1 \input texinfo @c -*-texinfo-*-
4 @settitle T-gnus 6.13 Message Manual
9 @c * Message: (message). Mail and news composition mode that goes with Gnus.
14 @setchapternewpage odd
18 This file documents Message, the Emacs message composition mode.
20 Copyright (C) 1996,97,98,99 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
22 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
23 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
24 are preserved on all copies.
27 Permission is granted to process this file through Tex and print the
28 results, provided the printed document carries copying permission
29 notice identical to this one except for the removal of this paragraph
30 (this paragraph not being relevant to the printed manual).
33 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
34 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided also that the
35 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
36 permission notice identical to this one.
38 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
39 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
45 @title T-gnus 6.13 Message Manual
47 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
50 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
51 Copyright @copyright{} 1996,97,98,99 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
53 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
54 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
55 are preserved on all copies.
57 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
58 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the
59 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
60 permission notice identical to this one.
62 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
63 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
73 All message composition from Gnus (both mail and news) takes place in
77 * Interface:: Setting up message buffers.
78 * Commands:: Commands you can execute in message mode buffers.
79 * Variables:: Customizing the message buffers.
80 * Compatibility:: Making Message backwards compatible.
81 * Appendices:: More technical things.
82 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
83 * Key Index:: List of Message mode keys.
86 This manual corresponds to T-gnus 6.13 Message. Message is
87 distributed with the Gnus distribution bearing the same version number
94 When a program (or a person) wants to respond to a message -- reply,
95 follow up, forward, cancel -- the program (or person) should just put
96 point in the buffer where the message is and call the required command.
97 @code{Message} will then pop up a new @code{message} mode buffer with
98 appropriate headers filled out, and the user can edit the message before
102 * New Mail Message:: Editing a brand new mail message.
103 * New News Message:: Editing a brand new news message.
104 * Reply:: Replying via mail.
105 * Wide Reply:: Responding to all people via mail.
106 * Followup:: Following up via news.
107 * Canceling News:: Canceling a news article.
108 * Superseding:: Superseding a message.
109 * Forwarding:: Forwarding a message via news or mail.
110 * Resending:: Resending a mail message.
111 * Bouncing:: Bouncing a mail message.
115 @node New Mail Message
116 @section New Mail Message
119 The @code{message-mail} command pops up a new message buffer.
121 Two optional parameters are accepted: The first will be used as the
122 @code{To} header and the second as the @code{Subject} header. If these
123 are @code{nil}, those two headers will be empty.
126 @node New News Message
127 @section New News Message
130 The @code{message-news} command pops up a new message buffer.
132 This function accepts two optional parameters. The first will be used
133 as the @code{Newsgroups} header and the second as the @code{Subject}
134 header. If these are @code{nil}, those two headers will be empty.
140 @findex message-reply
141 The @code{message-reply} function pops up a message buffer that's a
142 reply to the message in the current buffer.
144 @vindex message-reply-to-function
145 Message uses the normal methods to determine where replies are to go
146 (@pxref{Responses}), but you can change the behavior to suit your needs
147 by fiddling with the @code{message-reply-to-function} variable.
149 If you want the replies to go to the @code{Sender} instead of the
150 @code{From}, you could do something like this:
153 (setq message-reply-to-function
155 (cond ((equal (mail-fetch-field "from") "somebody")
156 (mail-fetch-field "sender"))
161 This function will be called narrowed to the head of the article that is
164 As you can see, this function should return a string if it has an
165 opinion as to what the To header should be. If it does not, it should
166 just return @code{nil}, and the normal methods for determining the To
169 This function can also return a list. In that case, each list element
170 should be a cons, where the car should be the name of an header
171 (eg. @code{Cc}) and the cdr should be the header value
172 (eg. @samp{larsi@@ifi.uio.no}). All these headers will be inserted into
173 the head of the outgoing mail.
179 @findex message-wide-reply
180 The @code{message-wide-reply} pops up a message buffer that's a wide
181 reply to the message in the current buffer. A @dfn{wide reply} is a
182 reply that goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From}
183 (or @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
185 @vindex message-wide-reply-to-function
186 Message uses the normal methods to determine where wide replies are to go,
187 but you can change the behavior to suit your needs by fiddling with the
188 @code{message-wide-reply-to-function}. It is used in the same way as
189 @code{message-reply-to-function} (@pxref{Reply}).
