1 \input texinfo @c -*-texinfo-*-
4 @settitle T-gnus 6.15 Message Manual
10 * Message: (message). Mail and news composition mode that goes with Gnus.
15 @setchapternewpage odd
19 This file documents Message, the Emacs message composition mode.
21 Copyright (C) 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
23 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
24 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
25 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
26 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
27 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
28 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
29 License'' in the Emacs manual.
31 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
32 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
33 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
35 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
36 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
37 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
38 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
44 @title T-gnus 6.15 Message Manual
46 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
49 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
50 Copyright @copyright{} 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000
51 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
53 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
54 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
55 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the
56 Invariant Sections being none, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
57 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
58 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
59 License'' in the Emacs manual.
61 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
62 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
63 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
65 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
66 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
67 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
68 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
77 All message composition from Gnus (both mail and news) takes place in
81 * Interface:: Setting up message buffers.
82 * Commands:: Commands you can execute in message mode buffers.
83 * Variables:: Customizing the message buffers.
84 * Compatibility:: Making Message backwards compatible.
85 * Appendices:: More technical things.
86 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
87 * Key Index:: List of Message mode keys.
90 This manual corresponds to T-gnus 6.15 Message. Message is distributed
91 with the Gnus distribution bearing the same version number as this
98 When a program (or a person) wants to respond to a message -- reply,
99 follow up, forward, cancel -- the program (or person) should just put
100 point in the buffer where the message is and call the required command.
101 @code{Message} will then pop up a new @code{message} mode buffer with
102 appropriate headers filled out, and the user can edit the message before
106 * New Mail Message:: Editing a brand new mail message.
107 * New News Message:: Editing a brand new news message.
108 * Reply:: Replying via mail.
109 * Wide Reply:: Responding to all people via mail.
110 * Followup:: Following up via news.
111 * Canceling News:: Canceling a news article.
112 * Superseding:: Superseding a message.
113 * Forwarding:: Forwarding a message via news or mail.
114 * Resending:: Resending a mail message.
115 * Bouncing:: Bouncing a mail message.
119 @node New Mail Message
120 @section New Mail Message
123 The @code{message-mail} command pops up a new message buffer.
125 Two optional parameters are accepted: The first will be used as the
126 @code{To} header and the second as the @code{Subject} header. If these
127 are @code{nil}, those two headers will be empty.
130 @node New News Message
131 @section New News Message
134 The @code{message-news} command pops up a new message buffer.
136 This function accepts two optional parameters. The first will be used
137 as the @code{Newsgroups} header and the second as the @code{Subject}
138 header. If these are @code{nil}, those two headers will be empty.
144 @findex message-reply
145 The @code{message-reply} function pops up a message buffer that's a
146 reply to the message in the current buffer.
148 @vindex message-reply-to-function
149 Message uses the normal methods to determine where replies are to go
150 (@pxref{Responses}), but you can change the behavior to suit your needs
151 by fiddling with the @code{message-reply-to-function} variable.
153 If you want the replies to go to the @code{Sender} instead of the
154 @code{From}, you could do something like this:
157 (setq message-reply-to-function
159 (cond ((equal (mail-fetch-field "from") "somebody")
160 (list (cons 'To (mail-fetch-field "sender"))))
165 This function will be called narrowed to the head of the article that is
168 As you can see, this function should return a string if it has an
169 opinion as to what the To header should be. If it does not, it should
170 just return @code{nil}, and the normal methods for determining the To
173 This function can also return a list. In that case, each list element
174 should be a cons, where the car should be the name of an header
175 (eg. @code{Cc}) and the cdr should be the header value
176 (eg. @samp{larsi@@ifi.uio.no}). All these headers will be inserted into
177 the head of the outgoing mail.
183 @findex message-wide-reply
184 The @code{message-wide-reply} pops up a message buffer that's a wide
185 reply to the message in the current buffer. A @dfn{wide reply} is a
186 reply that goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From}
187 (or @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
189 @vindex message-wide-reply-to-function
190 Message uses the normal methods to determine where wide replies are to go,
191 but you can change the behavior to suit your needs by fiddling with the
192 @code{message-wide-reply-to-function}. It is used in the same way as
193 @code{message-reply-to-function} (@pxref{Reply}).
195 @findex message-dont-reply-to-names
196 Addresses that match the @code{message-dont-reply-to-names} regular
197 expression will be removed from the @code{Cc} header.
203 @findex message-followup
204 The @code{message-followup} command pops up a message buffer that's a
205 followup to the message in the current buffer.
207 @vindex message-followup-to-function
208 Message uses the normal methods to determine where followups are to go,
209 but you can change the behavior to suit your needs by fiddling with the
210 @code{message-followup-to-function}. It is used in the same way as
211 @code{message-reply-to-function} (@pxref{Reply}).
213 @vindex message-use-followup-to
214 The @code{message-use-followup-to} variable says what to do about
215 @code{Followup-To} headers. If it is @code{use}, always use the value.
216 If it is @code{ask} (which is the default), ask whether to use the
217 value. If it is @code{t}, use the value unless it is @samp{poster}. If
218 it is @code{nil}, don't use the value.
222 @section Canceling News
224 @findex message-cancel-news
225 The @code{message-cancel-news} command cancels the article in the
232 @findex message-supersede
233 The @code{message-supersede} command pops up a message buffer that will
234 supersede the message in the current buffer.
236 @vindex message-ignored-supersedes-headers
237 Headers matching the @code{message-ignored-supersedes-headers} are
238 removed before popping up the new message buffer. The default is@*
239 @samp{^Path:\\|^Date\\|^NNTP-Posting-Host:\\|^Xref:\\|^Lines:\\|@*
240 ^Received:\\|^X-From-Line:\\|Return-Path:\\|^Supersedes:}.
