 expirable, you could say `M P b M-& E'.
19291 @section Interactive
19292 @cindex interaction
19296 @item gnus-novice-user
19297 @vindex gnus-novice-user
19298 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
19299 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
19300 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
19301 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
19304 @item gnus-expert-user
19305 @vindex gnus-expert-user
19306 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
19307 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
19308 matter how strange.
19310 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
19311 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
19312 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
19313 is @code{t} by default.
19315 @item gnus-interactive-exit
19316 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
19317 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
19322 @node Symbolic Prefixes
19323 @section Symbolic Prefixes
19324 @cindex symbolic prefixes
19326 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
19327 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
19328 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
19329 rule of 900 to the current article.
19331 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
19332 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
19333 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
19334 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
19335 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
19336 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
19337 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
19339 @kindex M-i (Summary)
19340 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
19341 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
19342 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
19343 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
19344 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a C-M-u} means ``feed the @kbd{C-M-u}
19345 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b C-M-u} means
19346 ``feed the @kbd{C-M-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
19347 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
19349 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
19350 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
19351 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
19353 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
19357 @node Formatting Variables
19358 @section Formatting Variables
19359 @cindex formatting variables
19361 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
19362 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
19363 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
19364 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
19365 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
19368 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
19369 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
19370 lots of percentages everywhere.
19373 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
19374 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
19375 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
19376 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
19377 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
19378 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
19379 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
19380 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
19383 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
19384 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
19385 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
19386 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
19387 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
19388 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
19389 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
19390 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
19392 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
19393 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
19395 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
19396 @findex gnus-update-format
19397 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
19398 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
19399 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
19400 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
19404 @node Formatting Basics
19405 @subsection Formatting Basics
19407 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
19408 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
19409 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
19411 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
19412 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
19413 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
19414 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
19415 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
19418 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
19419 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
19420 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
19421 less than 4 characters wide.
19423 Also Gnus supports some extended format specifications, such as
19424 @samp{%&user-date;}.
19427 @node Mode Line Formatting
19428 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
19430 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
19431 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
19432 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
19433 with the following two differences:
19438 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
19441 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
19442 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
19443 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
19444 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
19445 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
19446 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
19447 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
19452 @node Advanced Formatting
19453 @subsection Advanced Formatting
19455 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
19456 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
19457 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
19458 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
19460 These are the valid modifiers:
19465 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
19469 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
19474 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
19477 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
19482 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
19485 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
19488 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
19491 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
19497 "~(form (current-time-string))@@"
19502 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
19503 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
19504 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
19505 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
19506 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
19507 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
19508 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
19510 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
19511 last operation, padding.
19513 @vindex gnus-compile-user-specs
19514 If @code{gnus-compile-user-specs} is set to @code{nil} (@code{t} by
19515 default) with your strong personality, and use a lots of these advanced
19516 thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets quite slow. This can be helped
19517 enormously by running @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with
19518 the look of your lines.
19519 @xref{Compilation}.
19522 @node User-Defined Specs
19523 @subsection User-Defined Specs
19525 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
19526 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
19527 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
19528 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
19529 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
19530 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
19531 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
19532 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
19533 should protect against that.
19535 Also Gnus supports extended user-defined specs, such as @samp{%u&foo;}.
19536 Gnus will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{foo}.
19538 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
19539 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
19540 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
19541 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
19545 @node Formatting Fonts
19546 @subsection Formatting Fonts
19548 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
19549 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
19550 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
19551 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
19554 Text inside the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} specifiers will have their
19555 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
19556 default. If you say @samp{%1@{}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
19557 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
19558 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
19559 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
19561 Text inside the @samp{%<<} and @samp{%>>} specifiers will get the
19562 special @code{balloon-help} property set to @code{gnus-balloon-face-0}.
19563 If you say @samp{%1<<}, you'll get @code{gnus-balloon-face-1} and so on.
19564 The @code{gnus-balloon-face-*} variables should be either strings or
19565 symbols naming functions that return a string. When the mouse passes
19566 over text with this property set, a balloon window will appear and
19567 display the string. Please refer to @ref{(emacs)Help Echo} (in GNU
19568 Emacs) or the doc string of @code{balloon-help-mode} (in XEmacs) for
19569 more information on this. (For technical reasons, the guillemets have
19570 been approximated as @samp{<<} and @samp{>>} in this paragraph.)
19572 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
19575 ;; Create three face types.
19576 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
19577 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
19579 ;; We want the article count to be in
19580 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
19581 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
19582 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
19584 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
19585 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
19587 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
19588 (setq gnus-group-line-format
19589 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
19592 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
19593 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
19595 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
19596 mode-line variables.
19598 @node Positioning Point
19599 @subsection Positioning Point
19601 Gnus usually moves point to a pre-defined place on each line in most
19602 buffers. By default, point move to the first colon character on the
19603 line. You can customize this behaviour in three different ways.
19605 You can move the colon character to somewhere else on the line.
19607 @findex gnus-goto-colon
19608 You can redefine the function that moves the point to the colon. The
19609 function is called @code{gnus-goto-colon}.
19611 But perhaps the most convenient way to deal with this, if you don't want
19612 to have a colon in your line, is to use the @samp{%C} specifier. If you
19613 put a @samp{%C} somewhere in your format line definition, Gnus will
19618 @subsection Tabulation
19620 You can usually line up your displays by padding and cutting your
19621 strings. However, when combining various strings of different size, it
19622 can often be more convenient to just output the strings, and then worry
19623 about lining up the following text afterwards.
19625 To do that, Gnus supplies tabulator specs--@samp{%=}. There are two
19626 different types---@dfn{hard tabulators} and @dfn{soft tabulators}.
19628 @samp{%50=} will insert space characters to pad the line up to column
19629 50. If the text is already past column 50, nothing will be inserted.
19630 This is the soft tabulator.
19632 @samp{%-50=} will insert space characters to pad the line up to column
19633 50. If the text is already past column 50, the excess text past column
19634 50 will be removed. This is the hard tabulator.
19637 @node Wide Characters
19638 @subsection Wide Characters
19640 Proportional fonts in most countries have characters of the same width.
19641 Some countries, however, use Latin characters mixed with wider
19642 characters---most notable East Asian countries.
19644 The problem is that when formatting, Gnus assumes that if a string is 10
19645 characters wide, it'll be 10 Latin characters wide on the screen. In
19646 these countries, that's not true.
19648 @vindex gnus-use-correct-string-widths
19649 To help fix this, you can set @code{gnus-use-correct-string-widths} to
19650 @code{t}. This makes buffer generation slower, but the results will be
19651 prettier. The default value under XEmacs is @code{t} but @code{nil}
19655 @node Window Layout
19656 @section Window Layout
19657 @cindex window layout
19659 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
19661 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
19662 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
19663 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
19664 @code{t} by default.
19666 Setting this variable to @code{nil} kinda works, but there are
19667 glitches. Use at your own peril.
19669 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
19670 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
19671 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
19674 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
19675 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
19676 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
19680 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
19681 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
19682 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
19683 possible names is listed below.
19685 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
19686 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
19689 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
19693 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
19694 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
19695 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
19696 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
19697 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
19698 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
19699 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
19700 size spec per split.
19702 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
19703 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
19704 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
19705 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
19706 present) gets focus.
19708 Here's a more complicated example:
19711 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
19712 (summary 0.25 point)
19713 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
19717 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
19718 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
19719 occupy, not a percentage.
19721 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
19722 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
19723 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
19724 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
19725 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
19728 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
19731 (article (horizontal 1.0
19736 (summary 0.25 point)
19741 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
19742 @code{horizontal} thingie?
19744 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
19745 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
19746 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
19747 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
19748 the screen is to be given to this strip.
19750 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
19751 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
19752 lines from the splits.
19754 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
19758 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
19759 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
19760 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
19761 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
19762 buffer = "(" buf-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
19763 size = number | frame-params
19764 buf-name = group | article | summary ...
19767 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
19768 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
19769 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
19770 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
19772 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
19773 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
19774 @cindex window height
19775 @cindex window width
19776 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
19777 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
19778 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
19779 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
19780 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
19781 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
19783 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
19784 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
19785 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
19786 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
19788 @findex gnus-configure-frame
19789 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
19790 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
19791 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
19792 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
19793 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
19794 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
19795 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
19796 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
19797 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
19798 configuration list.
19801 (gnus-configure-frame
19805 (article 0.3 point))
19813 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
19814 @code{frame} split:
19817 (gnus-configure-frame
19820 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
19822 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
19823 (user-position . t)
19824 (left . -1) (top . 1))
19829 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
19830 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
19831 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
19832 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
19833 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
19834 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
19835 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
19836 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
19838 The list of all possible keys for @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} can
19839 be found in its default value.
19841 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
19842 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
19843 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
19847 (message (horizontal 1.0
19848 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
19850 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
19855 One common desire for a multiple frame split is to have a separate frame
19856 for composing mail and news while leaving the original frame intact. To
19857 accomplish that, something like the following can be done:
19862 (if (not (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer))
19863 (car (cdr (assoc 'group gnus-buffer-configuration)))
19864 (car (cdr (assoc 'summary gnus-buffer-configuration))))
19865 (vertical ((user-position . t) (top . 1) (left . 1)
19866 (name . "Message"))
19867 (message 1.0 point))))
19870 @findex gnus-add-configuration
19871 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
19872 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
19873 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
19874 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
19877 (gnus-add-configuration
19878 '(article (vertical 1.0
19880 (summary .25 point)
19884 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
19885 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
19886 Gnus has been loaded.
19888 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
19889 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
19890 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
19891 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
19892 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
19894 If you're using tree displays (@pxref{Tree Display}), and the tree
19895 window is displayed vertically next to another window, you may also want
19896 to fiddle with @code{gnus-tree-minimize-window} to avoid having the
19899 @subsection Example Window Configurations
19903 Narrow left hand side occupied by group buffer. Right hand side split
19904 between summary buffer (top one-sixth) and article buffer (bottom).
19919 (gnus-add-configuration
19922 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
19924 (summary 0.16 point)
19927 (gnus-add-configuration
19930 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
19931 (vertical 1.0 (summary 1.0 point)))))
19937 @node Faces and Fonts
19938 @section Faces and Fonts
19943 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
19944 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
19945 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
19950 @section Compilation
19951 @cindex compilation
19952 @cindex byte-compilation
19954 @findex gnus-compile
19956 Remember all those line format specification variables?
19957 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
19958 on. By default, T-gnus will use the byte-compiled codes of these
19959 variables and we can keep a slow-down to a minimum. However, if you set
19960 @code{gnus-compile-user-specs} to @code{nil} (@code{t} by default),
19961 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
19962 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
19963 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
19966 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
19967 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
19968 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
19969 you'll get top speed again. Note that T-gnus will not save these
19970 compiled specs in the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
19973 @item gnus-compile-user-specs
19974 @vindex gnus-compile-user-specs
19975 If it is non-nil, the user-defined format specs will be byte-compiled
19976 automatically. The default value of this variable is @code{t}. It has
19977 an effect on the values of @code{gnus-*-line-format-spec}.
19982 @section Mode Lines
19985 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
19986 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
19987 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
19988 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
19989 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
19990 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
19991 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
19994 @cindex display-time
19996 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
19997 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
19998 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
19999 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
20000 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
20001 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
20002 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
20003 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
20006 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
20008 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
20009 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
20011 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
20012 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
20013 (length display-time-string)))))
20016 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
20017 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
20018 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
20019 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
20020 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
20023 @node Highlighting and Menus
20024 @section Highlighting and Menus
20026 @cindex highlighting
20029 @vindex gnus-visual
20030 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
20031 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
20032 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
20035 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
20036 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
20039 @item group-highlight
20040 Do highlights in the group buffer.
20041 @item summary-highlight
20042 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
20043 @item article-highlight
20044 Do highlights in the article buffer.
20046 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
20048 Create menus in the group buffer.
20050 Create menus in the summary buffers.
20052 Create menus in the article buffer.
20054 Create menus in the browse buffer.
20056 Create menus in the server buffer.
20058 Create menus in the score buffers.
20060 Create menus in all buffers.
20063 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
20064 buffers, you could say something like:
20067 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
20070 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
20073 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
20076 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
20077 in all Gnus buffers.
20079 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
20082 @item gnus-mouse-face
20083 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
20084 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
20085 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
20089 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
20093 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
20094 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
20095 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
20097 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
20098 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
20099 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
20101 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
20102 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
20103 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
20105 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
20106 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
20107 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
20109 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
20110 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
20111 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
20113 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
20114 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
20115 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
20126 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
20127 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
20128 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
20129 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
20130 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
20134 @vindex gnus-carpal
20135 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
20136 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
20137 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
20142 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
20143 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
20144 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
20146 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
20147 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
20148 Face used on buttons.
20150 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
20151 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
20152 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
20154 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
20155 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
20156 Buttons in the group buffer.
20158 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
20159 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
20160 Buttons in the summary buffer.
20162 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
20163 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
20164 Buttons in the server buffer.
20166 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
20167 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
20168 Buttons in the browse buffer.
20171 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
20172 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
20173 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
20181 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
20182 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
20183 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
20184 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
20185 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
20187 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
20188 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
20189 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
20191 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
20192 been idle for thirty minutes:
20195 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
20198 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
20202 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
20205 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
20206 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
20207 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
20209 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
20210 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
20211 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
20212 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
20214 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
20215 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
20216 @var{idle} minutes.