191 @findex message-dont-reply-to-names
192 Addresses that match the @code{message-dont-reply-to-names} regular
193 expression will be removed from the @code{Cc} header.
199 @findex message-followup
200 The @code{message-followup} command pops up a message buffer that's a
201 followup to the message in the current buffer.
203 @vindex message-followup-to-function
204 Message uses the normal methods to determine where followups are to go,
205 but you can change the behavior to suit your needs by fiddling with the
206 @code{message-followup-to-function}. It is used in the same way as
207 @code{message-reply-to-function} (@pxref{Reply}).
209 @vindex message-use-followup-to
210 The @code{message-use-followup-to} variable says what to do about
211 @code{Followup-To} headers. If it is @code{use}, always use the value.
212 If it is @code{ask} (which is the default), ask whether to use the
213 value. If it is @code{t}, use the value unless it is @samp{poster}. If
214 it is @code{nil}, don't use the value.
218 @section Canceling News
220 @findex message-cancel-news
221 The @code{message-cancel-news} command cancels the article in the
228 @findex message-supersede
229 The @code{message-supersede} command pops up a message buffer that will
230 supersede the message in the current buffer.
232 @vindex message-ignored-supersedes-headers
233 Headers matching the @code{message-ignored-supersedes-headers} are
234 removed before popping up the new message buffer. The default is@*
235 @samp{^Path:\\|^Date\\|^NNTP-Posting-Host:\\|^Xref:\\|^Lines:\\|@*
236 ^Received:\\|^X-From-Line:\\|Return-Path:\\|^Supersedes:}.
243 @findex message-forward
244 The @code{message-forward} command pops up a message buffer to forward
245 the message in the current buffer. If given a prefix, forward using
249 @item message-ignored-forward-headers
250 @vindex message-ignored-forward-headers
251 All headers that match this regexp will be deleted when forwarding a message.
253 @item message-make-forward-subject-function
254 @vindex message-make-forward-subject-function
255 A list of functions that are called to generate a subject header for
256 forwarded messages. The subject generated by the previous function is
257 passed into each successive function.
259 The provided functions are:
262 @item message-forward-subject-author-subject
263 @findex message-forward-subject-author-subject
264 Source of article (author or newsgroup), in brackets followed by the
267 @item message-forward-subject-fwd
268 Subject of article with @samp{Fwd:} prepended to it.
271 @item message-wash-forwarded-subjects
272 @vindex message-wash-forwarded-subjects
273 If this variable is @code{t}, the subjects of forwarded messages have
274 the evidence of previous forwards (such as @samp{Fwd:}, @samp{Re:},
275 @samp{(fwd)}) removed before the new subject is
276 constructed. The default value is @code{nil}.
284 @findex message-resend
285 The @code{message-resend} command will prompt the user for an address
286 and resend the message in the current buffer to that address.
288 @vindex message-ignored-resent-headers
289 Headers that match the @code{message-ignored-resent-headers} regexp will
290 be removed before sending the message. The default is
291 @samp{^Return-receipt}.
297 @findex message-bounce
298 The @code{message-bounce} command will, if the current buffer contains a
299 bounced mail message, pop up a message buffer stripped of the bounce
300 information. A @dfn{bounced message} is typically a mail you've sent
301 out that has been returned by some @code{mailer-daemon} as
304 @vindex message-ignored-bounced-headers
305 Headers that match the @code{message-ignored-bounced-headers} regexp
306 will be removed before popping up the buffer. The default is
307 @samp{^\\(Received\\|Return-Path\\):}.
314 * Header Commands:: Commands for moving to headers.
315 * Movement:: Moving around in message buffers.
316 * Insertion:: Inserting things into message buffers.
317 * MIME:: @sc{mime} considerations.
318 * Various Commands:: Various things.
319 * Sending:: Actually sending the message.
320 * Mail Aliases:: How to use mail aliases.