247 @findex message-forward
248 The @code{message-forward} command pops up a message buffer to forward
249 the message in the current buffer. If given a prefix, forward using
253 @item message-forward-ignored-headers
254 @vindex message-forward-ignored-headers
255 All headers that match this regexp will be deleted when forwarding a message.
257 @item message-make-forward-subject-function
258 @vindex message-make-forward-subject-function
259 A list of functions that are called to generate a subject header for
260 forwarded messages. The subject generated by the previous function is
261 passed into each successive function.
263 The provided functions are:
266 @item message-forward-subject-author-subject
267 @findex message-forward-subject-author-subject
268 Source of article (author or newsgroup), in brackets followed by the
271 @item message-forward-subject-fwd
272 Subject of article with @samp{Fwd:} prepended to it.
275 @item message-wash-forwarded-subjects
276 @vindex message-wash-forwarded-subjects
277 If this variable is @code{t}, the subjects of forwarded messages have
278 the evidence of previous forwards (such as @samp{Fwd:}, @samp{Re:},
279 @samp{(fwd)}) removed before the new subject is
280 constructed. The default value is @code{nil}.
282 @item message-forward-as-mime
283 @vindex message-forward-as-mime
284 If this variable is @code{t} (the default), forwarded messages are
285 included as inline MIME RFC822 parts. If it's @code{nil}, forwarded
286 messages will just be copied inline to the new message, like previous,
287 non MIME-savvy versions of gnus would do.
294 @findex message-resend
295 The @code{message-resend} command will prompt the user for an address
296 and resend the message in the current buffer to that address.
298 @vindex message-ignored-resent-headers
299 Headers that match the @code{message-ignored-resent-headers} regexp will
300 be removed before sending the message. The default is
301 @samp{^Return-receipt}.
307 @findex message-bounce
308 The @code{message-bounce} command will, if the current buffer contains a
309 bounced mail message, pop up a message buffer stripped of the bounce
310 information. A @dfn{bounced message} is typically a mail you've sent
311 out that has been returned by some @code{mailer-daemon} as
314 @vindex message-ignored-bounced-headers
315 Headers that match the @code{message-ignored-bounced-headers} regexp
316 will be removed before popping up the buffer. The default is
317 @samp{^\\(Received\\|Return-Path\\):}.
324 * Buffer Entry:: Commands after entering a Message buffer.
325 * Header Commands:: Commands for moving to headers.
326 * Movement:: Moving around in message buffers.
327 * Insertion:: Inserting things into message buffers.
328 * MIME:: @sc{mime} considerations.
329 * Security:: Signing and encrypting messages.
330 * Various Commands:: Various things.
331 * Sending:: Actually sending the message.
332 * Mail Aliases:: How to use mail aliases.
333 * Spelling:: Having Emacs check your spelling.
338 @section Buffer Entry
342 You most often end up in a Message buffer when responding to some other
343 message of some sort. Message does lots of handling of quoted text, and
344 may remove signatures, reformat the text, or the like---depending on
345 which used settings you're using. Message usually gets things right,
346 but sometimes it stumbles. To help the user unwind these stumblings,
347 Message sets the undo boundary before each major automatic action it
348 takes. If you press the undo key (usually located at @kbd{C-_}) a few
349 times, you will get back the un-edited message you're responding to.
352 @node Header Commands
353 @section Header Commands
355 All these commands move to the header in question (except for the
356 @samp{Importance:} related commands). If it doesn't exist, it will be
363 @findex message-goto-to
364 Describe the message mode.
368 @findex message-goto-to
369 Go to the @code{To} header (@code{message-goto-to}).
373 @findex message-goto-bcc
374 Go to the @code{Bcc} header (@code{message-goto-bcc}).
378 @findex message-goto-fcc
379 Go to the @code{Fcc} header (@code{message-goto-fcc}).
383 @findex message-goto-cc
384 Go to the @code{Cc} header (@code{message-goto-cc}).
388 @findex message-goto-subject
389 Go to the @code{Subject} header (@code{message-goto-subject}).
393 @findex message-goto-reply-to
394 Go to the @code{Reply-To} header (@code{message-goto-reply-to}).
398 @findex message-goto-newsgroups
399 Go to the @code{Newsgroups} header (@code{message-goto-newsgroups}).
403 @findex message-goto-distribution
404 Go to the @code{Distribution} header (@code{message-goto-distribution}).
408 @findex message-goto-followup-to
409 Go to the @code{Followup-To} header (@code{message-goto-followup-to}).
413 @findex message-goto-keywords
414 Go to the @code{Keywords} header (@code{message-goto-keywords}).
418 @findex message-goto-summary
419 Go to the @code{Summary} header (@code{message-goto-summary}).
423 @findex message-insert-or-toggle-importance
424 This inserts the @samp{Importance:} header with a value of
425 @samp{high}. This header is used to signal the importance of the
426 message to the receiver. If the header is already present in the
427 buffer, it cycles between the three valid values according to RFC
428 1376: @samp{low}, @samp{normal} and @samp{high}.
430 @item M-x message-insert-importance-high
431 @kindex M-x message-insert-importance-high
432 @findex message-insert-importance-high
433 Insert a @samp{Importance:} header with a value of @samp{high},
434 deleting headers if necessary.
436 @item M-x message-insert-importance-low
437 @kindex M-x message-insert-importance-low
438 @findex message-insert-importance-low
439 Insert a @samp{Importance:} header with a value of @samp{low},
440 deleting headers if necessary.
451 @findex message-goto-body
452 Move to the beginning of the body of the message
453 (@code{message-goto-body}).