20218 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
20219 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
20222 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
20223 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
20224 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
20226 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
20227 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
20228 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
20229 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
20231 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
20232 your @file{.gnus} file:
20234 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
20236 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
20239 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
20240 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
20241 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
20242 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
20243 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
20244 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
20245 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
20246 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
20247 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
20248 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
20249 @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
20251 @findex gnus-demon-init
20252 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
20253 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
20254 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
20255 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
20256 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
20258 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
20259 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
20260 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
20269 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
20270 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
20272 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
20273 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
20274 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
20275 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
20278 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
20279 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
20280 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
20281 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
20283 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
20284 this will make spam disappear.
20286 There are some variables to customize, of course:
20289 @item gnus-use-nocem
20290 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
20291 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
20294 @item gnus-nocem-groups
20295 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
20296 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
20297 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
20298 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
20300 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
20301 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
20302 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
20303 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
20304 "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" "cosmo.roadkill" "SpamHippo"
20305 "hweede@@snafu.de")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
20307 Known despammers that you can put in this list are listed at
20308 @uref{http://www.xs4all.nl/~rosalind/nocemreg/nocemreg.html}.
20310 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
20311 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
20312 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
20313 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
20314 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
20315 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
20316 @code{(@var{issuer} @var{conditions} @dots{})} elements in the list.
20317 Each condition is either a string (which is a regexp that matches types
20318 you want to use) or a list on the form @code{(not @var{string})}, where
20319 @var{string} is a regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
20321 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
20322 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
20325 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
20328 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
20329 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
20332 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
20335 The specs are applied left-to-right.
20338 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
20339 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
20341 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
20342 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
20343 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
20344 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
20346 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
20347 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
20350 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
20352 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
20360 This might be dangerous, though.
20362 @item gnus-nocem-directory
20363 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
20364 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
20365 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
20367 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
20368 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
20369 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
20370 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
20371 might then see old spam.
20373 @item gnus-nocem-check-from
20374 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-from
20375 Non-@code{nil} means check for valid issuers in message bodies.
20376 Otherwise don't bother fetching articles unless their author matches a
20377 valid issuer; that is much faster if you are selective about the
20380 @item gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
20381 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
20382 If non-@code{nil}, the maximum number of articles to check in any NoCeM
20383 group. NoCeM groups can be huge and very slow to process.
20387 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
20388 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
20389 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
20390 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
20397 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
20398 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
20399 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
20401 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
20402 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
20403 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
20404 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
20405 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
20406 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
20407 @code{undo} function.
20409 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
20410 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
20411 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
20412 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
20413 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
20414 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
20415 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
20416 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
20417 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
20418 never be totally undoable.
20420 @findex gnus-undo-mode
20421 @vindex gnus-use-undo
20423 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
20424 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
20425 default. The @kbd{C-M-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo}
20426 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
20430 @node Predicate Specifiers
20431 @section Predicate Specifiers
20432 @cindex predicate specifiers
20434 Some Gnus variables are @dfn{predicate specifiers}. This is a special
20435 form that allows flexible specification of predicates without having
20436 to type all that much.
20438 These specifiers are lists consisting of functions, symbols and lists.
20443 (or gnus-article-unseen-p
20444 gnus-article-unread-p)
20447 The available symbols are @code{or}, @code{and} and @code{not}. The
20448 functions all take one parameter.
20450 @findex gnus-make-predicate
20451 Internally, Gnus calls @code{gnus-make-predicate} on these specifiers
20452 to create a function that can be called. This input parameter to this
20453 function will be passed along to all the functions in the predicate
20458 @section Moderation
20461 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
20462 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
20463 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
20466 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
20470 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
20473 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
20475 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
20480 You split your incoming mail by matching on
20481 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
20482 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
20485 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
20486 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
20489 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
20490 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
20494 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
20497 (setq gnus-moderated-list
20498 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
20502 @node Image Enhancements
20503 @section Image Enhancements
20505 XEmacs, as well as Emacs 21, is able to display pictures and stuff, so
20506 Gnus has taken advantage of that.
20509 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what you're reading.
20510 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
20511 * X-Face:: Display a funky, teensy black-and-white image.
20512 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
20513 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
20526 So@dots{} You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
20527 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
20528 over your shoulder as you read news.
20531 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
20532 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
20533 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
20534 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
20535 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
20540 @subsubsection Picon Basics
20542 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
20551 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
20552 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
20553 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
20554 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
20555 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
20556 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
20557 @code{GIF} formats.
20560 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
20561 If you have a permanent connection to the Internet you can use Steve
20562 Kinzler's Picons Search engine by setting
20563 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} to the string @*
20564 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/search.html}.
20566 @vindex gnus-picons-database
20567 Otherwise you need a local copy of his database. For instructions on
20568 obtaining and installing the picons databases, point your Web browser at @*
20569 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}. Gnus expects
20570 picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
20571 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
20573 If you are using Debian GNU/Linux, saying @samp{apt-get install
20574 picons.*} will install the picons where Gnus can find them.
20577 @node Picon Requirements
20578 @subsubsection Picon Requirements
20580 To have Gnus display Picons for you, you must have @code{x} support
20581 compiled into XEmacs. To display color picons which are much nicer
20582 than the black & white one, you also need one of @code{xpm} or
20583 @code{gif} compiled into XEmacs.
20585 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
20586 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you should have
20587 the @code{xface} support compiled into XEmacs. Otherwise you must have
20588 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
20589 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
20590 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable name, not @code{xface})
20593 @subsubsection Easy Picons
20595 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
20596 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
20599 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
20600 (setq gnus-treat-display-picons t)
20603 and make sure @code{gnus-picons-database} points to the directory
20604 containing the Picons databases.
20606 Alternatively if you want to use the web piconsearch engine add this:
20609 (setq gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
20610 "http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch")
20615 @subsubsection Hard Picons
20623 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
20624 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
20625 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
20626 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
20627 feature, you need to select where to get the picons from, and where to
20632 @item gnus-picons-database
20633 @vindex gnus-picons-database
20634 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
20635 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
20636 subdirectories. This is only useful if
20637 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} is @code{nil}. Defaults to
20638 @file{/usr/local/faces/}.
20640 @item gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
20641 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
20642 The URL for the web picons search engine. The only currently known
20643 engine is @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch}. To
20644 workaround network delays, icons will be fetched in the background. If
20645 this is @code{nil} 'the default), then picons are fetched from local
20646 database indicated by @code{gnus-picons-database}.
20648 @item gnus-picons-display-where
20649 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
20650 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
20651 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
20652 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
20653 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
20654 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
20655 routines---@pxref{Window Layout}.
20657 @item gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
20658 @vindex gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
20659 Groups that are matched by this regexp won't have their group icons
20664 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
20665 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
20667 Now that you've made those decision, you need to add the following
20668 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get displayed
20671 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
20673 @item gnus-article-display-picons
20674 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
20675 Looks up and displays the picons for the author and the author's domain
20676 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer.
20678 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
20679 @findex gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
20680 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present.
20681 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the function name, not @code{xface})
20687 @node Picon Useless Configuration
20688 @subsubsection Picon Useless Configuration
20696 The following variables offer further control over how things are
20697 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
20698 don't need to worry about.
20702 @item gnus-picons-news-directories
20703 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directories
20704 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
20705 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
20707 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
20708 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
20709 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
20710 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc")} is the default.
20712 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
20713 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
20714 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
20715 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
20716 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
20718 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
20719 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
20720 If you don't have @code{xface} support builtin XEmacs, this is the
20721 command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
20722 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
20723 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
20724 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
20725 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable name, not @code{xface})
20727 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
20728 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
20729 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
20730 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
20731 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable name, not @code{xface})
20733 @item gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
20734 @vindex gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
20735 If you have set @code{gnus-picons-display-where} to @code{picons}, your
20736 XEmacs frame will become really cluttered. To alleviate this a bit you
20737 can set @code{gnus-picons-has-modeline-p} to @code{nil}; this will
20738 remove the mode line from the Picons buffer. This is only useful if
20739 @code{gnus-picons-display-where} is @code{picons}.
20741 @item gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
20742 @vindex gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
20743 If non-nil, display the article buffer before computing the picons.
20744 Defaults to @code{nil}.
20746 @item gnus-picons-display-as-address
20747 @vindex gnus-picons-display-as-address
20748 If @code{t} display textual email addresses along with pictures.
20749 Defaults to @code{t}.
20751 @item gnus-picons-file-suffixes
20752 @vindex gnus-picons-file-suffixes
20753 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
20754 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your XEmacs.
20756 @item gnus-picons-setup-hook
20757 @vindex gnus-picons-setup-hook
20758 Hook run in the picon buffer, if that is displayed.
20760 @item gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
20761 @vindex gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
20762 Whether to move point to first empty line when displaying picons. This
20763 has only an effect if `gnus-picons-display-where' has value `article'.
20765 If @code{nil}, display the picons in the @code{From} and
20766 @code{Newsgroups} lines. This is the default.
20768 @item gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
20769 @vindex gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
20770 Whether to clear the picons cache when exiting gnus. Gnus caches every
20771 picons it finds while it is running. This saves some time in the search
20772 process but eats some memory. If this variable is set to @code{nil},
20773 Gnus will never clear the cache itself; you will have to manually call
20774 @code{gnus-picons-clear-cache} to clear it. Otherwise the cache will be
20775 cleared every time you exit Gnus. Defaults to @code{t}.
20786 @subsection Smileys
20791 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/BigFace,height=20cm}}
20796 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
20797 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
20799 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
20800 @file{.gnus.el} file:
20803 (setq gnus-treat-display-smileys t)
20806 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{:-=}, @samp{:-(} and
20807 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
20808 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
20809 text and maps that to file names.
20811 @vindex smiley-nosey-regexp-alist
20812 @vindex smiley-deformed-regexp-alist
20813 Smiley supplies two example conversion alists by default:
20814 @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist} (which matches @samp{:)}, @samp{:(}
20815 and so on), and @code{smiley-nosey-regexp-alist} (which matches
20816 @samp{:-)}, @samp{:-(} and so on).
20818 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist} variable,
20819 which defaults to the value of @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist}.
20821 The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched; the second
20822 element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by the picture;
20823 and the third element is the name of the file to be displayed.
20825 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
20826 files, as well as the color to be used and stuff:
20830 @item smiley-data-directory
20831 @vindex smiley-data-directory
20832 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
20834 @item smiley-flesh-color
20835 @vindex smiley-flesh-color
20836 Skin color. The default is @samp{yellow}, which is really racist.
20838 @item smiley-features-color
20839 @vindex smiley-features-color
20840 Color of the features of the face. The default is @samp{black}.
20842 @item smiley-tongue-color
20843 @vindex smiley-tongue-color
20844 Color of the tongue. The default is @samp{red}.
20846 @item smiley-circle-color
20847 @vindex smiley-circle-color
20848 Color of the circle around the face. The default is @samp{black}.
20850 @item smiley-mouse-face
20851 @vindex smiley-mouse-face
20852 Face used for mouse highlighting over the smiley face.
20861 @code{X-Face} headers describe a 48x48 pixel black-and-white (1 bit
20862 depth) image that's supposed to represent the author of the message.
20863 It seems to be supported by an ever-growing number of mail and news
20867 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
20868 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
20869 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
20870 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
20878 Decoding an @code{X-Face} header either requires an Emacs that has
20879 @samp{compface} support (which most XEmacs versions has), or that you
20880 have @samp{compface} installed on your system. If either is true,
20881 Gnus will default to displaying @code{X-Face} headers.
20883 The variable that controls this is the
20884 @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable. If this variable is a
20885 string, this string will be executed in a sub-shell. If it is a
20886 function, this function will be called with the face as the argument.
20887 If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which is a regexp) matches
20888 the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
20890 The default action under Emacs 20 is to fork off the @code{display}
20891 program@footnote{@code{display} is from the ImageMagick package. For
20892 the @code{uncompface} and @code{icontopbm} programs look for a package
20893 like @code{compface} or @code{faces-xface} on a GNU/Linux system.} to
20896 Under XEmacs or Emacs 21+ with suitable image support, the default
20897 action is to display the face before the @code{From} header. (It's
20898 nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with @code{X-Face} support---that
20899 will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native @code{X-Face}
20900 support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
20901 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and
20902 friends.@footnote{On a GNU/Linux system look for packages with names
20903 like @code{netpbm}, @code{libgr-progs} and @code{compface}.})
20905 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable/function names, not
20908 Gnus provides a few convenience functions and variables to allow
20909 easier insertion of X-Face headers in outgoing messages.
20911 @findex gnus-random-x-face
20912 @code{gnus-random-x-face} goes through all the @samp{pbm} files
20913 in @code{gnus-x-face-directory} and picks one at random, and then
20914 converts it to the X-Face format by using the
20915 @code{gnus-convert-pbm-to-x-face-command} shell command. The
20916 @samp{pbm} files should be 48x48 pixels big.