324 @node Header Commands
325 @section Header Commands
327 All these commands move to the header in question. If it doesn't exist,
334 @findex message-goto-to
335 Describe the message mode.
339 @findex message-goto-to
340 Go to the @code{To} header (@code{message-goto-to}).
344 @findex message-goto-bcc
345 Go to the @code{Bcc} header (@code{message-goto-bcc}).
349 @findex message-goto-fcc
350 Go to the @code{Fcc} header (@code{message-goto-fcc}).
354 @findex message-goto-cc
355 Go to the @code{Cc} header (@code{message-goto-cc}).
359 @findex message-goto-subject
360 Go to the @code{Subject} header (@code{message-goto-subject}).
364 @findex message-goto-reply-to
365 Go to the @code{Reply-To} header (@code{message-goto-reply-to}).
369 @findex message-goto-newsgroups
370 Go to the @code{Newsgroups} header (@code{message-goto-newsgroups}).
374 @findex message-goto-distribution
375 Go to the @code{Distribution} header (@code{message-goto-distribution}).
379 @findex message-goto-followup-to
380 Go to the @code{Followup-To} header (@code{message-goto-followup-to}).
384 @findex message-goto-keywords
385 Go to the @code{Keywords} header (@code{message-goto-keywords}).
389 @findex message-goto-summary
390 Go to the @code{Summary} header (@code{message-goto-summary}).
401 @findex message-goto-body
402 Move to the beginning of the body of the message
403 (@code{message-goto-body}).
407 @findex message-goto-signature
408 Move to the signature of the message (@code{message-goto-signature}).
420 @findex message-yank-original
421 Yank the message in the buffer @code{gnus-article-copy} into the message
422 buffer. Normally @code{gnus-article-copy} is what you are replying to
423 (@code{message-yank-original}).
427 @findex message-yank-buffer
428 Prompt for a buffer name and yank the contents of that buffer into the
429 message buffer (@code{message-yank-buffer}).
433 @findex message-fill-yanked-message
434 Fill the yanked message (@code{message-fill-yanked-message}). Warning:
435 Can severely mess up the yanked text if its quoting conventions are
436 strange. You'll quickly get a feel for when it's safe, though. Anyway,
437 just remember that @kbd{C-x u} (@code{undo}) is available and you'll be
442 @findex message-insert-signature
443 Insert a signature at the end of the buffer
444 (@code{message-insert-signature}).
448 @findex message-insert-headers
449 Insert the message headers (@code{message-insert-headers}).
454 @item message-ignored-cited-headers
455 @vindex message-ignored-cited-headers
456 All headers that match this regexp will be removed from yanked
457 messages. The default is @samp{.}, which means that all headers will be
460 @item message-citation-line-function
461 @vindex message-citation-line-function
462 Function called to insert the citation line. The default is
463 @code{message-insert-citation-line}, which will lead to citation lines
467 Hallvard B Furuseth <h.b.furuseth@@usit.uio.no> writes:
470 Point will be at the beginning of the body of the message when this
473 @item message-yank-prefix
474 @vindex message-yank-prefix
477 When you are replying to or following up an article, you normally want
478 to quote the person you are answering. Inserting quoted text is done by
479 @dfn{yanking}, and each quoted line you yank will have
480 @code{message-yank-prefix} prepended to it. The default is @samp{> }.
482 @item message-indentation-spaces
483 @vindex message-indentation-spaces
484 Number of spaces to indent yanked messages.
486 @item message-cite-function
487 @vindex message-cite-function
488 @findex message-cite-original
489 @findex sc-cite-original
490 @findex message-cite-original-without-signature
492 Function for citing an original message. The default is
493 @code{message-cite-original}, which simply inserts the original message
494 and prepends @samp{> } to each line.
495 @code{message-cite-original-without-signature} does the same, but elides
496 the signature. You can also set it to @code{sc-cite-original} to use
499 @item message-indent-citation-function
500 @vindex message-indent-citation-function
501 Function for modifying a citation just inserted in the mail buffer.
502 This can also be a list of functions. Each function can find the
503 citation between @code{(point)} and @code{(mark t)}. And each function
504 should leave point and mark around the citation text as modified.
506 @item message-signature
507 @vindex message-signature
508 String to be inserted at the end of the message buffer. If @code{t}
509 (which is the default), the @code{message-signature-file} file will be
510 inserted instead. If a function, the result from the function will be
511 used instead. If a form, the result from the form will be used instead.
512 If this variable is @code{nil}, no signature will be inserted at all.
514 @item message-signature-file
515 @vindex message-signature-file
516 File containing the signature to be inserted at the end of the buffer.
517 The default is @samp{~/.signature}.
521 Note that RFC1036bis says that a signature should be preceded by the three
522 characters @samp{-- } on a line by themselves. This is to make it
523 easier for the recipient to automatically recognize and process the
524 signature. So don't remove those characters, even though you might feel
525 that they ruin your beautiful design, like, totally.