457 @findex message-goto-signature
458 Move to the signature of the message (@code{message-goto-signature}).
462 @findex message-beginning-of-line
463 If at beginning of header value, go to beginning of line, else go to
464 beginning of header value. (The header value comes after the header
477 @findex message-yank-original
478 Yank the message in the buffer @code{gnus-article-copy} into the message
479 buffer. Normally @code{gnus-article-copy} is what you are replying to
480 (@code{message-yank-original}).
484 @findex message-yank-buffer
485 Prompt for a buffer name and yank the contents of that buffer into the
486 message buffer (@code{message-yank-buffer}).
490 @findex message-fill-yanked-message
491 Fill the yanked message (@code{message-fill-yanked-message}). Warning:
492 Can severely mess up the yanked text if its quoting conventions are
493 strange. You'll quickly get a feel for when it's safe, though. Anyway,
494 just remember that @kbd{C-x u} (@code{undo}) is available and you'll be
499 @findex message-insert-signature
500 Insert a signature at the end of the buffer
501 (@code{message-insert-signature}).
505 @findex message-insert-headers
506 Insert the message headers (@code{message-insert-headers}).
518 Message is a @sc{mime}-compliant posting agent. The user generally
519 doesn't have to do anything to make the @sc{mime} happen---Message will
520 automatically add the @code{Content-Type} and
521 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} headers.
523 The most typical thing users want to use the multipart things in
524 @sc{mime} for is to add ``attachments'' to mail they send out. This can
525 be done with the @code{C-c C-a} command, which will prompt for a file
526 name and a @sc{mime} type.
528 You can also create arbitrarily complex multiparts using the MML
529 language (@pxref{Composing, , Composing, emacs-mime, The Emacs MIME
541 Using the MML language, Message is able to create digitally signed and
542 digitally encrypted messages. Message (or rather MML) currently
543 support PGP (RFC 1991), PGP/MIME (RFC 2015/3156) and S/MIME.
544 Instructing MML to perform security operations on a MIME part is done
545 using the @code{C-c C-m s} key map for signing and the @code{C-c C-m
546 c} key map for encryption, as follows.
552 @findex mml-secure-sign-smime
554 Digitally sign current MIME part using S/MIME.
558 @findex mml-secure-sign-pgp
560 Digitally sign current MIME part using PGP.
564 @findex mml-secure-sign-pgp
566 Digitally sign current MIME part using PGP/MIME.
570 @findex mml-secure-encrypt-smime
572 Digitally encrypt current MIME part using S/MIME.
576 @findex mml-secure-encrypt-pgp
578 Digitally encrypt current MIME part using PGP.
582 @findex mml-secure-encrypt-pgpmime
584 Digitally encrypt current MIME part using PGP/MIME.
588 These commands do not immediately sign or encrypt the message, they
589 merely insert proper MML tags to instruct the MML engine to perform that
590 operation when the message is actually sent. They may perform other
591 operations too, such as locating and retrieving a S/MIME certificate of
592 the person you wish to send encrypted mail to.
594 Since signing and especially encryption often is used when sensitive
595 information is sent, you may want to have some way to ensure that your
596 mail is actually signed or encrypted. After invoking the above
597 sign/encrypt commands, it is possible to preview the raw article by
598 using @code{C-u C-m P} (@code{mml-preview}). Then you can verify that
599 your long rant about what your ex-significant other or whomever actually
600 did with that funny looking person at that strange party the other
601 night, actually will be sent encrypted.
603 @emph{Note!} Neither PGP/MIME nor S/MIME encrypt/signs RFC822 headers.
604 They only operate on the MIME object. Keep this in mind before sending
605 mail with a sensitive Subject line.
607 Actually using the security commands above is not very difficult. At
608 least not compared with making sure all involved programs talk with each
609 other properly. Thus, we now describe what external libraries or
610 programs are required to make things work, and some small general hints.
612 @subsection Using S/MIME
614 @emph{Note!} This section assume you have a basic familiarity with
615 modern cryptography, S/MIME, various PKCS standards, OpenSSL and so on.
617 The S/MIME support in Message (and MML) require OpenSSL. OpenSSL
618 perform the actual S/MIME sign/encrypt operations. OpenSSL can be found
619 at @uref{http://www.openssl.org/}. OpenSSL 0.9.6 and later should work.
620 Version 0.9.5a cannot extract mail addresses from certificates, and it
621 insert a spurious CR character into MIME separators so you may wish to
622 avoid it if you would like to avoid being regarded as someone who send
623 strange mail. (Although by sending S/MIME messages you've probably
624 already lost that contest.)
626 To be able to send encrypted mail, a personal certificate is not
627 required. Message (MML) need a certificate for the person to whom you
628 wish to communicate with though. You're asked for this when you type
629 @code{C-c C-m c s}. Currently there are two ways to retrieve this
630 certificate, from a local file or from DNS. If you chose a local file,
631 it need to contain a X.509 certificate in PEM format. If you chose DNS,
632 you're asked for the domain name where the certificate is stored, the
633 default is a good guess. To my belief, Message (MML) is the first mail
634 agent in the world to support retrieving S/MIME certificates from DNS,
635 so you're not likely to find very many certificates out there. At least
636 there should be one, stored at the domain @code{simon.josefsson.org}.
637 LDAP is a more popular method of distributing certificates, support for
638 it is planned. (Meanwhile, you can use @code{ldapsearch} from the
639 command line to retrieve a certificate into a file and use it.)
641 As for signing messages, OpenSSL can't perform signing operations
642 without some kind of configuration. Especially, you need to tell it
643 where your private key and your certificate is stored. MML uses an
644 Emacs interface to OpenSSL, aptly named @code{smime.el}, and it contain
645 a @code{custom} group used for this configuration. So, try @code{M-x
646 customize-group RET smime RET} and look around.