20918 @code{gnus-x-face-from-file} takes a GIF file as the parameter, and then
20919 converts the file to X-Face format by using the
20920 @code{gnus-convert-image-to-x-face-command} shell command.
20922 Here's how you would typically use the former function. Put something
20923 like the following in your @file{.gnus.el} file:
20926 (setq message-required-news-headers
20927 (nconc message-required-news-headers
20928 (list '(X-Face . gnus-random-x-face))))
20931 Using the latter function would be something like this:
20934 (setq message-required-news-headers
20935 (nconc message-required-news-headers
20936 (list '(X-Face . (lambda ()
20937 (gnus-x-face-from-file
20938 "~/My-face.gif"))))))
20943 @subsection Toolbar
20953 @item gnus-use-toolbar
20954 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
20955 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
20956 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
20957 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
20959 @item gnus-group-toolbar
20960 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
20961 The toolbar in the group buffer.
20963 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
20964 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
20965 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
20967 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
20968 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
20969 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
20975 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
20978 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
20979 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
20980 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
20981 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
20982 unusual directory structure.
20984 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
20985 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
20986 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
20987 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
20989 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
20990 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
20991 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
20992 Valid values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
20993 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
20994 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
20996 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
20997 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
20998 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
21012 @node Fuzzy Matching
21013 @section Fuzzy Matching
21014 @cindex fuzzy matching
21016 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
21017 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
21019 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
21020 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
21021 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
21023 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
21024 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
21025 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
21026 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
21027 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
21030 @node Thwarting Email Spam
21031 @section Thwarting Email Spam
21035 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
21037 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
21038 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
21039 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
21040 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
21041 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
21042 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
21043 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
21044 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
21047 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
21048 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
21049 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
21050 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
21051 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
21052 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
21054 This is annoying. Here's what you can do about it.
21057 * The problem of spam:: Some background, and some solutions
21058 * Anti-Spam Basics:: Simple steps to reduce the amount of spam.
21059 * SpamAssassin:: How to use external anti-spam tools.
21060 * Hashcash:: Reduce spam by burning CPU time.
21061 * Filtering Spam Using spam.el::
21062 * Filtering Spam Using Statistics (spam-stat.el)::
21065 @node The problem of spam
21066 @subsection The problem of spam
21068 @cindex spam filtering approaches
21069 @cindex filtering approaches, spam
21071 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
21073 First, some background on spam.
21075 If you have access to e-mail, you are familiar with spam (technically
21076 termed @acronym{UCE}, Unsolicited Commercial E-mail). Simply put, it exists
21077 because e-mail delivery is very cheap compared to paper mail, so only
21078 a very small percentage of people need to respond to an UCE to make it
21079 worthwhile to the advertiser. Ironically, one of the most common
21080 spams is the one offering a database of e-mail addresses for further
21081 spamming. Senders of spam are usually called @emph{spammers}, but terms like
21082 @emph{vermin}, @emph{scum}, and @emph{morons} are in common use as well.
21084 Spam comes from a wide variety of sources. It is simply impossible to
21085 dispose of all spam without discarding useful messages. A good
21086 example is the TMDA system, which requires senders
21087 unknown to you to confirm themselves as legitimate senders before
21088 their e-mail can reach you. Without getting into the technical side
21089 of TMDA, a downside is clearly that e-mail from legitimate sources may
21090 be discarded if those sources can't or won't confirm themselves
21091 through the TMDA system. Another problem with TMDA is that it
21092 requires its users to have a basic understanding of e-mail delivery
21095 The simplest approach to filtering spam is filtering. If you get 200
21096 spam messages per day from @email{random-address@@vmadmin.com}, you
21097 block @samp{vmadmin.com}. If you get 200 messages about
21098 @samp{VIAGRA}, you discard all messages with @samp{VIAGRA} in the
21099 message. This, unfortunately, is a great way to discard legitimate
21100 e-mail. For instance, the very informative and useful RISKS digest
21101 has been blocked by overzealous mail filters because it
21102 @strong{contained} words that were common in spam messages.
21103 Nevertheless, in isolated cases, with great care, direct filtering of
21104 mail can be useful.
21106 Another approach to filtering e-mail is the distributed spam
21107 processing, for instance DCC implements such a system. In essence,
21108 @code{N} systems around the world agree that a machine @samp{X} in
21109 China, Ghana, or California is sending out spam e-mail, and these
21110 @code{N} systems enter @samp{X} or the spam e-mail from @samp{X} into
21111 a database. The criteria for spam detection vary - it may be the
21112 number of messages sent, the content of the messages, and so on. When
21113 a user of the distributed processing system wants to find out if a
21114 message is spam, he consults one of those @code{N} systems.
21116 Distributed spam processing works very well against spammers that send
21117 a large number of messages at once, but it requires the user to set up
21118 fairly complicated checks. There are commercial and free distributed
21119 spam processing systems. Distributed spam processing has its risks as
21120 well. For instance legitimate e-mail senders have been accused of
21121 sending spam, and their web sites have been shut down for some time
21122 because of the incident.
21124 The statistical approach to spam filtering is also popular. It is
21125 based on a statistical analysis of previous spam messages. Usually
21126 the analysis is a simple word frequency count, with perhaps pairs of
21127 words or 3-word combinations thrown into the mix. Statistical
21128 analysis of spam works very well in most of the cases, but it can
21129 classify legitimate e-mail as spam in some cases. It takes time to
21130 run the analysis, the full message must be analyzed, and the user has
21131 to store the database of spam analyses.
21133 @node Anti-Spam Basics
21134 @subsection Anti-Spam Basics
21138 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
21140 One way of dealing with spam is having Gnus split out all spam into a
21141 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
21143 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
21144 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
21145 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
21146 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
21147 sysadmin whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
21148 part of the mail address.)
21151 (setq message-default-news-headers
21152 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
21155 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
21156 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
21161 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
21162 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
21163 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
21169 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
21170 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
21171 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
21172 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
21174 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @sc{smtp} server
21175 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
21176 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
21177 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
21178 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
21179 your fancy split rule in this way:
21184 (to "larsi" "misc")
21188 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
21189 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
21190 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
21191 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
21192 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
21194 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
21195 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
21196 at @* @uref{http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html}.
21197 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
21198 cosmic balance somewhat.
21200 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
21201 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
21202 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
21203 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
21208 @subsection SpamAssassin, Vipul's Razor, DCC, etc
21209 @cindex SpamAssassin
21210 @cindex Vipul's Razor
21213 The days where the hints in the previous section was sufficient in
21214 avoiding spam is coming to an end. There are many tools out there
21215 that claim to reduce the amount of spam you get. This section could
21216 easily become outdated fast, as new products replace old, but
21217 fortunately most of these tools seem to have similar interfaces. Even
21218 though this section will use SpamAssassin as an example, it should be
21219 easy to adapt it to most other tools.
21221 If the tool you are using is not installed on the mail server, you
21222 need to invoke it yourself. Ideas on how to use the
21223 @code{:postscript} mail source parameter (@pxref{Mail Source
21224 Specifiers}) follows.
21228 '((file :prescript "formail -bs spamassassin < /var/mail/%u")
21231 :postscript "mv %t /tmp/foo; formail -bs spamc < /tmp/foo > %t")))
21234 Once you managed to process your incoming spool somehow, thus making
21235 the mail contain e.g. a header indicating it is spam, you are ready to
21236 filter it out. Using normal split methods (@pxref{Splitting Mail}):
21239 (setq nnmail-split-methods '(("spam" "^X-Spam-Flag: YES")
21243 Or using fancy split methods (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
21246 (setq nnmail-split-methods 'nnmail-split-fancy
21247 nnmail-split-fancy '(| ("X-Spam-Flag" "YES" "spam")
21251 Some people might not like the idea of piping the mail through various
21252 programs using a @code{:prescript} (if some program is buggy, you
21253 might lose all mail). If you are one of them, another solution is to
21254 call the external tools during splitting. Example fancy split method:
21257 (setq nnmail-split-fancy '(| (: kevin-spamassassin)
21259 (defun kevin-spamassassin ()
21261 (let ((buf (or (get-buffer " *nnmail incoming*")
21262 (get-buffer " *nnml move*"))))
21264 (progn (message "Oops, cannot find message buffer") nil)
21266 (if (eq 1 (call-process-region (point-min) (point-max)
21267 "spamc" nil nil nil "-c"))
21271 That is about it. As some spam is likely to get through anyway, you
21272 might want to have a nifty function to call when you happen to read
21273 spam. And here is the nifty function:
21276 (defun my-gnus-raze-spam ()
21277 "Submit SPAM to Vipul's Razor, then mark it as expirable."
21279 (gnus-summary-show-raw-article)
21280 (gnus-summary-save-in-pipe "razor-report -f -d")
21281 (gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable 1))
21285 @subsection Hashcash
21288 A novel technique to fight spam is to require senders to do something
21289 costly for each message they send. This has the obvious drawback that
21290 you cannot rely on that everyone in the world uses this technique,
21291 since it is not part of the Internet standards, but it may be useful
21292 in smaller communities.
21294 While the tools in the previous section work well in practice, they
21295 work only because the tools are constantly maintained and updated as
21296 new form of spam appears. This means that a small percentage of spam
21297 will always get through. It also means that somewhere, someone needs
21298 to read lots of spam to update these tools. Hashcash avoids that, but
21299 instead requires that everyone you communicate with supports the
21300 scheme. You can view the two approaches as pragmatic vs dogmatic.
21301 The approaches have their own advantages and disadvantages, but as
21302 often in the real world, a combination of them is stronger than either
21303 one of them separately.
21306 The ``something costly'' is to burn CPU time, more specifically to
21307 compute a hash collision up to a certain number of bits. The
21308 resulting hashcash cookie is inserted in a @samp{X-Hashcash:}
21309 header. For more details, and for the external application
21310 @code{hashcash} you need to install to use this feature, see
21311 @uref{http://www.cypherspace.org/~adam/hashcash/}. Even more
21312 information can be found at @uref{http://www.camram.org/}.
21314 If you wish to call hashcash for each message you send, say something
21318 (require 'hashcash)
21319 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'mail-add-payment)
21322 The @code{hashcash.el} library can be found at
21323 @uref{http://users.actrix.gen.nz/mycroft/hashcash.el}, or in the Gnus
21324 development contrib directory.
21326 You will need to set up some additional variables as well:
21330 @item hashcash-default-payment
21331 @vindex hashcash-default-payment
21332 This variable indicates the default number of bits the hash collision
21333 should consist of. By default this is 0, meaning nothing will be
21334 done. Suggested useful values include 17 to 29.
21336 @item hashcash-payment-alist
21337 @vindex hashcash-payment-alist
21338 Some receivers may require you to spend burn more CPU time than the
21339 default. This variable contains a list of @samp{(ADDR AMOUNT)} cells,
21340 where ADDR is the receiver (email address or newsgroup) and AMOUNT is
21341 the number of bits in the collision that is needed. It can also
21342 contain @samp{(ADDR STRING AMOUNT)} cells, where the STRING is the
21343 string to use (normally the email address or newsgroup name is used).
21347 Where the @code{hashcash} binary is installed.
21351 Currently there is no built in functionality in Gnus to verify
21352 hashcash cookies, it is expected that this is performed by your hand
21353 customized mail filtering scripts. Improvements in this area would be
21354 a useful contribution, however.
21356 @node Filtering Spam Using spam.el
21357 @subsection Filtering Spam Using spam.el
21358 @cindex spam filtering
21361 The idea behind @code{spam.el} is to have a control center for spam detection
21362 and filtering in Gnus. To that end, @code{spam.el} does two things: it
21363 filters incoming mail, and it analyzes mail known to be spam.
21365 So, what happens when you load @code{spam.el}? First of all, you get
21366 the following keyboard commands:
21376 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-spam
21377 @code{gnus-summary-mark-as-spam}.
21379 Mark current article as spam, showing it with the @samp{H} mark.
21380 Whenever you see a spam article, make sure to mark its summary line
21381 with @kbd{M-d} before leaving the group.
21387 @findex spam-bogofilter-score
21388 @code{spam-bogofilter-score}.
21390 You must have bogofilter processing enabled for that command to work
21397 Gnus can learn from the spam you get. All you have to do is collect
21398 your spam in one or more spam groups, and set the variable
21399 @code{spam-junk-mailgroups} as appropriate. In these groups, all messages
21400 are considered to be spam by default: they get the @samp{H} mark. You must
21401 review these messages from time to time and remove the @samp{H} mark for
21402 every message that is not spam after all. When you leave a spam
21403 group, all messages that continue with the @samp{H} mark, are passed on to
21404 the spam-detection engine (bogofilter, ifile, and others). To remove
21405 the @samp{H} mark, you can use @kbd{M-u} to "unread" the article, or @kbd{d} for
21406 declaring it read the non-spam way. When you leave a group, all @samp{H}
21407 marked articles, saved or unsaved, are sent to Bogofilter or ifile
21408 (depending on @code{spam-use-bogofilter} and @code{spam-use-ifile}), which will study
21409 them as spam samples.