527 Also note that no signature should be more than four lines long.
528 Including ASCII graphics is an efficient way to get everybody to believe
529 that you are silly and have nothing important to say.
539 Message is a @sc{mime}-compliant posting agent. The user generally
540 doesn't have to do anything to make the @sc{mime} happen---Message will
541 automatically add the @code{Content-Type} and
542 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} headers.
544 The most typical thing users want to use the multipart things in
545 @sc{mime} for is to add ``attachments'' to mail they send out. This can
546 be done with the @code{C-c C-a} command, which will prompt for a file
547 name and a @sc{mime} type.
549 You can also create arbitrarily complex multiparts using the MML
550 language (@pxref{Composing, , Composing, emacs-mime, The Emacs MIME
554 @node Various Commands
555 @section Various Commands
561 @findex message-caesar-buffer-body
562 Caesar rotate (aka. rot13) the current message
563 (@code{message-caesar-buffer-body}). If narrowing is in effect, just
564 rotate the visible portion of the buffer. A numerical prefix says how
565 many places to rotate the text. The default is 13.
569 @findex message-elide-region
570 Elide the text between point and mark (@code{message-elide-region}).
571 The text is killed and an ellipsis (@samp{[...]}) will be inserted in
576 @findex message-kill-to-signature
577 Kill all the text up to the signature, or if that's missing, up to the
578 end of the message (@code{message-kill-to-signature}).
582 @findex message-delete-not-region
583 Delete all text in the body of the message that is outside the region
584 (@code{message-delete-not-region}).
588 @kindex message-newline-and-reformat
589 Insert four newlines, and then reformat if inside quoted text.
594 > This is some quoted text. And here's more quoted text.
597 If point is before @samp{And} and you press @kbd{M-RET}, you'll get:
600 > This is some quoted text.
604 > And here's more quoted text.
607 @samp{*} says where point will be placed.
611 @findex message-insert-to
612 Insert a @code{To} header that contains the @code{Reply-To} or
613 @code{From} header of the message you're following up
614 (@code{message-insert-to}).
618 @findex message-insert-newsgroups
619 Insert a @code{Newsgroups} header that reflects the @code{Followup-To}
620 or @code{Newsgroups} header of the article you're replying to
621 (@code{message-insert-newsgroups}).
625 @findex message-rename-buffer
626 Rename the buffer (@code{message-rename-buffer}). If given a prefix,
627 prompt for a new buffer name.
638 @findex message-send-and-exit
639 Send the message and bury the current buffer
640 (@code{message-send-and-exit}).
645 Send the message (@code{message-send}).
649 @findex message-dont-send
650 Bury the message buffer and exit (@code{message-dont-send}).
654 @findex message-kill-buffer
655 Kill the message buffer and exit (@code{message-kill-buffer}).
662 @section Mail Aliases
666 @vindex message-mail-alias-type
667 The @code{message-mail-alias-type} variable controls what type of mail
668 alias expansion to use. Currently only one form is supported---Message
669 uses @code{mailabbrev} to handle mail aliases. If this variable is
670 @code{nil}, no mail alias expansion will be performed.
672 @code{mailabbrev} works by parsing the @file{/etc/mailrc} and
673 @file{~/.mailrc} files. These files look like:
676 alias lmi "Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@ifi.uio.no>"
677 alias ding "ding@@ifi.uio.no (ding mailing list)"
680 After adding lines like this to your @file{~/.mailrc} file, you should
681 be able to just write @samp{lmi} in the @code{To} or @code{Cc} (and so
682 on) headers and press @kbd{SPC} to expand the alias.
684 No expansion will be performed upon sending of the message---all
685 expansions have to be done explicitly.
693 * Message Headers:: General message header stuff.
694 * Mail Headers:: Customizing mail headers.
695 * Mail Variables:: Other mail variables.
696 * News Headers:: Customizing news headers.
697 * News Variables:: Other news variables.
698 * Various Message Variables:: Other message variables.
699 * Sending Variables:: Variables for sending.
700 * Message Buffers:: How Message names its buffers.
701 * Message Actions:: Actions to be performed when exiting.