648 Currently there is no support for talking to a CA (or RA) to create your
649 own certificate. None is planned either. You need to do this manually
650 with OpenSSL or using some other program. I used Netscape and got a
651 free S/MIME certificate from one of the big CA's on the net. Netscape
652 is able to export your private key and certificate in PKCS #12 format.
653 Use OpenSSL to convert this into a plain X.509 certificate in PEM format
657 $ openssl pkcs12 -in ns.p12 -clcerts -nodes > key+cert.pem
660 The @code{key+cert.pem} file should be pointed to from the
661 @code{smime-keys} variable. You should now be able to send signed mail.
663 @emph{Note!} Your private key is store unencrypted in the file, so take
666 @subsection Using PGP/MIME
668 PGP/MIME requires an external OpenPGP implementation, such as GNU
669 Privacy Guard (@uref{http://www.gnupg.org/}). It also requires an Emacs
670 interface to it, such as Mailcrypt (available from
671 @uref{http://www.nb.net/~lbudney/linux/software/mailcrypt.html}) or
672 Florian Weimer's @code{gpg.el}.
674 Creating your own OpenPGP key is described in detail in the
675 documentation of your OpenPGP implementation, so we refer to it.
677 @node Various Commands
678 @section Various Commands
684 @findex message-caesar-buffer-body
685 Caesar rotate (aka. rot13) the current message
686 (@code{message-caesar-buffer-body}). If narrowing is in effect, just
687 rotate the visible portion of the buffer. A numerical prefix says how
688 many places to rotate the text. The default is 13.
692 @findex message-elide-region
693 Elide the text between point and mark (@code{message-elide-region}).
694 The text is killed and replaced with the contents of the variable
695 @code{message-elide-ellipsis}. The default value is to use an ellipsis
700 @findex message-kill-to-signature
701 Kill all the text up to the signature, or if that's missing, up to the
702 end of the message (@code{message-kill-to-signature}).
706 @findex message-delete-not-region
707 Delete all text in the body of the message that is outside the region
708 (@code{message-delete-not-region}).
712 @findex message-newline-and-reformat
713 Insert four newlines, and then reformat if inside quoted text.
718 > This is some quoted text. And here's more quoted text.
721 If point is before @samp{And} and you press @kbd{M-RET}, you'll get:
724 > This is some quoted text.
728 > And here's more quoted text.
731 @samp{*} says where point will be placed.
735 @findex message-insert-to
736 Insert a @code{To} header that contains the @code{Reply-To} or
737 @code{From} header of the message you're following up
738 (@code{message-insert-to}).
742 @findex message-insert-newsgroups
743 Insert a @code{Newsgroups} header that reflects the @code{Followup-To}
744 or @code{Newsgroups} header of the article you're replying to
745 (@code{message-insert-newsgroups}).
749 @findex message-rename-buffer
750 Rename the buffer (@code{message-rename-buffer}). If given a prefix,
751 prompt for a new buffer name.
762 @findex message-send-and-exit
763 Send the message and bury the current buffer
764 (@code{message-send-and-exit}).
769 Send the message (@code{message-send}).
773 @findex message-dont-send
774 Bury the message buffer and exit (@code{message-dont-send}).
778 @findex message-kill-buffer
779 Kill the message buffer and exit (@code{message-kill-buffer}). It will
780 delete the message frame if it has been created exclusively for the
781 message buffer. If the option
782 @code{message-kill-buffer-and-remove-file} is non-@code{nil} and the
783 backup file has been created for the message buffer, it will also remove
784 the file after prompting to the user.
788 @findex message-mimic-kill-buffer
789 @vindex message-kill-buffer-and-remove-file
790 This is an imitation for @code{kill-buffer}
791 (@code{message-mimic-kill-buffer}). It dynamically binds the variable
792 @code{message-kill-buffer-and-remove-file} to @code{nil} and calls the
793 function @code{message-kill-buffer}.
800 @section Mail Aliases
804 @vindex message-mail-alias-type
805 The @code{message-mail-alias-type} variable controls what type of mail
806 alias expansion to use. Currently only one form is supported---Message
807 uses @code{mailabbrev} to handle mail aliases. If this variable is
808 @code{nil}, no mail alias expansion will be performed.
810 @code{mailabbrev} works by parsing the @file{/etc/mailrc} and
811 @file{~/.mailrc} files. These files look like:
814 alias lmi "Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@ifi.uio.no>"
815 alias ding "ding@@ifi.uio.no (ding mailing list)"
818 After adding lines like this to your @file{~/.mailrc} file, you should
819 be able to just write @samp{lmi} in the @code{To} or @code{Cc} (and so
820 on) headers and press @kbd{SPC} to expand the alias.
822 No expansion will be performed upon sending of the message---all
823 expansions have to be done explicitly.
829 @findex ispell-message
831 There are two popular ways to have Emacs spell-check your messages:
832 @code{ispell} and @code{flyspell}. @code{ispell} is the older and
833 probably more popular package. You typically first write the message,
834 and then run the entire thing through @code{ispell} and fix all the
835 typos. To have this happen automatically when you send a message, put
836 something like the following in your @file{.emacs} file:
839 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
842 @vindex ispell-message-dictionary-alist
843 If you're in the habit of writing in different languages, this can be
844 controlled by the @code{ispell-message-dictionary-alist} variable:
847 (setq ispell-message-dictionary-alist
848 '(("^Newsgroups:.*\\bde\\." . "deutsch8")
852 @code{ispell} depends on having the external @samp{ispell} command
855 The other popular method is using @code{flyspell}. This package checks
856 your spelling while you're writing, and marks any mis-spelled words in
859 To use @code{flyspell}, put something like the following in your
863 (defun my-message-setup-routine ()
865 (add-hook 'message-setup-hook 'my-message-setup-routine)
868 @code{flyspell} depends on having the external @samp{ispell} command
876 * Message Headers:: General message header stuff.