21411 Messages may also be deleted in various other ways, and unless
21412 @code{spam-ham-marks-form} gets overridden below, marks @samp{R} and @samp{r} for
21413 default read or explicit delete, marks @samp{X} and @samp{K} for automatic or
21414 explicit kills, as well as mark @samp{Y} for low scores, are all considered
21415 to be associated with articles which are not spam. This assumption
21416 might be false, in particular if you use kill files or score files as
21417 means for detecting genuine spam, you should then adjust
21418 @code{spam-ham-marks-form}. When you leave a group, all _unsaved_ articles
21419 bearing any the above marks are sent to Bogofilter or ifile, which
21420 will study these as not-spam samples. If you explicit kill a lot, you
21421 might sometimes end up with articles marked @samp{K} which you never saw,
21422 and which might accidentally contain spam. Best is to make sure that
21423 real spam is marked with @samp{H}, and nothing else.
21425 All other marks do not contribute to Bogofilter or ifile
21426 pre-conditioning. In particular, ticked, dormant or souped articles
21427 are likely to contribute later, when they will get deleted for real,
21428 so there is no need to use them prematurely. Explicitly expired
21429 articles do not contribute, command @kbd{E} is a way to get rid of an
21430 article without Bogofilter or ifile ever seeing it.
21432 @strong{TODO: @code{spam-use-ifile} does not process spam articles on group exit.
21433 I'm waiting for info from the author of @code{ifile-gnus.el}, because I think
21434 that functionality should go in @code{ifile-gnus.el} rather than @code{spam.el}.}
21436 To use the @code{spam.el} facilities for incoming mail filtering, you
21437 must add the following to your fancy split list
21438 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} or @code{nnimap-split-fancy}:
21444 Note that the fancy split may be called @code{nnmail-split-fancy} or
21445 @code{nnimap-split-fancy}, depending on whether you use the nnmail or
21446 nnimap back ends to retrieve your mail.
21448 The @code{spam-split} function will process incoming mail and send the mail
21449 considered to be spam into the group name given by the variable
21450 @code{spam-split-group}. Usually that group name is @samp{spam}.
21452 The following are the methods you can use to control the behavior of
21456 * Blacklists and Whitelists::
21457 * BBDB Whitelists::
21460 * Ifile spam filtering::
21461 * Extending spam.el::
21464 @node Blacklists and Whitelists
21465 @subsubsection Blacklists and Whitelists
21466 @cindex spam filtering
21467 @cindex whitelists, spam filtering
21468 @cindex blacklists, spam filtering
21471 @defvar spam-use-blacklist
21472 Set this variables to t (the default) if you want to use blacklists.
21475 @defvar spam-use-whitelist
21476 Set this variables to t if you want to use whitelists.
21479 Blacklists are lists of regular expressions matching addresses you
21480 consider to be spam senders. For instance, to block mail from any
21481 sender at @samp{vmadmin.com}, you can put @samp{vmadmin.com} in your
21482 blacklist. Since you start out with an empty blacklist, no harm is
21483 done by having the @code{spam-use-blacklist} variable set, so it is
21484 set by default. Blacklist entries use the Emacs regular expression
21487 Conversely, whitelists tell Gnus what addresses are considered
21488 legitimate. All non-whitelisted addresses are considered spammers.
21489 This option is probably not useful for most Gnus users unless the
21490 whitelists is very comprehensive. Also see @ref{BBDB Whitelists}.
21491 Whitelist entries use the Emacs regular expression syntax.
21493 The Blacklist and whitelist location can be customized with the
21494 @code{spam-directory} variable (@file{~/News/spam} by default). The whitelist
21495 and blacklist files will be in that directory, named @file{whitelist} and
21496 @file{blacklist} respectively.
21498 @node BBDB Whitelists
21499 @subsubsection BBDB Whitelists
21500 @cindex spam filtering
21501 @cindex BBDB whitelists, spam filtering
21502 @cindex BBDB, spam filtering
21505 @defvar spam-use-bbdb
21507 Analogous to @code{spam-use-whitelist} (@pxref{Blacklists and
21508 Whitelists}), but uses the BBDB as the source of whitelisted addresses,
21509 without regular expressions. You must have the BBDB loaded for
21510 @code{spam-use-bbdb} to work properly. Only addresses in the BBDB
21511 will be allowed through; all others will be classified as spam.
21516 @subsubsection Blackholes
21517 @cindex spam filtering
21518 @cindex blackholes, spam filtering
21521 @defvar spam-use-blackholes
21523 This option is disabled by default. You can let Gnus consult the
21524 blackhole-type distributed spam processing systems (DCC, for instance)
21525 when you set this option. The variable @code{spam-blackhole-servers}
21526 holds the list of blackhole servers Gnus will consult. The current
21527 list is fairly comprehensive, but make sure to let us know if it
21528 contains outdated servers.
21530 The blackhole check uses the @code{dig.el} package, but you can tell
21531 @code{spam.el} to use @code{dns.el} instead for better performance if
21532 you set @code{spam-use-dig} to nil. It is not recommended at this
21533 time to set @code{spam-use-dig} to nil despite the possible
21534 performance improvements, because some users may be unable to use it,
21535 but you can try it and see if it works for you.
21540 @subsubsection Bogofilter
21541 @cindex spam filtering
21542 @cindex bogofilter, spam filtering
21545 @defvar spam-use-bogofilter
21547 Set this variable if you want to use Eric Raymond's speedy Bogofilter.
21548 This has been tested with a locally patched copy of version 0.4. Make
21549 sure to read the installation comments in @code{spam.el}.
21551 With a minimum of care for associating the @samp{H} mark for spam
21552 articles only, Bogofilter training all gets fairly automatic. You
21553 should do this until you get a few hundreds of articles in each
21554 category, spam or not. The shell command @command{head -1
21555 ~/.bogofilter/*} shows both article counts. The command @kbd{S t} in
21556 summary mode, either for debugging or for curiosity, triggers
21557 Bogofilter into displaying in another buffer the @emph{spamicity}
21558 score of the current article (between 0.0 and 1.0), together with the
21559 article words which most significantly contribute to the score.
21563 @node Ifile spam filtering
21564 @subsubsection Ifile spam filtering
21565 @cindex spam filtering
21566 @cindex ifile, spam filtering
21569 @defvar spam-use-ifile
21571 Enable this variable if you want to use Ifile, a statistical analyzer
21572 similar to Bogofilter. Currently you must have @code{ifile-gnus.el}
21573 loaded. The integration of Ifile with @code{spam.el} is not finished
21574 yet, but you can use @code{ifile-gnus.el} on its own if you like.
21578 @node Extending spam.el
21579 @subsubsection Extending spam.el
21580 @cindex spam filtering
21581 @cindex spam.el, extending
21582 @cindex extending spam.el
21584 Say you want to add a new back end called blackbox. Provide the following:
21594 (defvar spam-use-blackbox nil
21595 "True if blackbox should be used.")
21600 (spam-use-blackbox . spam-check-blackbox)
21602 to @code{spam-list-of-checks}.
21607 Write the @code{spam-check-blackbox} function. It should return
21608 @samp{nil} or @code{spam-split-group}. See the existing
21609 @code{spam-check-*} functions for examples of what you can do.
21612 @node Filtering Spam Using Statistics (spam-stat.el)
21613 @subsection Filtering Spam Using Statistics (spam-stat.el)
21614 @cindex Paul Graham
21615 @cindex Graham, Paul
21616 @cindex naive Bayesian spam filtering
21617 @cindex Bayesian spam filtering, naive
21618 @cindex spam filtering, naive Bayesian
21620 Paul Graham has written an excellent essay about spam filtering using
21621 statistics: @uref{http://www.paulgraham.com/spam.html,A Plan for
21622 Spam}. In it he describes the inherent deficiency of rule-based
21623 filtering as used by SpamAssassin, for example: Somebody has to write
21624 the rules, and everybody else has to install these rules. You are
21625 always late. It would be much better, he argues, to filter mail based
21626 on whether it somehow resembles spam or non-spam. One way to measure
21627 this is word distribution. He then goes on to describe a solution
21628 that checks whether a new mail resembles any of your other spam mails
21631 The basic idea is this: Create a two collections of your mail, one
21632 with spam, one with non-spam. Count how often each word appears in
21633 either collection, weight this by the total number of mails in the
21634 collections, and store this information in a dictionary. For every
21635 word in a new mail, determine its probability to belong to a spam or a
21636 non-spam mail. Use the 15 most conspicuous words, compute the total
21637 probability of the mail being spam. If this probability is higher
21638 than a certain threshold, the mail is considered to be spam.
21640 Gnus supports this kind of filtering. But it needs some setting up.
21641 First, you need two collections of your mail, one with spam, one with
21642 non-spam. Then you need to create a dictionary using these two
21643 collections, and save it. And last but not least, you need to use
21644 this dictionary in your fancy mail splitting rules.
21647 * Creating a spam-stat dictionary::
21648 * Splitting mail using spam-stat::
21649 * Low-level interface to the spam-stat dictionary::
21652 @node Creating a spam-stat dictionary
21653 @subsubsection Creating a spam-stat dictionary
21655 Before you can begin to filter spam based on statistics, you must
21656 create these statistics based on two mail collections, one with spam,
21657 one with non-spam. These statistics are then stored in a dictionary
21658 for later use. In order for these statistics to be meaningful, you
21659 need several hundred emails in both collections.
21661 Gnus currently supports only the nnml back end for automated dictionary
21662 creation. The nnml back end stores all mails in a directory, one file
21663 per mail. Use the following:
21665 @defun spam-stat-process-spam-directory
21666 Create spam statistics for every file in this directory. Every file
21667 is treated as one spam mail.
21670 @defun spam-stat-process-non-spam-directory
21671 Create non-spam statistics for every file in this directory. Every
21672 file is treated as one non-spam mail.
21675 Usually you would call @code{spam-stat-process-spam-directory} on a
21676 directory such as @file{~/Mail/mail/spam} (this usually corresponds
21677 the the group @samp{nnml:mail.spam}), and you would call
21678 @code{spam-stat-process-non-spam-directory} on a directory such as
21679 @file{~/Mail/mail/misc} (this usually corresponds the the group
21680 @samp{nnml:mail.misc}).
21683 This variable holds the hash-table with all the statistics -- the
21684 dictionary we have been talking about. For every word in either
21685 collection, this hash-table stores a vector describing how often the
21686 word appeared in spam and often it appeared in non-spam mails.
21688 If you want to regenerate the statistics from scratch, you need to
21689 reset the dictionary.
21693 @defun spam-stat-reset
21694 Reset the @code{spam-stat} hash-table, deleting all the statistics.
21696 When you are done, you must save the dictionary. The dictionary may
21697 be rather large. If you will not update the dictionary incrementally
21698 (instead, you will recreate it once a month, for example), then you
21699 can reduce the size of the dictionary by deleting all words that did
21700 not appear often enough or that do not clearly belong to only spam or
21701 only non-spam mails.
21704 @defun spam-stat-reduce-size
21705 Reduce the size of the dictionary. Use this only if you do not want
21706 to update the dictionary incrementally.
21709 @defun spam-stat-save
21710 Save the dictionary.
21713 @defvar spam-stat-file
21714 The filename used to store the dictionary. This defaults to
21715 @file{~/.spam-stat.el}.
21718 @node Splitting mail using spam-stat
21719 @subsubsection Splitting mail using spam-stat
21721 In order to use @code{spam-stat} to split your mail, you need to add the
21722 following to your @file{~/.gnus} file:
21725 (require 'spam-stat)
21729 This will load the necessary Gnus code, and the dictionary you
21732 Next, you need to adapt your fancy splitting rules: You need to
21733 determine how to use @code{spam-stat}. In the simplest case, you only have
21734 two groups, @samp{mail.misc} and @samp{mail.spam}. The following expression says
21735 that mail is either spam or it should go into @samp{mail.misc}. If it is
21736 spam, then @code{spam-stat-split-fancy} will return @samp{mail.spam}.
21739 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
21740 `(| (: spam-stat-split-fancy)
21744 @defvar spam-stat-split-fancy-spam-group
21745 The group to use for spam. Default is @samp{mail.spam}.
21748 If you also filter mail with specific subjects into other groups, use
21749 the following expression. It only the mails not matching the regular
21750 expression are considered potential spam.
21753 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
21754 `(| ("Subject" "\\bspam-stat\\b" "mail.emacs")
21755 (: spam-stat-split-fancy)
21759 If you want to filter for spam first, then you must be careful when
21760 creating the dictionary. Note that @code{spam-stat-split-fancy} must
21761 consider both mails in @samp{mail.emacs} and in @samp{mail.misc} as
21762 non-spam, therefore both should be in your collection of non-spam
21763 mails, when creating the dictionary!