705 @node Message Headers
706 @section Message Headers
708 Message is quite aggressive on the message generation front. It has to
709 be -- it's a combined news and mail agent. To be able to send combined
710 messages, it has to generate all headers itself (instead of letting the
711 mail/news system do it) to ensure that mail and news copies of messages
712 look sufficiently similar.
716 @item message-generate-headers-first
717 @vindex message-generate-headers-first
718 If non-@code{nil}, generate all headers before starting to compose the
721 @item message-from-style
722 @vindex message-from-style
723 Specifies how @code{From} headers should look. There are four valid
728 Just the address -- @samp{king@@grassland.com}.
731 @samp{king@@grassland.com (Elvis Parsley)}.
734 @samp{Elvis Parsley <king@@grassland.com>}.
737 Look like @code{angles} if that doesn't require quoting, and
738 @code{parens} if it does. If even @code{parens} requires quoting, use
739 @code{angles} anyway.
743 @item message-deletable-headers
744 @vindex message-deletable-headers
745 Headers in this list that were previously generated by Message will be
746 deleted before posting. Let's say you post an article. Then you decide
747 to post it again to some other group, you naughty boy, so you jump back
748 to the @code{*post-buf*} buffer, edit the @code{Newsgroups} line, and
749 ship it off again. By default, this variable makes sure that the old
750 generated @code{Message-ID} is deleted, and a new one generated. If
751 this isn't done, the entire empire would probably crumble, anarchy would
752 prevail, and cats would start walking on two legs and rule the world.
755 @item message-default-headers
756 @vindex message-default-headers
757 This string is inserted at the end of the headers in all message
760 @item message-subject-re-regexp
761 @vindex message-subject-re-regexp
762 Responses to messages have subjects that start with @samp{Re: }. This
763 is @emph{not} an abbreviation of the English word ``response'', but in
764 Latin, and means ``in response to''. Some illiterate nincompoops have
765 failed to grasp this fact, and have ``internationalized'' their software
766 to use abonimations like @samp{Aw: } (``antwort'') or @samp{Sv: }
767 (``svar'') instead, which is meaningless and evil. However, you may
768 have to deal with users that use these evil tools, in which case you may
769 set this variable to a regexp that matches these prefixes. Myself, I
770 just throw away non-compliant mail.
776 @section Mail Headers
779 @item message-required-mail-headers
780 @vindex message-required-mail-headers
781 @xref{News Headers}, for the syntax of this variable. It is
782 @code{(From Date Subject (optional . In-Reply-To) Message-ID Lines
783 (optional . X-Mailer))} by default.
785 @item message-ignored-mail-headers
786 @vindex message-ignored-mail-headers
787 Regexp of headers to be removed before mailing. The default is
788 @samp{^[GF]cc:\\|^Resent-Fcc:}.
790 @item message-default-mail-headers
791 @vindex message-default-mail-headers
792 This string is inserted at the end of the headers in all message
793 buffers that are initialized as mail.
799 @section Mail Variables
802 @item message-send-mail-function
803 @vindex message-send-mail-function
804 Function used to send the current buffer as mail. The default is
805 @code{message-send-mail-with-sendmail}. If you prefer using MH
806 instead, set this variable to @code{message-send-mail-with-mh}.
808 @item message-mh-deletable-headers
809 @vindex message-mh-deletable-headers
810 Most versions of MH doesn't like being fed messages that contain the
811 headers in this variable. If this variable is non-@code{nil} (which is
812 the default), these headers will be removed before mailing when sending
813 messages via MH. Set it to @code{nil} if your MH can handle these
820 @section News Headers
822 @vindex message-required-news-headers
823 @code{message-required-news-headers} a list of header symbols. These
824 headers will either be automatically generated, or, if that's
825 impossible, they will be prompted for. The following symbols are valid:
831 @findex user-full-name
832 @findex user-mail-address
833 This required header will be filled out with the result of the
834 @code{message-make-from} function, which depends on the
835 @code{message-from-style}, @code{user-full-name},
836 @code{user-mail-address} variables.
840 This required header will be prompted for if not present already.
844 This required header says which newsgroups the article is to be posted
845 to. If it isn't present already, it will be prompted for.
849 This optional header will be filled out depending on the
850 @code{message-user-organization} variable.
851 @code{message-user-organization-file} will be used if this variable is
852 @code{t}. This variable can also be a string (in which case this string
853 will be used), or it can be a function (which will be called with no
854 parameters and should return a string to be used).