877 * Mail Headers:: Customizing mail headers.
878 * Mail Variables:: Other mail variables.
879 * News Headers:: Customizing news headers.
880 * News Variables:: Other news variables.
881 * Insertion Variables:: Customizing how things are inserted.
882 * Various Message Variables:: Other message variables.
883 * Sending Variables:: Variables for sending.
884 * Message Buffers:: How Message names its buffers.
885 * Message Actions:: Actions to be performed when exiting.
889 @node Message Headers
890 @section Message Headers
892 Message is quite aggressive on the message generation front. It has to
893 be -- it's a combined news and mail agent. To be able to send combined
894 messages, it has to generate all headers itself (instead of letting the
895 mail/news system do it) to ensure that mail and news copies of messages
896 look sufficiently similar.
900 @item message-generate-headers-first
901 @vindex message-generate-headers-first
902 If non-@code{nil}, generate all required headers before starting to
905 The variables @code{message-required-mail-headers} and
906 @code{message-required-news-headers} specify which headers are required.
908 Note that some headers will be removed and re-generated before posting,
909 because of the variable @code{message-deletable-headers} (see below).
911 @item message-from-style
912 @vindex message-from-style
913 Specifies how @code{From} headers should look. There are four valid
918 Just the address -- @samp{king@@grassland.com}.
921 @samp{king@@grassland.com (Elvis Parsley)}.
924 @samp{Elvis Parsley <king@@grassland.com>}.
927 Look like @code{angles} if that doesn't require quoting, and
928 @code{parens} if it does. If even @code{parens} requires quoting, use
929 @code{angles} anyway.
933 @item message-deletable-headers
934 @vindex message-deletable-headers
935 Headers in this list that were previously generated by Message will be
936 deleted before posting. Let's say you post an article. Then you decide
937 to post it again to some other group, you naughty boy, so you jump back
938 to the @code{*post-buf*} buffer, edit the @code{Newsgroups} line, and
939 ship it off again. By default, this variable makes sure that the old
940 generated @code{Message-ID} is deleted, and a new one generated. If
941 this isn't done, the entire empire would probably crumble, anarchy would
942 prevail, and cats would start walking on two legs and rule the world.
945 @item message-default-headers
946 @vindex message-default-headers
947 This string is inserted at the end of the headers in all message
950 @item message-subject-re-regexp
951 @vindex message-subject-re-regexp
952 Responses to messages have subjects that start with @samp{Re: }. This
953 is @emph{not} an abbreviation of the English word ``response'', but is
954 Latin, and means ``in response to''. Some illiterate nincompoops have
955 failed to grasp this fact, and have ``internationalized'' their software
956 to use abonimations like @samp{Aw: } (``antwort'') or @samp{Sv: }
957 (``svar'') instead, which is meaningless and evil. However, you may
958 have to deal with users that use these evil tools, in which case you may
959 set this variable to a regexp that matches these prefixes. Myself, I
960 just throw away non-compliant mail.
962 @item message-alternative-emails
963 @vindex message-alternative-emails
964 A regexp to match the alternative email addresses. The first matched
965 address (not primary one) is used in the @code{From} field.
971 @section Mail Headers
974 @item message-required-mail-headers
975 @vindex message-required-mail-headers
976 @xref{News Headers}, for the syntax of this variable. It is
977 @code{(From Date Subject (optional . In-Reply-To) Message-ID Lines
978 (optional . User-Agent))} by default.
980 @item message-ignored-mail-headers
981 @vindex message-ignored-mail-headers
982 Regexp of headers to be removed before mailing. The default is
983 @samp{^[GF]cc:\\|^Resent-Fcc:\\|^Xref:\\|^X-Draft-From:}.
985 @item message-default-mail-headers
986 @vindex message-default-mail-headers
987 This string is inserted at the end of the headers in all message
988 buffers that are initialized as mail.
994 @section Mail Variables
997 @item message-send-mail-function
998 @vindex message-send-mail-function
999 @findex message-send-mail-with-sendmail
1000 @findex message-send-mail-with-mh
1001 @findex message-send-mail-with-qmail
1002 @findex smtpmail-send-it
1003 @findex feedmail-send-it
1004 Function used to send the current buffer as mail. The default is
1005 @code{message-send-mail-with-sendmail}. Other valid values include
1006 @code{message-send-mail-with-mh}, @code{message-send-mail-with-qmail},
1007 @code{smtpmail-send-it} and @code{feedmail-send-it}.
1009 @item message-mh-deletable-headers
1010 @vindex message-mh-deletable-headers
1011 Most versions of MH doesn't like being fed messages that contain the
1012 headers in this variable. If this variable is non-@code{nil} (which is
1013 the default), these headers will be removed before mailing when sending
1014 messages via MH. Set it to @code{nil} if your MH can handle these
1017 @item message-send-mail-partially-limit
1018 @vindex message-send-mail-partially-limit
1019 The limitation of messages sent as message/partial.
1020 The lower bound of message size in characters, beyond which the message
1021 should be sent in several parts. If it is nil, the size is unlimited.
1027 @section News Headers
1029 @vindex message-required-news-headers
1030 @code{message-required-news-headers} a list of header symbols. These
1031 headers will either be automatically generated, or, if that's
1032 impossible, they will be prompted for. The following symbols are valid:
1038 @findex user-full-name
1039 @findex user-mail-address
1040 This required header will be filled out with the result of the
1041 @code{message-make-from} function, which depends on the
1042 @code{message-from-style}, @code{user-full-name},
1043 @code{user-mail-address} variables.
1047 This required header will be prompted for if not present already.
1051 This required header says which newsgroups the article is to be posted
1052 to. If it isn't present already, it will be prompted for.