21766 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
21767 `(| (: spam-stat-split-fancy)
21768 ("Subject" "\\bspam-stat\\b" "mail.emacs")
21772 You can combine this with traditional filtering. Here, we move all
21773 HTML-only mails into the @samp{mail.spam.filtered} group. Note that since
21774 @code{spam-stat-split-fancy} will never see them, the mails in
21775 @samp{mail.spam.filtered} should be neither in your collection of spam mails,
21776 nor in your collection of non-spam mails, when creating the
21780 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
21781 `(| ("Content-Type" "text/html" "mail.spam.filtered")
21782 (: spam-stat-split-fancy)
21783 ("Subject" "\\bspam-stat\\b" "mail.emacs")
21788 @node Low-level interface to the spam-stat dictionary
21789 @subsubsection Low-level interface to the spam-stat dictionary
21791 The main interface to using @code{spam-stat}, are the following functions:
21793 @defun spam-stat-buffer-is-spam
21794 called in a buffer, that buffer is considered to be a new spam mail;
21795 use this for new mail that has not been processed before
21799 @defun spam-stat-buffer-is-no-spam
21800 called in a buffer, that buffer is considered to be a new non-spam
21801 mail; use this for new mail that has not been processed before
21805 @defun spam-stat-buffer-change-to-spam
21806 called in a buffer, that buffer is no longer considered to be normal
21807 mail but spam; use this to change the status of a mail that has
21808 already been processed as non-spam
21812 @defun spam-stat-buffer-change-to-non-spam
21813 called in a buffer, that buffer is no longer considered to be spam but
21814 normal mail; use this to change the status of a mail that has already
21815 been processed as spam
21819 @defun spam-stat-save
21820 save the hash table to the file; the filename used is stored in the
21821 variable @code{spam-stat-file}
21825 @defun spam-stat-load
21826 load the hash table from a file; the filename used is stored in the
21827 variable @code{spam-stat-file}
21831 @defun spam-stat-score-word
21832 return the spam score for a word
21836 @defun spam-stat-score-buffer
21837 return the spam score for a buffer
21841 @defun spam-stat-split-fancy
21842 for fancy mail splitting; add the rule @samp{(: spam-stat-split-fancy)} to
21843 @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
21845 This requires the following in your @file{~/.gnus} file:
21848 (require 'spam-stat)
21854 Typical test will involve calls to the following functions:
21857 Reset: (setq spam-stat (make-hash-table :test 'equal))
21858 Learn spam: (spam-stat-process-spam-directory "~/Mail/mail/spam")
21859 Learn non-spam: (spam-stat-process-non-spam-directory "~/Mail/mail/misc")
21860 Save table: (spam-stat-save)
21861 File size: (nth 7 (file-attributes spam-stat-file))
21862 Number of words: (hash-table-count spam-stat)
21863 Test spam: (spam-stat-test-directory "~/Mail/mail/spam")
21864 Test non-spam: (spam-stat-test-directory "~/Mail/mail/misc")
21865 Reduce table size: (spam-stat-reduce-size)
21866 Save table: (spam-stat-save)
21867 File size: (nth 7 (file-attributes spam-stat-file))
21868 Number of words: (hash-table-count spam-stat)
21869 Test spam: (spam-stat-test-directory "~/Mail/mail/spam")
21870 Test non-spam: (spam-stat-test-directory "~/Mail/mail/misc")
21873 Here is how you would create your dictionary:
21876 Reset: (setq spam-stat (make-hash-table :test 'equal))
21877 Learn spam: (spam-stat-process-spam-directory "~/Mail/mail/spam")
21878 Learn non-spam: (spam-stat-process-non-spam-directory "~/Mail/mail/misc")
21879 Repeat for any other non-spam group you need...
21880 Reduce table size: (spam-stat-reduce-size)
21881 Save table: (spam-stat-save)
21884 @node Various Various
21885 @section Various Various
21891 @item gnus-home-directory
21892 All Gnus path variables will be initialized from this variable, which
21893 defaults to @file{~/}.
21895 @item gnus-directory
21896 @vindex gnus-directory
21897 Most Gnus storage path variables will be initialized from this variable,
21898 which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or
21899 @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
21901 Note that gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{.gnus.el} file is read.
21902 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
21903 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
21904 @file{.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
21906 @item gnus-default-directory
21907 @vindex gnus-default-directory
21908 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
21909 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
21910 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
21911 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
21912 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
21913 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
21916 @vindex gnus-verbose
21917 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
21918 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
21919 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
21920 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
21921 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
21923 @item gnus-verbose-backends
21924 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
21925 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
21926 to the Gnus back ends instead of Gnus proper.
21928 @item nnheader-max-head-length
21929 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
21930 When the back ends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
21931 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
21932 the absolute max length the back ends will try to read before giving up
21933 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
21934 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
21935 @code{t}, the back ends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
21936 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
21937 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
21939 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
21940 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
21941 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
21942 read when doing the operation described above.
21944 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
21945 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
21947 @cindex invalid characters in file names
21948 @cindex characters in file names
21949 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
21950 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
21951 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
21954 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
21958 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
21959 Windows (phooey) systems.
21961 @item gnus-hidden-properties
21962 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
21963 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
21964 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
21965 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
21967 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
21968 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
21969 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
21970 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
21971 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
21973 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
21974 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
21975 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
21977 @item gnus-invalid-group-regexp
21978 @vindex gnus-invalid-group-regexp
21980 Regexp to match ``invalid'' group names when querying user for a group
21981 name. The default value catches some @strong{really} invalid group
21982 names who could possibly mess up Gnus internally (like allowing
21983 @samp{:} in a group name, which is normally used to delimit method and
21986 @sc{imap} users might want to allow @samp{/} in group names though.
21994 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
21995 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
21997 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
21999 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
22005 Not because of victories @*
22008 but for the common sunshine,@*
22010 the largess of the spring.
22014 but for the day's work done@*
22015 as well as I was able;@*
22016 not for a seat upon the dais@*
22017 but at the common table.@*
22022 @chapter Appendices
22025 * XEmacs:: Requirements for installing under XEmacs.
22026 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
22027 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
22028 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
22029 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
22030 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
22031 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
22032 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
22033 * Frequently Asked Questions::
22040 @cindex Installing under XEmacs
22042 XEmacs is distributed as a collection of packages. You should install
22043 whatever packages the Gnus XEmacs package requires. The current
22044 requirements are @samp{gnus}, @samp{w3}, @samp{mh-e},
22045 @samp{mailcrypt}, @samp{rmail}, @samp{eterm}, @samp{mail-lib},
22046 @samp{xemacs-base}, and @samp{fsf-compat}. The @samp{misc-games}
22047 package is required for Morse decoding.
22054 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
22055 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
22057 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage,
22058 you can point your (feh!) web browser to
22059 @uref{http://quimby.gnus.org/}. This is also the primary
22060 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is
22061 known as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
22063 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
22064 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
22065 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
22066 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
22067 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
22068 appropriate name, don't you think?)
22070 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
22071 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
22072 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
22073 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
22076 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
22077 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
22078 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
22079 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
22080 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
22081 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
22082 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
22083 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
22084 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
22088 @node Gnus Versions
22089 @subsection Gnus Versions
22091 @cindex September Gnus
22093 @cindex Quassia Gnus
22094 @cindex Pterodactyl Gnus
22098 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
22099 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
22100 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
22102 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
22103 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
22105 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
22106 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4'' (67 releases).
22108 On September 13th 1997, Quassia Gnus was started and lasted 37 releases.
22109 If was released as ``Gnus 5.6'' on March 8th 1998 (46 releases).
22111 Gnus 5.6 begat Pterodactyl Gnus on August 29th 1998 and was released as
22112 ``Gnus 5.8'' (after 99 releases and a CVS repository) on December 3rd
22115 On the 26th of October 2000, Oort Gnus was begun.
22117 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
22118 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'',
22119 ``Pterodactyl Gnus'', ``Oort Gnus'' -- don't panic. Don't let it know
22120 that you're frightened. Back away. Slowly. Whatever you do, don't
22121 run. Walk away, calmly, until you're out of its reach. Find a proper
22122 released version of Gnus and snuggle up to that instead.
22125 @node Other Gnus Versions
22126 @subsection Other Gnus Versions
22129 In addition to the versions of Gnus which have had their releases
22130 coordinated by Lars, one major development has been Semi-gnus from
22131 Japan. It's based on a library called @sc{semi}, which provides
22132 @sc{mime} capabilities.
22134 These Gnusae are based mainly on Gnus 5.6 and Pterodactyl Gnus.
22135 Collectively, they are called ``Semi-gnus'', and different strains are
22136 called T-gnus, ET-gnus, Nana-gnus and Chaos. These provide powerful
22137 @sc{mime} and multilingualization things, especially important for
22144 What's the point of Gnus?
22146 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
22147 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
22148 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
22149 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
22150 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
22151 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
22152 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
22153 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
22154 keep track of millions of people who post?
22156 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
22157 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
22158 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
22159 to separate the newsreader from the back ends, Gnus now offers a simple
22160 interface for anybody who wants to write new back ends for fetching mail
22161 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
22162 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
22163 every one of you to explore and invent.
22165 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
22166 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
22169 @node Compatibility
22170 @subsection Compatibility
22172 @cindex compatibility
22173 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
22174 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
22175 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
22180 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
22184 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
22187 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
22190 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
22191 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
22192 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
22193 important variables have their values copied into their global
22194 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
22195 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
22197 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
22198 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
22199 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
22200 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
22201 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
22205 @cindex highlighting
22206 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
22207 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
22208 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
22209 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
22210 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
22211 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
22214 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
22215 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
22216 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
22217 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
22219 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
22220 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
22221 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
22222 to stop doing it the old way.
22224 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
22226 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
22228 @cindex reporting bugs
22230 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
22231 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
22232 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
22234 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
22235 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
22236 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
22237 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
22242 @subsection Conformity
22244 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
22245 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
22253 There are no known breaches of this standard.
22257 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
22259 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
22260 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
22261 We do have some breaches to this one.
22267 These are considered to be ``vanity headers'', while I consider them
22268 to be consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted
22269 articles coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use
22270 either of those for posting articles. I would not have known that if
22271 it wasn't for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
22276 USEFOR is an IETF working group writing a successor to RFC 1036, based
22277 on Son-of-RFC 1036. They have produced a number of drafts proposing
22278 various changes to the format of news articles. The Gnus towers will
22279 look into implementing the changes when the draft is accepted as an RFC.
22281 @item MIME - RFC 2045-2049 etc
22283 All the various @sc{mime} RFCs are supported.
22285 @item Disposition Notifications - RFC 2298
22286 Message Mode is able to request notifications from the receiver.
22288 @item PGP - RFC 1991 and RFC 2440
22291 RFC 1991 is the original PGP message specification, published as a
22292 Information RFC. RFC 2440 was the follow-up, now called Open PGP, and
22293 put on the Standards Track. Both document a non-@sc{mime} aware PGP
22294 format. Gnus supports both encoding (signing and encryption) and
22295 decoding (verification and decryption).
22297 @item PGP/MIME - RFC 2015/3156
22298 RFC 2015 (superseded by 3156 which references RFC 2440 instead of RFC
22299 1991) describes the @sc{mime}-wrapping around the RF 1991/2440 format.
22300 Gnus supports both encoding and decoding.
22302 @item S/MIME - RFC 2633
22303 RFC 2633 describes the @sc{s/mime} format.
22305 @item IMAP - RFC 1730/2060, RFC 2195, RFC 2086, RFC 2359, RFC 2595, RFC 1731
22306 RFC 1730 is @sc{imap} version 4, updated somewhat by RFC 2060 (@sc{imap} 4
22307 revision 1). RFC 2195 describes CRAM-MD5 authentication for @sc{imap}. RFC
22308 2086 describes access control lists (ACLs) for @sc{imap}. RFC 2359
22309 describes a @sc{imap} protocol enhancement. RFC 2595 describes the proper
22310 TLS integration (STARTTLS) with @sc{imap}. RFC 1731 describes the
22311 GSSAPI/Kerberos4 mechanisms for @sc{imap}.
22315 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
22316 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
22321 @subsection Emacsen
22327 Gnus should work on :
22335 XEmacs 21.1.1 and up.
22339 This Gnus version will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than
22340 that. Not reliably, at least. Older versions of Gnus may work on older
22341 Emacs versions. However, T-gnus does support ``Mule 2.3 based on Emacs
22342 19.34'' and possibly the versions of XEmacs prior to 21.1.1, e.g. 20.4.
22343 See the file ``README'' in the T-gnus distribution for more details.
22345 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
22346 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
22347 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
22351 @node Gnus Development
22352 @subsection Gnus Development
22354 Gnus is developed in a two-phased cycle. The first phase involves much
22355 discussion on the @samp{ding@@gnus.org} mailing list, where people
22356 propose changes and new features, post patches and new back ends. This
22357 phase is called the @dfn{alpha} phase, since the Gnusae released in this
22358 phase are @dfn{alpha releases}, or (perhaps more commonly in other
22359 circles) @dfn{snapshots}. During this phase, Gnus is assumed to be
22360 unstable and should not be used by casual users. Gnus alpha releases
22361 have names like ``Red Gnus'' and ``Quassia Gnus''.
22363 After futzing around for 50-100 alpha releases, Gnus is declared
22364 @dfn{frozen}, and only bug fixes are applied. Gnus loses the prefix,
22365 and is called things like ``Gnus 5.6.32'' instead. Normal people are
22366 supposed to be able to use these, and these are mostly discussed on the
22367 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} newsgroup.
22370 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
22371 Some variable defaults differ between alpha Gnusae and released Gnusae.
22372 In particular, @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} defaults to @code{nil} in
22373 alpha Gnusae and @code{t} in released Gnusae. This is to prevent
22374 lossage of mail if an alpha release hiccups while handling the mail.