858 This optional header will be computed by Message.
862 @vindex mail-host-address
865 This required header will be generated by Message. A unique ID will be
866 created based on the date, time, user name and system name. Message
867 will use @code{system-name} to determine the name of the system. If
868 this isn't a fully qualified domain name (FQDN), Message will use
869 @code{mail-host-address} as the FQDN of the machine.
873 This optional header will be filled out according to the
874 @code{message-newsreader} local variable.
877 This optional header will be filled out according to the
878 @code{message-mailer} local variable, unless there already is an
879 @code{X-Newsreader} header present.
882 This optional header is filled out using the @code{Date} and @code{From}
883 header of the article being replied to.
887 This extremely optional header will be inserted according to the
888 @code{message-expires} variable. It is highly deprecated and shouldn't
889 be used unless you know what you're doing.
893 This optional header is filled out according to the
894 @code{message-distribution-function} variable. It is a deprecated and
895 much misunderstood header.
899 This extremely optional header should probably never be used.
900 However, some @emph{very} old servers require that this header is
901 present. @code{message-user-path} further controls how this
902 @code{Path} header is to look. If it is @code{nil}, use the server name
903 as the leaf node. If it is a string, use the string. If it is neither
904 a string nor @code{nil}, use the user name only. However, it is highly
905 unlikely that you should need to fiddle with this variable at all.
910 In addition, you can enter conses into this list. The car of this cons
911 should be a symbol. This symbol's name is the name of the header, and
912 the cdr can either be a string to be entered verbatim as the value of
913 this header, or it can be a function to be called. This function should
914 return a string to be inserted. For instance, if you want to insert
915 @code{Mime-Version: 1.0}, you should enter @code{(Mime-Version . "1.0")}
916 into the list. If you want to insert a funny quote, you could enter
917 something like @code{(X-Yow . yow)} into the list. The function
918 @code{yow} will then be called without any arguments.
920 If the list contains a cons where the car of the cons is
921 @code{optional}, the cdr of this cons will only be inserted if it is
924 Other variables for customizing outgoing news articles:
928 @item message-syntax-checks
929 @vindex message-syntax-checks
930 Controls what syntax checks should not be performed on outgoing posts.
931 To disable checking of long signatures, for instance, add
934 (signature . disabled)
943 Check the subject for commands.
946 Insert a new @code{Sender} header if the @code{From} header looks odd.
947 @item multiple-headers
948 Check for the existence of multiple equal headers.
951 Check for the existence of version and sendsys commands.
953 Check whether the @code{Message-ID} looks ok.
955 Check whether the @code{From} header seems nice.
958 Check for too long lines.
960 Check for invalid characters.
962 Check for excessive size.
964 Check whether there is any new text in the messages.
966 Check the length of the signature.
969 Check whether the article has an @code{Approved} header, which is
970 something only moderators should include.
972 Check whether the article is empty.
974 Check whether there is any invisible text in the buffer.
976 Check whether any of the headers are empty.
977 @item existing-newsgroups
978 Check whether the newsgroups mentioned in the @code{Newsgroups} and
979 @code{Followup-To} headers exist.
980 @item valid-newsgroups
981 Check whether the @code{Newsgroups} and @code{Followup-to} headers
982 are valid syntactically.
983 @item repeated-newsgroups
984 Check whether the @code{Newsgroups} and @code{Followup-to} headers
985 contains repeated group names.
986 @item shorten-followup-to
987 Check whether to add a @code{Followup-to} header to shorten the number
988 of groups to post to.
991 All these conditions are checked by default.
993 @item message-ignored-news-headers
994 @vindex message-ignored-news-headers
995 Regexp of headers to be removed before posting. The default is@*
996 @samp{^NNTP-Posting-Host:\\|^Xref:\\|^[BGF]cc:\\|^Resent-Fcc:}.
998 @item message-default-news-headers
999 @vindex message-default-news-headers
1000 This string is inserted at the end of the headers in all message
1001 buffers that are initialized as news.
1006 @node News Variables
1007 @section News Variables
1010 @item message-send-news-function
1011 @vindex message-send-news-function
1012 Function used to send the current buffer as news. The default is
1013 @code{message-send-news}.
1015 @item message-post-method
1016 @vindex message-post-method
1017 Gnusish @dfn{select method} (see the Gnus manual for details) used for
1018 posting a prepared news message.