1055 @cindex organization
1056 This optional header will be filled out depending on the
1057 @code{message-user-organization} variable.
1058 @code{message-user-organization-file} will be used if this variable is
1059 @code{t}. This variable can also be a string (in which case this string
1060 will be used), or it can be a function (which will be called with no
1061 parameters and should return a string to be used).
1065 This optional header will be computed by Message.
1069 @vindex mail-host-address
1072 This required header will be generated by Message. A unique ID will be
1073 created based on the date, time, user name and system name. Message
1074 will use @code{system-name} to determine the name of the system. If
1075 this isn't a fully qualified domain name (FQDN), Message will use
1076 @code{mail-host-address} as the FQDN of the machine.
1080 This optional header will be filled out according to the
1081 @code{message-newsreader} local variable.
1084 This optional header is filled out using the @code{Date} and @code{From}
1085 header of the article being replied to.
1089 This extremely optional header will be inserted according to the
1090 @code{message-expires} variable. It is highly deprecated and shouldn't
1091 be used unless you know what you're doing.
1094 @cindex Distribution
1095 This optional header is filled out according to the
1096 @code{message-distribution-function} variable. It is a deprecated and
1097 much misunderstood header.
1101 This extremely optional header should probably never be used.
1102 However, some @emph{very} old servers require that this header is
1103 present. @code{message-user-path} further controls how this
1104 @code{Path} header is to look. If it is @code{nil}, use the server name
1105 as the leaf node. If it is a string, use the string. If it is neither
1106 a string nor @code{nil}, use the user name only. However, it is highly
1107 unlikely that you should need to fiddle with this variable at all.
1111 @cindex Mime-Version
1112 In addition, you can enter conses into this list. The car of this cons
1113 should be a symbol. This symbol's name is the name of the header, and
1114 the cdr can either be a string to be entered verbatim as the value of
1115 this header, or it can be a function to be called. This function should
1116 return a string to be inserted. For instance, if you want to insert
1117 @code{Mime-Version: 1.0}, you should enter @code{(Mime-Version . "1.0")}
1118 into the list. If you want to insert a funny quote, you could enter
1119 something like @code{(X-Yow . yow)} into the list. The function
1120 @code{yow} will then be called without any arguments.
1122 If the list contains a cons where the car of the cons is
1123 @code{optional}, the cdr of this cons will only be inserted if it is
1126 Other variables for customizing outgoing news articles:
1130 @item message-syntax-checks
1131 @vindex message-syntax-checks
1132 Controls what syntax checks should not be performed on outgoing posts.
1133 To disable checking of long signatures, for instance, add
1136 (signature . disabled)
1145 Check the subject for commands.
1148 Insert a new @code{Sender} header if the @code{From} header looks odd.
1149 @item multiple-headers
1150 Check for the existence of multiple equal headers.
1153 Check for the existence of version and sendsys commands.
1155 Check whether the @code{Message-ID} looks ok.
1157 Check whether the @code{From} header seems nice.
1160 Check for too long lines.
1162 Check for invalid characters.
1164 Check for excessive size.
1166 Check whether there is any new text in the messages.
1168 Check the length of the signature.
1171 Check whether the article has an @code{Approved} header, which is
1172 something only moderators should include.
1174 Check whether the article is empty.
1175 @item invisible-text
1176 Check whether there is any invisible text in the buffer.
1178 Check whether any of the headers are empty.
1179 @item existing-newsgroups
1180 Check whether the newsgroups mentioned in the @code{Newsgroups} and
1181 @code{Followup-To} headers exist.
1182 @item valid-newsgroups
1183 Check whether the @code{Newsgroups} and @code{Followup-to} headers
1184 are valid syntactically.
1185 @item repeated-newsgroups
1186 Check whether the @code{Newsgroups} and @code{Followup-to} headers
1187 contains repeated group names.
1188 @item shorten-followup-to
1189 Check whether to add a @code{Followup-to} header to shorten the number
1190 of groups to post to.
1193 All these conditions are checked by default.
1195 @item message-ignored-news-headers
1196 @vindex message-ignored-news-headers
1197 Regexp of headers to be removed before posting. The default is@*
1198 @samp{^NNTP-Posting-Host:\\|^Xref:\\|^[BGF]cc:\\|^Resent-Fcc:\\|^X-Draft-From:}.
1200 @item message-default-news-headers
1201 @vindex message-default-news-headers
1202 This string is inserted at the end of the headers in all message
1203 buffers that are initialized as news.
1208 @node News Variables
1209 @section News Variables
1212 @item message-send-news-function
1213 @vindex message-send-news-function
1214 Function used to send the current buffer as news. The default is
1215 @code{message-send-news}.
1217 @item message-post-method
1218 @vindex message-post-method
1219 Gnusish @dfn{select method} (see the Gnus manual for details) used for
1220 posting a prepared news message.