22376 The division of discussion between the ding mailing list and the Gnus
22377 newsgroup is not purely based on publicity concerns. It's true that
22378 having people write about the horrible things that an alpha Gnus release
22379 can do (sometimes) in a public forum may scare people off, but more
22380 importantly, talking about new experimental features that have been
22381 introduced may confuse casual users. New features are frequently
22382 introduced, fiddled with, and judged to be found wanting, and then
22383 either discarded or totally rewritten. People reading the mailing list
22384 usually keep up with these rapid changes, while people on the newsgroup
22385 can't be assumed to do so.
22390 @subsection Contributors
22391 @cindex contributors
22393 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
22394 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
22395 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
22396 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
22397 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
22398 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
22399 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
22400 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
22401 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
22402 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
22404 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
22410 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
22413 Shenghuo Zhu---uudecode.el, mm-uu.el, rfc1843.el, webmail.el,
22414 nnwarchive and many, many other things connected with @sc{mime} and
22415 other types of en/decoding, as well as general bug fixing, new
22416 functionality and stuff.
22419 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
22420 well as numerous other things).
22423 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
22426 Joe Reiss---creator of the smiley faces.
22429 Justin Sheehy--the FAQ maintainer.
22432 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
22435 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
22436 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
22439 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
22442 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
22443 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
22446 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
22449 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
22452 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
22455 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
22458 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
22459 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
22462 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
22465 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
22468 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
22471 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
22475 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
22478 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
22481 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
22484 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
22485 well as autoconf support.
22489 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
22490 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
22492 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
22501 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
22505 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
22515 Alexei V. Barantsev,
22530 Massimo Campostrini,
22535 Jae-you Chung, @c ?
22536 James H. Cloos, Jr.,
22540 Andrew J. Cosgriff,
22543 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
22549 Michael Welsh Duggan,
22554 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
22558 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
22566 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
22568 Michelangelo Grigni,
22572 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
22574 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c ?
22576 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
22583 François Felix Ingrand,
22584 Tatsuya Ichikawa, @c ?
22585 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
22587 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
22598 Peter Skov Knudsen,
22599 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
22601 Koseki Yoshinori, @c Koseki
22602 Thor Kristoffersen,
22605 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
22623 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
22624 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
22631 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
22636 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
22640 John McClary Prevost,
22646 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
22651 Christian von Roques,
22654 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
22661 Philippe Schnoebelen,
22663 Randal L. Schwartz,
22677 Kiyokazu Suto, @c Suto
22682 Tozawa Akihiko, @c Tozawa
22698 Katsumi Yamaoka @c Yamaoka
22703 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
22704 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
22705 (550kB and counting).
22707 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
22710 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
22711 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
22715 @subsection New Features
22716 @cindex new features
22719 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
22720 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
22721 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
22722 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
22723 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
22726 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
22727 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
22728 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
22731 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
22733 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
22738 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
22739 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
22742 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
22743 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
22746 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
22749 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
22750 All the mail back ends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
22751 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
22754 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
22755 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
22756 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
22757 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
22760 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
22761 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
22764 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
22765 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
22766 (@pxref{The Active File}).
22769 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
22770 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
22773 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
22774 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
22775 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
22778 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
22779 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
22780 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
22783 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
22784 the @file{.emacs} file.
22787 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
22788 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
22791 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
22792 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
22795 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
22796 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
22799 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
22800 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
22803 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
22804 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
22807 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
22810 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
22811 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
22814 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
22815 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
22818 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
22819 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
22822 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
22825 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
22826 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
22829 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
22833 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
22837 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
22838 configuration (@pxref{Window Layout}).
22841 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
22847 @node September Gnus
22848 @subsubsection September Gnus
22852 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/september,height=20cm}}
22856 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
22861 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
22862 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
22866 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
22867 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
22871 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
22875 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
22876 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
22879 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
22883 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
22886 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
22889 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
22892 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
22896 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
22897 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
22900 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
22904 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
22908 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
22912 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
22916 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
22919 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
22920 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
22923 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
22927 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
22928 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
22931 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
22934 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
22935 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
22936 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
22939 Gnus has a new back end (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
22943 The Gnus cache is much faster.
22946 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
22950 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
22951 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
22954 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
22955 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
22958 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
22959 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
22962 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
22963 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
22964 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
22967 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
22968 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
22971 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
22974 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
22977 All mail back ends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
22980 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
22983 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
22984 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
22987 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Window
22991 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
22994 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=ps/fseptember,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=ps/fseptember,height=5cm}}
22999 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
23002 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
23006 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
23009 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
23013 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
23016 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
23019 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
23020 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
23023 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
23024 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
23028 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
23029 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
23032 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
23036 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
23037 buffer to allow easier treatment.
23040 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
23043 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
23047 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
23051 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
23052 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
23055 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
23059 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
23060 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
23063 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
23064 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
23067 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
23071 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
23074 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
23077 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
23083 @subsubsection Red Gnus
23085 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
23089 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/red,height=20cm}}
23096 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
23099 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
23100 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
23103 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
23104 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
23108 Article washing status can be displayed in the
23109 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
23112 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
23115 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
23116 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
23119 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
23123 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
23124 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
23128 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
23129 Server Internals}).
23132 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
23136 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
23139 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
23140 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
23143 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
23144 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
23145 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
23148 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
23149 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
23152 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
23153 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
23156 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{C-M-_}
23160 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
23161 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
23164 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
23165 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
23168 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
23172 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
23175 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
23179 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
23180 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
23183 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
23184 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
23187 A new command for reading collections of documents
23188 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{C-M-d}
23189 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
23192 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
23196 A new mail-to-news back end makes it possible to post even when the @sc{nntp}
23197 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
23200 A new back end for reading searches from Web search engines
23201 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
23202 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
23205 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
23206 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
23210 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
23214 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
23218 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=ps/fred,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=ps/fred,width=3cm}}
23223 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
23227 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
23231 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
23232 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
23235 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
23241 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
23243 New features in Gnus 5.6:
23248 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
23249 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
23250 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
23253 The @code{nndraft} back end has returned, but works differently than
23254 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
23255 group, which is created automatically.
23258 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
23262 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
23265 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
23266 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
23269 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
23273 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
23276 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
23277 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
23280 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
23283 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section "Symbolic
23284 Prefixes" in the Gnus manual for details.
23287 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
23288 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the "all.SCORE" file.
23291 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
23292 control over simplification.
23295 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
23298 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
23302 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
23305 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
23308 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
23309 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
23310 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
23313 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
23314 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
23317 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
23321 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
23322 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
23325 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
23326 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @sc{nntp} servers.
23329 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
23333 A history of where mails have been split is available.
23336 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
23339 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
23340 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
23343 A new function for citing in Message has been
23344 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
23347 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
23350 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
23354 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
23355 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
23358 The "lapsed date" article header can be kept continually
23359 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
23362 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} back end.
23365 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
23369 @node Pterodactyl Gnus
23370 @subsubsection Pterodactyl Gnus
23372 New features in Gnus 5.8:
23377 The mail-fetching functions have changed. See the manual for the
23378 many details. In particular, all procmail fetching variables are gone.
23380 If you used procmail like in
23383 (setq nnmail-use-procmail t)
23384 (setq nnmail-spool-file 'procmail)
23385 (setq nnmail-procmail-directory "~/mail/incoming/")
23386 (setq nnmail-procmail-suffix "\\.in")
23389 this now has changed to
23393 '((directory :path "~/mail/incoming/"
23397 More information is available in the info doc at Select Methods ->
23398 Getting Mail -> Mail Sources
23401 Gnus is now a @sc{mime}-capable reader. This affects many parts of
23402 Gnus, and adds a slew of new commands. See the manual for details.
23405 Gnus has also been multilingualized. This also affects too
23406 many parts of Gnus to summarize here, and adds many new variables.
23409 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} can now be a function to be
23410 called to position point.
23413 The user can now decide which extra headers should be included in
23414 summary buffers and @sc{nov} files.
23417 @code{gnus-article-display-hook} has been removed. Instead, a number
23418 of variables starting with @code{gnus-treat-} have been added.
23421 The Gnus posting styles have been redone again and now works in a
23422 subtly different manner.
23425 New web-based back ends have been added: @code{nnslashdot},
23426 @code{nnwarchive} and @code{nnultimate}. nnweb has been revamped,
23427 again, to keep up with ever-changing layouts.
23430 Gnus can now read @sc{imap} mail via @code{nnimap}.
23438 @section The Manual
23442 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
23443 either @code{texi2dvi}
23445 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
23446 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
23448 to get what you hold in your hands now.
23450 The following conventions have been used:
23455 This is a @samp{string}
23458 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
23461 This is a @file{file}
23464 This is a @code{symbol}
23468 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
23472 (setq flargnoze "yes")
23475 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
23478 (setq flumphel 'yes)
23481 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
23482 ever get them confused.
23486 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
23487 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
23488 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
23489 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
23490 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
23491 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
23492 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
23498 @node On Writing Manuals
23499 @section On Writing Manuals
23501 I guess most manuals are written after-the-fact; documenting a program
23502 that's already there. This is not how this manual is written. When
23503 implementing something, I write the manual entry for that something
23504 straight away. I then see that it's difficult to explain the
23505 functionality, so I write how it's supposed to be, and then I change the
23506 implementation. Writing the documentation and writing the code goes
23509 This, of course, means that this manual has no, or little, flow. It
23510 documents absolutely everything in Gnus, but often not where you're
23511 looking for it. It is a reference manual, and not a guide to how to get
23514 That would be a totally different book, that should be written using the
23515 reference manual as source material. It would look quite differently.
23520 @section Terminology
23522 @cindex terminology
23527 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
23528 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
23529 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
23530 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
23531 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
23535 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
23536 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
23537 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
23538 not posting, and replying is not following up.
23542 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
23546 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
23551 Gnus considers mail and news to be mostly the same, really. The only
23552 difference is how to access the actual articles. News articles are
23553 commonly fetched via the protocol NNTP, whereas mail messages could be
23554 read from a file on the local disk. The internal architecture of Gnus
23555 thus comprises a `front end' and a number of `back ends'. Internally,
23556 when you enter a group (by hitting @key{RET}, say), you thereby invoke
23557 a function in the front end in Gnus. The front end then `talks' to a
23558 back end and says things like ``Give me the list of articles in the foo
23559 group'' or ``Show me article number 4711''.
23561 So a back end mainly defines either a protocol (the @code{nntp} back end
23562 accesses news via NNTP, the @code{nnimap} back end accesses mail via
23563 IMAP) or a file format and directory layout (the @code{nnspool} back end
23564 accesses news via the common `spool directory' format, the @code{nnml}
23565 back end access mail via a file format and directory layout that's
23568 Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this is all
23569 done by the back ends. A back end is a collection of functions to
23570 access the articles.
23572 However, sometimes the term `back end' is also used where `server'
23573 would have been more appropriate. And then there is the term `select
23574 method' which can mean either. The Gnus terminology can be quite
23579 Gnus will always use one method (and back end) as the @dfn{native}, or
23580 default, way of getting news.
23584 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
23585 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary back ends for getting
23590 Secondary back ends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
23591 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
23595 A message that has been posted as news.
23598 @cindex mail message
23599 A message that has been mailed.
23603 A mail message or news article
23607 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
23612 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
23617 A line from the head of an article.
23621 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
23622 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
23626 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the back end for the headers of all
23627 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
23628 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
23629 normal @sc{head} format.
23633 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
23634 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
23635 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
23636 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
23637 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
23638 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
23640 @item killed groups
23641 @cindex killed groups
23642 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
23643 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
23645 @item zombie groups
23646 @cindex zombie groups
23647 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
23650 @cindex active file
23651 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
23652 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
23653 is rather large, as you might surmise.
23656 @cindex bogus groups
23657 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
23658 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
23659 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
23662 @cindex activating groups
23663 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
23664 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
23665 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
23669 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
23671 @item select method
23672 @cindex select method
23673 A structure that specifies the back end, the server and the virtual
23676 @item virtual server
23677 @cindex virtual server
23678 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
23679 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
23680 whole is a virtual server.
23684 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
23685 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
23688 @item ephemeral groups
23689 @cindex ephemeral groups
23690 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
23691 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
23692 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
23695 @cindex solid groups
23696 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
23697 group buffer are solid groups.
23699 @item sparse articles
23700 @cindex sparse articles
23701 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
23702 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
23706 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
23707 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
23711 @cindex thread root
23712 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
23713 articles in the thread.
23717 An article that has responses.
23721 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
23725 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
23726 specified by RFC 1153.
23732 @node Customization
23733 @section Customization
23734 @cindex general customization
23736 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
23737 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
23738 for some quite common situations.
23741 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
23742 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
23743 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
23744 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
23748 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
23749 @subsection Slow/Expensive NNTP Connection
23751 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
23752 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
23753 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
23757 @item gnus-read-active-file
23758 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
23759 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
23760 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
23761 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
23762 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
23764 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
23765 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
23766 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
23767 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
23771 @node Slow Terminal Connection
23772 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
23774 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
23775 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
23776 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
23780 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
23781 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
23782 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
23783 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
23784 horizontal and vertical recentering.