1023 @node Various Message Variables
1024 @section Various Message Variables
1027 @item message-signature-separator
1028 @vindex message-signature-separator
1029 Regexp matching the signature separator. It is @samp{^-- *$} by
1032 @item mail-header-separator
1033 @vindex mail-header-separator
1034 String used to separate the headers from the body. It is @samp{--text
1035 follows this line--} by default.
1037 @item message-directory
1038 @vindex message-directory
1039 Directory used by many mailey things. The default is @file{~/Mail/}.
1041 @item message-signature-setup-hook
1042 @vindex message-signature-setup-hook
1043 Hook run when initializing the message buffer. It is run after the
1044 headers have been inserted but before the signature has been inserted.
1046 @item message-setup-hook
1047 @vindex message-setup-hook
1048 Hook run as the last thing when the message buffer has been initialized,
1049 but before yanked text is inserted.
1051 @item message-header-setup-hook
1052 @vindex message-header-setup-hook
1053 Hook called narrowed to the headers after initializing the headers.
1055 For instance, if you're running Gnus and wish to insert a
1056 @samp{Mail-Copies-To} header in all your news articles and all messages
1057 you send to mailing lists, you could do something like the following:
1060 (defun my-message-header-setup-hook ()
1061 (let ((group (or gnus-newsgroup-name "")))
1062 (when (or (message-fetch-field "newsgroups")
1063 (gnus-group-find-parameter group 'to-address)
1064 (gnus-group-find-parameter group 'to-list))
1065 (insert "Mail-Copies-To: never\n"))))
1067 (add-hook 'message-header-setup-hook
1068 'my-message-header-setup-hook)
1071 @item message-send-hook
1072 @vindex message-send-hook
1073 Hook run before sending messages.
1075 If you want to add certain headers before sending, you can use the
1076 @code{message-add-header} function in this hook. For instance:
1077 @findex message-add-header
1080 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'my-message-add-content)
1081 (defun my-message-add-content ()
1083 "X-In-No-Sense: Nonsense"
1087 This function won't add the header if the header is already present.
1089 @item message-send-mail-hook
1090 @vindex message-send-mail-hook
1091 Hook run before sending mail messages.
1093 @item message-send-news-hook
1094 @vindex message-send-news-hook
1095 Hook run before sending news messages.
1097 @item message-sent-hook
1098 @vindex message-sent-hook
1099 Hook run after sending messages.
1101 @item message-mode-syntax-table
1102 @vindex message-mode-syntax-table
1103 Syntax table used in message mode buffers.
1105 @item message-send-method-alist
1106 @vindex message-send-method-alist
1108 Alist of ways to send outgoing messages. Each element has the form
1111 (TYPE PREDICATE FUNCTION)
1116 A symbol that names the method.
1119 A function called without any parameters to determine whether the
1120 message is a message of type @var{type}.
1123 A function to be called if @var{predicate} returns non-@code{nil}.
1124 @var{function} is called with one parameter -- the prefix.
1128 ((news message-news-p message-send-via-news)
1129 (mail message-mail-p message-send-via-mail))
1138 @node Sending Variables
1139 @section Sending Variables
1143 @item message-fcc-handler-function
1144 @vindex message-fcc-handler-function
1145 A function called to save outgoing articles. This function will be
1146 called with the name of the file to store the article in. The default
1147 function is @code{message-output} which saves in Unix mailbox format.
1149 @item message-courtesy-message
1150 @vindex message-courtesy-message
1151 When sending combined messages, this string is inserted at the start of
1152 the mailed copy. If the string contains the format spec @samp{%s}, the
1153 newsgroups the article has been posted to will be inserted there. If
1154 this variable is @code{nil}, no such courtesy message will be added.
1155 The default value is @samp{"The following message is a courtesy copy of
1156 an article\nthat has been posted to %s as well.\n\n"}.
1161 @node Message Buffers
1162 @section Message Buffers
1164 Message will generate new buffers with unique buffer names when you
1165 request a message buffer. When you send the message, the buffer isn't
1166 normally killed off. Its name is changed and a certain number of old
1167 message buffers are kept alive.
1170 @item message-generate-new-buffers
1171 @vindex message-generate-new-buffers
1172 If non-@code{nil}, generate new buffers. The default is @code{t}. If
1173 this is a function, call that function with three parameters: The type,
1174 the to address and the group name. (Any of these may be @code{nil}.)