1225 @node Insertion Variables
1226 @section Insertion Variables
1229 @item message-ignored-cited-headers
1230 @vindex message-ignored-cited-headers
1231 All headers that match this regexp will be removed from yanked
1232 messages. The default is @samp{.}, which means that all headers will be
1235 @item message-cite-prefix-regexp
1236 @vindex message-cite-prefix-regexp
1237 Regexp matching the longest possible citation prefix on a line.
1239 @item message-citation-line-function
1240 @vindex message-citation-line-function
1241 @cindex attribution line
1242 Function called to insert the citation line. The default is
1243 @code{message-insert-citation-line}, which will lead to citation lines
1247 Hallvard B Furuseth <h.b.furuseth@@usit.uio.no> writes:
1250 Point will be at the beginning of the body of the message when this
1253 Note that Gnus provides a feature where clicking on `writes:' hides the
1254 cited text. If you change the citation line too much, readers of your
1255 messages will have to adjust their Gnus, too. See the variable
1256 @code{gnus-cite-attribution-suffix}. @xref{Article Highlighting, ,
1257 Article Highlighting, gnus}, for details.
1259 @item message-yank-prefix
1260 @vindex message-yank-prefix
1263 When you are replying to or following up an article, you normally want
1264 to quote the person you are answering. Inserting quoted text is done
1265 by @dfn{yanking}, and each line you yank will have
1266 @code{message-yank-prefix} prepended to it (except for quoted and
1267 empty lines which uses @code{message-yank-cited-prefix}). The default
1270 @item message-yank-cited-prefix
1271 @vindex message-yank-cited-prefix
1275 When yanking text from a article which contains no text or already
1276 cited text, each line will be prefixed with the contents of this
1277 variable. The default is @samp{>}. See also
1278 @code{message-yank-prefix}.
1280 @item message-yank-add-new-references
1281 @vindex message-yank-add-new-references
1283 Non-@code{nil} means new IDs will be added to References field when an
1284 article is yanked by the command @code{message-yank-original}
1285 interactively. If it is a symbol @code{message-id-only}, only an ID
1286 from Message-ID field is used, otherwise IDs extracted from References,
1287 In-Reply-To and Message-ID fields are used.
1289 @item message-list-references-add-position
1290 @vindex message-list-references-add-position
1292 Integer value means position for adding to References field when an
1293 article is yanked by the command @code{message-yank-original}
1296 @item message-indentation-spaces
1297 @vindex message-indentation-spaces
1298 Number of spaces to indent yanked messages.
1300 @item message-cite-function
1301 @vindex message-cite-function
1302 @findex message-cite-original
1303 @findex sc-cite-original
1304 @findex message-cite-original-without-signature
1306 Function for citing an original message. The default is
1307 @code{message-cite-original}, which simply inserts the original message
1308 and prepends @samp{> } to each line.
1309 @code{message-cite-original-without-signature} does the same, but elides
1310 the signature. You can also set it to @code{sc-cite-original} to use
1313 @item message-suspend-font-lock-when-citing
1314 @vindex message-suspend-font-lock-when-citing
1315 If non-@code{nil}, suspend font-lock'ing while citing an original
1316 message. Some lazy demand-driven fontification tools (or Emacs itself)
1317 have a bug that they often miss a buffer to be fontified. It will
1318 mostly occur when Emacs prompts user for any inputs in the minibuffer.
1319 Setting this option to non-@code{nil} may help you to avoid unpleasant
1320 errors even if it is an add-hoc expedient.
1322 @item message-indent-citation-function
1323 @vindex message-indent-citation-function
1324 Function for modifying a citation just inserted in the mail buffer.
1325 This can also be a list of functions. Each function can find the
1326 citation between @code{(point)} and @code{(mark t)}. And each function
1327 should leave point and mark around the citation text as modified.
1329 @item message-signature
1330 @vindex message-signature
1331 String to be inserted at the end of the message buffer. If @code{t}
1332 (which is the default), the @code{message-signature-file} file will be
1333 inserted instead. If a function, the result from the function will be
1334 used instead. If a form, the result from the form will be used instead.
1335 If this variable is @code{nil}, no signature will be inserted at all.
1337 @item message-signature-file
1338 @vindex message-signature-file
1339 File containing the signature to be inserted at the end of the buffer.
1340 The default is @samp{~/.signature}.
1344 Note that RFC1036bis says that a signature should be preceded by the three
1345 characters @samp{-- } on a line by themselves. This is to make it
1346 easier for the recipient to automatically recognize and process the
1347 signature. So don't remove those characters, even though you might feel
1348 that they ruin your beautiful design, like, totally.
1350 Also note that no signature should be more than four lines long.
1351 Including ASCII graphics is an efficient way to get everybody to believe
1352 that you are silly and have nothing important to say.
1355 @node Various Message Variables
1356 @section Various Message Variables
1359 @item message-default-charset
1360 @vindex message-default-charset
1362 Symbol naming a @sc{mime} charset. Non-ASCII characters in messages are
1363 assumed to be encoded using this charset. The default is @code{nil},
1364 which means ask the user. (This variable is used only on non-@sc{mule}
1366 @xref{Charset Translation, , Charset Translation, emacs-mime,
1367 Emacs MIME Manual}, for details on the @sc{mule}-to-@sc{mime}
1368 translation process.
1370 @item message-signature-separator
1371 @vindex message-signature-separator
1372 Regexp matching the signature separator. It is @samp{^-- *$} by
1375 @item mail-header-separator
1376 @vindex mail-header-separator
1377 String used to separate the headers from the body. It is @samp{--text
1378 follows this line--} by default.
1380 @item message-directory
1381 @vindex message-directory
1382 Directory used by many mailey things. The default is @file{~/Mail/}.
1384 @item message-signature-setup-hook
1385 @vindex message-signature-setup-hook
1386 Hook run when initializing the message buffer. It is run after the
1387 headers have been inserted but before the signature has been inserted.
1389 @item message-setup-hook
1390 @vindex message-setup-hook
1391 Hook run as the last thing when the message buffer has been initialized,
1392 but before yanked text is inserted.