23786 @item gnus-visible-headers
23787 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
23788 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
23789 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
23790 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
23792 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
23794 (setq gnus-treat-hide-headers 'head
23795 gnus-treat-hide-signature t
23796 gnus-treat-hide-citation t)
23799 @item gnus-use-full-window
23800 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
23801 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
23802 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
23803 want to read them anyway.
23805 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
23806 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
23810 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
23811 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
23812 lines, which might save some time.
23816 @node Little Disk Space
23817 @subsection Little Disk Space
23820 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
23821 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
23825 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
23826 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
23827 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
23828 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
23831 @item gnus-read-newsrc-file
23832 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never read @file{.newsrc}---it will
23833 only read @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
23834 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
23837 @item gnus-save-killed-list
23838 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
23839 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
23840 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
23841 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
23847 @subsection Slow Machine
23848 @cindex slow machine
23850 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
23851 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
23853 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
23854 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
23856 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
23857 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
23858 summary buffer faster.
23862 @node Troubleshooting
23863 @section Troubleshooting
23864 @cindex troubleshooting
23866 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
23874 Make sure your computer is switched on.
23877 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
23878 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
23882 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
23883 like @samp{T-gnus 6.15.* (based on Oort Gnus v0.*; for SEMI 1.1*, FLIM
23884 1.1*)} you have the right files loaded. If, on the other hand, you get
23885 something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp flee}, you have some old
23886 @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
23889 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
23893 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
23894 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
23895 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
23896 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
23897 something like that.
23900 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
23903 @cindex reporting bugs
23905 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
23907 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
23908 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
23909 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
23910 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
23912 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
23913 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
23914 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
23915 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
23918 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
23919 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
23920 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
23921 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
23922 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
23923 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
23925 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
23926 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
23927 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
23931 If you would like to contribute a patch to fix bugs or make
23932 improvements, please produce the patch using @samp{diff -u}.
23935 If you want to debug your problem further before reporting, possibly
23936 in order to solve the problem yourself and send a patch, you can use
23937 edebug. Debugging lisp code is documented in the Elisp manual
23938 (@pxref{Debugging, , Debugging Lisp Programs, elisp, The GNU Emacs
23939 Lisp Reference Manual}). To get you started with edebug, consider if
23940 you discover some weird behaviour when pressing @kbd{c}, the first
23941 step is to do @kbd{C-h k c} and click on the hyperlink (Emacs only) in
23942 the documentation buffer that leads you to the function definition,
23943 then press @kbd{M-x edebug-defun RET} with point inside that function,
23944 return to Gnus and press @kbd{c} to invoke the code. You will be
23945 placed in the lisp buffer and can single step using @kbd{SPC} and
23946 evaluate expressions using @kbd{M-:} or inspect variables using
23947 @kbd{C-h v}, abort execution with @kbd{q}, and resume execution with
23948 @kbd{c} or @kbd{g}.
23953 Sometimes, a problem do not directly generate a elisp error but
23954 manifests itself by causing Gnus to be very slow. In these cases, you
23955 can use @kbd{M-x toggle-debug-on-quit} and press C-j when things are
23956 slow, and then try to analyze the backtrace (repeating the procedure
23957 helps isolating the real problem areas). A fancier approach is to use
23958 the elisp profiler, ELP. The profiler is (or should be) fully
23959 documented elsewhere, but to get you started there are a few steps
23960 that need to be followed. First, instrument the part of Gnus you are
23961 interested in for profiling, e.g. @kbd{M-x elp-instrument-package RET
23962 gnus} or @kbd{M-x elp-instrument-packagre RET message}. Then perform
23963 the operation that is slow and press @kbd{M-x elp-results}. You will
23964 then see which operations that takes time, and can debug them further.
23965 If the entire operation takes much longer than the time spent in the
23966 slowest function in the profiler output, you probably profiled the
23967 wrong part of Gnus. To reset profiling statistics, use @kbd{M-x
23968 elp-reset-all}. @kbd{M-x elp-restore-all} is supposed to remove
23969 profiling, but given the complexities and dynamic code generation in
23970 Gnus, it might not always work perfectly.
23972 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
23973 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
23975 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
23976 @cindex ding mailing list
23977 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@gnus.org}.
23978 Write to @samp{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
23982 @node Gnus Reference Guide
23983 @section Gnus Reference Guide
23985 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
23986 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
23987 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
23988 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
23991 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
23992 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
23993 back ends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
23994 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
23995 and general methods of operation.
23998 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
23999 * Back End Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
24000 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
24001 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
24002 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
24003 * Group Info:: The group info format.
24004 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
24005 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
24006 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
24010 @node Gnus Utility Functions
24011 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
24012 @cindex Gnus utility functions
24013 @cindex utility functions
24015 @cindex internal variables
24017 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
24018 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
24019 Below is a list of the most common ones.
24023 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
24024 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
24025 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
24027 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
24028 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
24029 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
24031 @item gnus-group-real-name
24032 @findex gnus-group-real-name
24033 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
24036 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
24037 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
24038 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
24039 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
24041 @item gnus-get-info
24042 @findex gnus-get-info
24043 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
24045 @item gnus-group-unread
24046 @findex gnus-group-unread
24047 The number of unread articles in @var{group}, or @code{t} if that is
24051 @findex gnus-active
24052 The active entry for @var{group}.
24054 @item gnus-set-active
24055 @findex gnus-set-active
24056 Set the active entry for @var{group}.
24058 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
24059 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
24060 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
24063 @item gnus-continuum-version
24064 @findex gnus-continuum-version
24065 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
24066 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
24069 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
24070 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
24071 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
24073 @item gnus-news-group-p
24074 @findex gnus-news-group-p
24075 Says whether @var{group} came from a news back end.
24077 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
24078 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
24079 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
24081 @item gnus-server-to-method
24082 @findex gnus-server-to-method
24083 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
24085 @item gnus-server-equal
24086 @findex gnus-server-equal
24087 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
24089 @item gnus-group-native-p
24090 @findex gnus-group-native-p
24091 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
24093 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
24094 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
24095 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
24097 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
24098 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
24099 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
24101 @item group-group-find-parameter
24102 @findex group-group-find-parameter
24103 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
24104 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
24106 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
24107 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
24108 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
24110 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
24111 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
24112 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
24114 @item gnus-check-backend-function
24115 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
24116 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the back end
24117 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
24120 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
24124 @item gnus-read-method
24125 @findex gnus-read-method
24126 Prompts the user for a select method.
24131 @node Back End Interface
24132 @subsection Back End Interface
24134 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
24135 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
24136 server is a @dfn{back end} and some @dfn{back end variables}. As examples
24137 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
24138 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
24139 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
24141 When Gnus asks for information from a back end---say @code{nntp}---on
24142 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
24143 function parameters. (If not, the back end should use the ``current''
24144 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
24145 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
24146 been opened, the function should fail.
24148 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
24149 name. Take this example:
24153 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
24154 (nntp-port-number 4324))
24157 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
24158 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
24160 The back ends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
24161 The standard back ends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
24162 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
24164 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
24165 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
24166 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
24168 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
24169 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
24170 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
24171 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
24172 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
24173 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
24176 Some back ends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} back ends, and
24177 some might be said not to be. The latter are back ends that generally
24178 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
24179 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
24182 Gnus identifies each message by way of group name and article number. A
24183 few remarks about these article numbers might be useful. First of all,
24184 the numbers are positive integers. Secondly, it is normally not
24185 possible for later articles to `re-use' older article numbers without
24186 confusing Gnus. That is, if a group has ever contained a message
24187 numbered 42, then no other message may get that number, or Gnus will get
24188 mightily confused.@footnote{See the function
24189 @code{nnchoke-request-update-info}, @ref{Optional Back End Functions}.}
24190 Third, article numbers must be assigned in order of arrival in the
24191 group; this is not necessarily the same as the date of the message.
24193 The previous paragraph already mentions all the `hard' restrictions that
24194 article numbers must fulfill. But it seems that it might be useful to
24195 assign @emph{consecutive} article numbers, for Gnus gets quite confused
24196 if there are holes in the article numbering sequence. However, due to
24197 the `no-reuse' restriction, holes cannot be avoided altogether. It's
24198 also useful for the article numbers to start at 1 to avoid running out
24199 of numbers as long as possible.
24201 Note that by convention, backends are named @code{nnsomething}, but
24202 Gnus also comes with some @code{nnnotbackends}, such as
24203 @file{nnheader.el}, @file{nnmail.el} and @file{nnoo.el}.
24205 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary back end
24208 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
24211 * Required Back End Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
24212 * Optional Back End Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
24213 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
24214 * Writing New Back Ends:: Extending old back ends.
24215 * Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
24216 * Mail-like Back Ends:: Some tips on mail back ends.
24220 @node Required Back End Functions
24221 @subsubsection Required Back End Functions
24225 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
24227 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
24228 @code{Message-ID}s. Current back ends do not fully support either---only
24229 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most back ends do not support
24230 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
24232 The result data should either be HEADs or @sc{nov} lines, and the result
24233 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
24234 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
24235 of HEADs and @sc{nov} lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
24237 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching "extra
24238 headers", in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
24239 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
24240 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
24241 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the back end finds it
24242 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
24243 number, do maximum fetches.
24245 Here's an example HEAD:
24248 221 1056 Article retrieved.
24249 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
24250 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
24251 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
24252 Subject: Re: Something very droll
24253 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
24254 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
24256 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
24257 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
24258 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
24262 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
24263 these in the data buffer.
24265 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
24269 head = error / valid-head
24270 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
24271 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
24272 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
24273 header = <text> eol
24276 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
24277 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
24281 nov-buffer = *nov-line
24282 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
24283 field = <text except TAB>
24286 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
24290 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
24292 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
24293 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
24295 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The back end
24296 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
24297 server. In fact, it should do so.
24299 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
24300 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
24303 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
24305 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
24306 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
24309 There should be no data returned.
24312 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
24314 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the back end
24315 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that back end
24316 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
24317 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
24319 There should be no data returned.
24322 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
24324 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
24325 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
24326 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
24327 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
24329 There should be no data returned.
24332 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
24334 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
24336 There should be no data returned.
24339 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
24341 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
24342 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
24343 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
24344 it would be nice if that were possible.
24346 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
24347 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
24348 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
24349 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
24350 into its article buffer.
24352 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
24353 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
24354 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
24355 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
24356 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
24357 on successful article retrieval.
24360 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
24362 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
24363 making @var{group} the current group.
24365 If @var{fast}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
24368 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
24371 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
24374 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
24375 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
24376 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
24377 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
24378 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
24379 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
24380 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
24381 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader. If the group contains no
24382 articles, the lowest article number should be reported as 1 and the
24386 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
24387 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
24388 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
24392 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
24394 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
24395 a no-op on most back ends.
24397 There should be no data returned.
24400 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
24402 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
24405 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
24408 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
24409 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
24412 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
24413 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag. If the group
24414 contains no articles, the lowest article number should be reported as 1
24415 and the highest as 0.
24418 active-file = *active-line
24419 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
24421 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
24424 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
24425 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
24426 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
24429 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
24431 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
24432 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
24433 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
24434 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
24435 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
24436 clear if the posting could not be completed.
24438 There should be no result data from this function.
24443 @node Optional Back End Functions
24444 @subsubsection Optional Back End Functions
24448 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
24450 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
24451 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
24452 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
24454 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
24455 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
24456 former is in the same format as the data from
24457 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
24458 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
24461 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
24465 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
24467 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the back end for
24468 alterations. This comes in handy if the back end really carries all the
24469 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
24470 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
24471 should return a non-nil value.
24473 There should be no result data from this function.
24476 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
24478 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
24479 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
24480 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
24481 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
24482 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
24483 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
24484 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
24485 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
24487 There should be no result data from this function.
24490 @item (nnchoke-request-set-mark GROUP ACTION &optional SERVER)
24492 Set/remove/add marks on articles. Normally Gnus handles the article
24493 marks (such as read, ticked, expired etc) internally, and store them in
24494 @code{~/.newsrc.eld}. Some back ends (such as @sc{imap}) however carry
24495 all information about the articles on the server, so Gnus need to
24496 propagate the mark information to the server.
24498 ACTION is a list of mark setting requests, having this format:
24501 (RANGE ACTION MARK)
24504 RANGE is a range of articles you wish to update marks on. ACTION is
24505 @code{add} or @code{del}, used to add marks or remove marks
24506 (preserving all marks not mentioned). MARK is a list of marks; where
24507 each mark is a symbol. Currently used marks are @code{read},
24508 @code{tick}, @code{reply}, @code{expire}, @code{killed},
24509 @code{dormant}, @code{save}, @code{download}, @code{unsend},
24510 @code{forward} and @code{recent}, but your back end should, if
24511 possible, not limit itself to these.
24513 Given contradictory actions, the last action in the list should be the
24514 effective one. That is, if your action contains a request to add the
24515 @code{tick} mark on article 1 and, later in the list, a request to
24516 remove the mark on the same article, the mark should in fact be removed.