1175 The function should return the new buffer name.
1177 @item message-use-multi-frames
1178 @vindex message-use-multi-frames
1179 If non-@code{nil}, generate new frames. The default is @code{nil}.
1181 @item message-delete-frame-on-exit
1182 @vindex message-delete-frame-on-exit
1183 The @code{message-delete-frame-on-exit} variable says whether to delete
1184 the frame after sending the message or killing the message buffer. If it
1185 is @code{nil} (which is the default), don't delete the frame. If it is
1186 @code{ask}, ask wheter to delete the frame. If it is @code{t}, always
1189 @item message-max-buffers
1190 @vindex message-max-buffers
1191 This variable says how many old message buffers to keep. If there are
1192 more message buffers than this, the oldest buffer will be killed. The
1193 default is 10. If this variable is @code{nil}, no old message buffers
1194 will ever be killed.
1196 @item message-send-rename-function
1197 @vindex message-send-rename-function
1198 After sending a message, the buffer is renamed from, for instance,
1199 @samp{*reply to Lars*} to @samp{*sent reply to Lars*}. If you don't
1200 like this, set this variable to a function that renames the buffer in a
1201 manner you like. If you don't want to rename the buffer at all, you can
1205 (setq message-send-rename-function 'ignore)
1208 @item message-kill-buffer-on-exit
1209 @findex message-kill-buffer-on-exit
1210 If non-@code{nil}, kill the buffer immediately on exit.
1215 @node Message Actions
1216 @section Message Actions
1218 When Message is being used from a news/mail reader, the reader is likely
1219 to want to perform some task after the message has been sent. Perhaps
1220 return to the previous window configuration or mark an article as
1223 @vindex message-kill-actions
1224 @vindex message-postpone-actions
1225 @vindex message-exit-actions
1226 @vindex message-send-actions
1227 The user may exit from the message buffer in various ways. The most
1228 common is @kbd{C-c C-c}, which sends the message and exits. Other
1229 possibilities are @kbd{C-c C-s} which just sends the message, @kbd{C-c
1230 C-d} which postpones the message editing and buries the message buffer,
1231 and @kbd{C-c C-k} which kills the message buffer. Each of these actions
1232 have lists associated with them that contains actions to be executed:
1233 @code{message-send-actions}, @code{message-exit-actions},
1234 @code{message-postpone-actions}, and @code{message-kill-actions}.
1236 Message provides a function to interface with these lists:
1237 @code{message-add-action}. The first parameter is the action to be
1238 added, and the rest of the arguments are which lists to add this action
1239 to. Here's an example from Gnus:
1243 `(set-window-configuration ,(current-window-configuration))
1244 'exit 'postpone 'kill)
1247 This restores the Gnus window configuration when the message buffer is
1248 killed, postponed or exited.
1250 An @dfn{action} can be either: a normal function, or a list where the
1251 @code{car} is a function and the @code{cdr} is the list of arguments, or
1252 a form to be @code{eval}ed.
1256 @chapter Compatibility
1257 @cindex compatibility
1259 Message uses virtually only its own variables---older @code{mail-}
1260 variables aren't consulted. To force Message to take those variables
1261 into account, you can put the following in your @code{.emacs} file:
1264 (require 'messcompat)
1267 This will initialize many Message variables from the values in the
1268 corresponding mail variables.
1275 * Responses:: Standard rules for determining where responses go.
1282 To determine where a message is to go, the following algorithm is used
1287 A @dfn{reply} is when you want to respond @emph{just} to the person who
1288 sent the message via mail. There will only be one recipient. To
1289 determine who the recipient will be, the following headers are
1300 A @dfn{wide reply} is a mail response that includes @emph{all} entities
1301 mentioned in the message you are responded to. All mailboxes from the
1302 following headers will be concatenated to form the outgoing
1303 @code{To}/@code{Cc} headers:
1307 (unless there's a @code{Reply-To}, in which case that is used instead).
1314 If a @code{Mail-Copies-To} header is present, it will also be included
1315 in the list of mailboxes. If this header is @samp{never}, that means
1316 that the @code{From} (or @code{Reply-To}) mailbox will be suppressed.
1320 A @dfn{followup} is a response sent via news. The following headers
1321 (listed in order of precedence) determine where the response is to be
1332 If a @code{Mail-Copies-To} header is present, it will be used as the
1333 basis of the new @code{Cc} header, except if this header is