24518 An example action list:
24521 (((5 12 30) 'del '(tick))
24522 ((10 . 90) 'add '(read expire))
24523 ((92 94) 'del '(read)))
24526 The function should return a range of articles it wasn't able to set the
24527 mark on (currently not used for anything).
24529 There should be no result data from this function.
24531 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
24533 If the user tries to set a mark that the back end doesn't like, this
24534 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
24535 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
24536 @var{mark}. If the back end doesn't care, it must return the original
24537 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
24539 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
24540 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
24541 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
24544 There should be no result data from this function.
24547 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
24549 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
24550 request that the back end check for incoming articles, in one way or
24551 another. A mail back end will typically read the spool file or query the
24552 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
24553 to be heeded---if the back end decides that it is too much work just
24554 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
24555 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
24557 There should be no result data from this function.
24560 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
24562 The result data from this function should be a description of
24566 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
24568 description = <text>
24571 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
24573 The result data from this function should be the description of all
24574 groups available on the server.
24577 description-buffer = *description-line
24581 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
24583 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
24584 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date format
24585 (i.e., the date format used in mail and news headers, and returned by
24586 the function @code{message-make-date} by default). The data should be
24587 in the active buffer format.
24589 It is okay for this function to return `too many' groups; some back ends
24590 might find it cheaper to return the full list of groups, rather than
24591 just the new groups. But don't do this for back ends with many groups.
24592 Normally, if the user creates the groups herself, there won't be too
24593 many groups, so @code{nnml} and the like are probably safe. But for
24594 back ends like @code{nntp}, where the groups have been created by the
24595 server, it is quite likely that there can be many groups.
24598 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
24600 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
24602 There should be no return data.
24605 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
24607 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
24608 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
24609 numbers.) It is left up to the back end to decide how old articles
24610 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
24611 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
24614 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
24617 There should be no result data returned.
24620 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
24623 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
24624 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
24626 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
24627 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
24628 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
24629 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
24630 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
24631 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
24633 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
24634 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
24637 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
24638 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
24640 There should be no data returned.
24643 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
24645 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
24646 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
24647 this function in short order.
24649 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
24650 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
24652 There should be no data returned.
24655 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
24657 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
24658 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
24660 There should be no data returned.
24663 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
24665 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
24666 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
24667 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
24669 There should be no data returned.
24672 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
24674 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
24675 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
24677 There should be no data returned.
24682 @node Error Messaging
24683 @subsubsection Error Messaging
24685 @findex nnheader-report
24686 @findex nnheader-get-report
24687 The back ends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
24688 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
24689 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the back end
24690 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
24691 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
24692 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
24695 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
24697 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
24700 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
24701 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
24702 recently reported message for the back end in question. This function
24703 takes one argument---the server symbol.
24705 Internally, these functions access @var{back-end}@code{-status-string},
24706 so the @code{nnchoke} back end will have its error message stored in
24707 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
24710 @node Writing New Back Ends
24711 @subsubsection Writing New Back Ends
24713 Many back ends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
24714 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
24715 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
24716 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
24717 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
24720 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
24721 back ends when writing new back ends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
24722 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
24724 All the back ends declare their public variables and functions by using a
24725 package called @code{nnoo}.
24727 To inherit functions from other back ends (and allow other back ends to
24728 inherit functions from the current back end), you should use the
24734 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
24735 parameters. For instance:
24738 (nnoo-declare nndir
24742 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
24743 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
24746 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
24747 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
24748 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
24750 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
24751 variables in the parent back ends to map the variable to when executing
24752 a function in those back ends.
24755 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
24756 "Where nndir will look for groups."
24757 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
24760 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
24761 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
24762 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
24764 @item nnoo-define-basics
24765 This macro defines some common functions that almost all back ends should
24769 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
24773 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
24774 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
24775 function as being public so that other back ends can inherit it.
24777 @item nnoo-map-functions
24778 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current back end to
24779 functions from the parent back ends.
24782 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
24783 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
24784 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
24787 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
24788 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
24789 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
24790 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
24793 This macro allows importing functions from back ends. It should be the
24794 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
24795 haven't already been defined.
24801 nnmh-request-newgroups)
24805 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
24806 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
24807 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
24812 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} back end.
24815 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
24816 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
24820 (require 'nnheader)
24824 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
24826 (nnoo-declare nndir
24829 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
24830 "Where nndir will look for groups."
24831 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
24833 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
24834 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
24837 (defvoo nndir-current-group ""
24839 nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
24840 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
24841 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
24843 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
24844 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
24846 ;;; Interface functions.
24848 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
24850 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
24851 (setq nndir-directory
24852 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
24854 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
24855 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
24856 (push `(nndir-current-group
24857 ,(file-name-nondirectory
24858 (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
24860 (push `(nndir-top-directory
24861 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
24863 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
24865 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
24866 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
24867 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
24868 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
24869 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
24873 nnmh-status-message
24875 nnmh-request-newgroups))
24881 @node Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus
24882 @subsubsection Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus
24884 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
24885 @findex gnus-declare-backend
24886 Having Gnus start using your new back end is rather easy---you just
24887 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
24888 enter the back end into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
24890 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the back end name and
24891 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
24896 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
24899 The above line would then go in the @file{nnchoke.el} file.
24901 The abilities can be:
24905 This is a mailish back end---followups should (probably) go via mail.
24907 This is a newsish back end---followups should (probably) go via news.
24909 This back end supports both mail and news.
24911 This is neither a post nor mail back end---it's something completely
24914 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
24915 articles and groups.
24917 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
24918 true for almost all back ends.
24919 @item prompt-address
24920 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
24921 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for back ends like
24922 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
24926 @node Mail-like Back Ends
24927 @subsubsection Mail-like Back Ends
24929 One of the things that separate the mail back ends from the rest of the
24930 back ends is the heavy dependence by most of the mail back ends on
24931 common functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the
24932 definition of @code{nnml-request-scan}:
24935 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
24936 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
24937 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
24940 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
24941 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
24944 This function takes four parameters.
24948 This should be a symbol to designate which back end is responsible for
24951 @item exit-function
24952 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
24954 @item temp-directory
24955 Where the temporary files should be stored.
24958 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
24959 performed for one group only.
24962 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{back-end}@code{-save-mail} to
24963 save each article. @var{back-end}@code{-active-number} will be called to
24964 find the article number assigned to this article.
24966 The function also uses the following variables:
24967 @var{back-end}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
24968 this back end); and @var{back-end}@code{-group-alist} and
24969 @var{back-end}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
24970 @var{back-end}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
24974 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
24975 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
24979 @node Score File Syntax
24980 @subsection Score File Syntax
24982 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
24983 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
24984 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
24986 Here's a typical score file:
24990 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
24997 BNF definition of a score file:
25000 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
25001 element = rule / atom
25002 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
25003 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
25004 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
25005 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
25007 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
25008 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
25009 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
25010 date-header = "date"
25011 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
25012 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
25013 score = "nil" / <integer>
25014 date = "nil" / <natural number>
25015 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
25016 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
25017 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
25018 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
25019 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
25020 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
25021 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
25022 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
25023 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
25024 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
25025 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
25026 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
25027 exclude-files / read-only / touched
25028 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
25029 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
25030 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
25031 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
25032 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
25033 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
25034 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
25035 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
25036 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
25037 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
25038 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
25039 eval = "eval" space <form>
25040 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
25043 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
25046 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
25047 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
25048 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
25049 one looong line, then that's ok.
25051 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
25052 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
25056 @subsection Headers
25058 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
25059 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
25060 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
25061 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
25063 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
25064 RFC 1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
25065 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
25066 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
25067 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
25068 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
25069 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
25071 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
25072 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
25073 @code{xref}, and @code{extra}. There are macros for accessing and
25074 setting these slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
25075 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
25077 All these slots contain strings, except the @code{extra} slot, which
25078 contains an alist of header/value pairs (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
25084 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
25085 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
25087 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
25088 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
25089 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
25090 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
25092 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
25096 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
25099 is transformed into
25102 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
25105 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
25106 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
25109 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
25112 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
25113 is slightly tricky:
25116 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
25122 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
25125 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
25131 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
25138 and is equal to the previous range.
25140 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
25141 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
25142 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
25146 range = simple-range / normal-range
25147 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
25148 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
25149 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
25150 number *[ " " contents ]
25153 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
25154 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
25155 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
25156 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
25157 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
25162 @subsection Group Info
25164 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
25165 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
25166 describes the group.
25168 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
25169 second is a more complex one:
25172 ("no.group" 5 ((1 . 54324)))
25174 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
25175 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
25177 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
25180 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
25181 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
25182 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
25183 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
25184 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
25185 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
25186 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
25187 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
25188 this section is about.
25190 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
25191 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
25192 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
25194 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
25197 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
25198 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
25199 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
25200 group = quote <string> quote
25201 ralevel = rank / level
25202 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
25203 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
25204 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
25206 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
25207 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
25208 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
25209 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
25212 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
25213 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
25216 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
25217 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
25220 @item gnus-info-group
25221 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
25222 @findex gnus-info-group
25223 @findex gnus-info-set-group
25224 Get/set the group name.
25226 @item gnus-info-rank
25227 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
25228 @findex gnus-info-rank
25229 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
25230 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
25232 @item gnus-info-level
25233 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
25234 @findex gnus-info-level
25235 @findex gnus-info-set-level
25236 Get/set the group level.
25238 @item gnus-info-score
25239 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
25240 @findex gnus-info-score
25241 @findex gnus-info-set-score
25242 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
25244 @item gnus-info-read
25245 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
25246 @findex gnus-info-read
25247 @findex gnus-info-set-read
25248 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
25250 @item gnus-info-marks
25251 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
25252 @findex gnus-info-marks
25253 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
25254 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
25256 @item gnus-info-method
25257 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
25258 @findex gnus-info-method
25259 @findex gnus-info-set-method
25260 Get/set the group select method.
25262 @item gnus-info-params
25263 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
25264 @findex gnus-info-params
25265 @findex gnus-info-set-params
25266 Get/set the group parameters.
25269 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
25270 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
25272 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
25273 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
25274 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
25275 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
25278 @node Extended Interactive
25279 @subsection Extended Interactive
25280 @cindex interactive
25281 @findex gnus-interactive
25283 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
25284 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
25285 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
25288 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
25289 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
25294 The best thing to do would have been to implement
25295 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
25296 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
25297 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
25298 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
25299 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
25300 @code{interactive}.
25302 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
25307 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
25308 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
25312 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
25313 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
25314 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
25317 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
25321 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
25325 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
25331 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
25332 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
25336 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
25337 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
25338 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
25340 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
25341 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
25342 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
25343 Gnus, that's very useful.
25345 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
25346 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
25347 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
25348 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
25349 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
25350 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
25351 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
25352 following function:
25355 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
25359 (,function ,@@args))
25363 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
25364 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
25365 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
25368 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
25369 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
25370 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
25372 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
25373 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
25374 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
25377 @node Various File Formats
25378 @subsection Various File Formats
25381 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
25382 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
25386 @node Active File Format
25387 @subsubsection Active File Format
25389 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
25390 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
25393 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
25396 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
25397 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
25398 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
25399 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
25400 no.general 1000 900 y
25403 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
25406 active = *group-line
25407 group-line = group spc high-number spc low-number spc flag <NEWLINE>
25408 group = <non-white-space string>
25410 high-number = <non-negative integer>
25411 low-number = <positive integer>
25412 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
25415 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
25416 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
25419 @node Newsgroups File Format
25420 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
25422 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
25423 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
25424 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
25427 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
25428 Here's the definition:
25432 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
25433 group = <non-white-space string>
25435 description = <string>
25440 @node Emacs for Heathens
25441 @section Emacs for Heathens
25443 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
25444 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
25445 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{C-M-a}'', ``kill the
25446 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
25447 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
25448 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
25449 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
25453 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
25454 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
25459 @subsection Keystrokes
25463 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
25466 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
25469 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
25470 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
25471 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
25472 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
25473 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
25474 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
25476 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
25477 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
25478 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
25479 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
25480 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
25481 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
25482 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
25484 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
25485 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{C-M-m}
25486 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
25487 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
25488 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
25489 ``Press @kbd{C-M-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
25490 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
25492 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
25493 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
25494 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
25495 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
25496 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
25502 @subsection Emacs Lisp
25504 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
25505 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
25506 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
25507 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
25509 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
25510 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
25511 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
25512 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
25513 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
25514 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
25515 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
25518 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
25519 write the following:
25522 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
25525 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
25526 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
25527 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
25530 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
25531 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
25532 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
25533 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
25534 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
25536 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
25537 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
25538 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
25542 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
25546 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
25549 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
25550 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
25553 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
25556 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
25557 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
25560 @include gnus-faq.texi
25580 @c Local Variables:
25582 @c coding: iso-8859-1
25584 % LocalWords: BNF mucho detailmenu cindex kindex kbd
25585 % LocalWords: findex Gnusae vindex dfn dfn samp nntp setq nnspool nntpserver
25586 % LocalWords: nnmbox newusers Blllrph NEWGROUPS dingnusdingnusdingnus
25587 % LocalWords: pre fab rec comp nnslashdot regex ga ga sci nnml nnbabyl nnmh
25588 % LocalWords: nnfolder emph looong eld newsreaders defun init elc pxref