1394 @item message-header-setup-hook
1395 @vindex message-header-setup-hook
1396 Hook called narrowed to the headers after initializing the headers.
1398 For instance, if you're running Gnus and wish to insert a
1399 @samp{Mail-Copies-To} header in all your news articles and all messages
1400 you send to mailing lists, you could do something like the following:
1403 (defun my-message-header-setup-hook ()
1404 (let ((group (or gnus-newsgroup-name "")))
1405 (when (or (message-fetch-field "newsgroups")
1406 (gnus-group-find-parameter group 'to-address)
1407 (gnus-group-find-parameter group 'to-list))
1408 (insert "Mail-Copies-To: never\n"))))
1410 (add-hook 'message-header-setup-hook
1411 'my-message-header-setup-hook)
1414 @item message-send-hook
1415 @vindex message-send-hook
1416 Hook run before sending messages.
1418 If you want to add certain headers before sending, you can use the
1419 @code{message-add-header} function in this hook. For instance:
1420 @findex message-add-header
1423 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'my-message-add-content)
1424 (defun my-message-add-content ()
1425 (message-add-header "X-In-No-Sense: Nonsense")
1426 (message-add-header "X-Whatever: no"))
1429 This function won't add the header if the header is already present.
1431 @item message-send-mail-hook
1432 @vindex message-send-mail-hook
1433 Hook run before sending mail messages.
1435 @item message-send-news-hook
1436 @vindex message-send-news-hook
1437 Hook run before sending news messages.
1439 @item message-sent-hook
1440 @vindex message-sent-hook
1441 Hook run after sending messages.
1443 @item message-mode-syntax-table
1444 @vindex message-mode-syntax-table
1445 Syntax table used in message mode buffers.
1447 @item message-send-method-alist
1448 @vindex message-send-method-alist
1450 Alist of ways to send outgoing messages. Each element has the form
1453 (TYPE PREDICATE FUNCTION)
1458 A symbol that names the method.
1461 A function called without any parameters to determine whether the
1462 message is a message of type @var{type}.
1465 A function to be called if @var{predicate} returns non-@code{nil}.
1466 @var{function} is called with one parameter -- the prefix.
1470 ((news message-news-p message-send-via-news)
1471 (mail message-mail-p message-send-via-mail))
1480 @node Sending Variables
1481 @section Sending Variables
1485 @item message-fcc-handler-function
1486 @vindex message-fcc-handler-function
1487 A function called to save outgoing articles. This function will be
1488 called with the name of the file to store the article in. The default
1489 function is @code{message-output} which saves in Unix mailbox format.
1491 @item message-courtesy-message
1492 @vindex message-courtesy-message
1493 When sending combined messages, this string is inserted at the start of
1494 the mailed copy. If the string contains the format spec @samp{%s}, the
1495 newsgroups the article has been posted to will be inserted there. If
1496 this variable is @code{nil}, no such courtesy message will be added.
1497 The default value is @samp{"The following message is a courtesy copy of
1498 an article\\nthat has been posted to %s as well.\\n\\n"}.
1503 @node Message Buffers
1504 @section Message Buffers
1506 Message will generate new buffers with unique buffer names when you
1507 request a message buffer. When you send the message, the buffer isn't
1508 normally killed off. Its name is changed and a certain number of old
1509 message buffers are kept alive.
1512 @item message-generate-new-buffers
1513 @vindex message-generate-new-buffers
1514 If non-@code{nil}, generate new buffers. The default is @code{t}. If
1515 this is a function, call that function with three parameters: The type,
1516 the to address and the group name. (Any of these may be @code{nil}.)
1517 The function should return the new buffer name.
1519 @item message-use-multi-frames
1520 @vindex message-use-multi-frames
1521 If non-@code{nil}, generate new frames. The default is @code{nil}.
1523 @item message-delete-frame-on-exit
1524 @vindex message-delete-frame-on-exit
1525 The @code{message-delete-frame-on-exit} variable says whether to delete
1526 the frame after sending the message or killing the message buffer. If it
1527 is @code{nil} (which is the default), don't delete the frame. If it is
1528 @code{ask}, ask wheter to delete the frame. If it is @code{t}, always
1531 @item message-max-buffers
1532 @vindex message-max-buffers
1533 This variable says how many old message buffers to keep. If there are
1534 more message buffers than this, the oldest buffer will be killed. The
1535 default is 10. If this variable is @code{nil}, no old message buffers
1536 will ever be killed.
1538 @item message-send-rename-function
1539 @vindex message-send-rename-function
1540 After sending a message, the buffer is renamed from, for instance,
1541 @samp{*reply to Lars*} to @samp{*sent reply to Lars*}. If you don't
1542 like this, set this variable to a function that renames the buffer in a
1543 manner you like. If you don't want to rename the buffer at all, you can
1547 (setq message-send-rename-function 'ignore)
1550 @item message-kill-buffer-on-exit
1551 @vindex message-kill-buffer-on-exit
1552 If non-@code{nil}, kill the buffer immediately on exit.
1554 @item message-kill-buffer-query-function
1555 @vindex message-kill-buffer-query-function
1556 @findex message-kill-buffer
1557 @findex message-mimic-kill-buffer
1558 Function used to prompt user whether to kill the message buffer when the
1559 command @code{message-kill-buffer} or @code{message-mimic-kill-buffer}
1560 is used. It defaults to @code{yes-or-no-p}. You may alter the value to
1561 @code{y-or-n-p}, @code{nnheader-Y-or-n-p}, etc. If it is @code{t}, the
1562 buffer will be killed without query.
1564 @item message-kill-buffer-and-remove-file
1565 @vindex message-kill-buffer-and-remove-file
1566 @findex message-kill-buffer
1567 @findex message-mimic-kill-buffer
1568 If it is non-@code{nil}, remove the backup file if it exists with a
1569 query to the user, after the message buffer is killed. Otherwise the
1570 file won't be removed. It defaults to @code{t}. However, it is treated
1571 as @code{nil} when the command `message-mimic-kill-buffer' is used.
1576 @node Message Actions
1577 @section Message Actions
1579 When Message is being used from a news/mail reader, the reader is likely
1580 to want to perform some task after the message has been sent. Perhaps
1581 return to the previous window configuration or mark an article as
1584 @vindex message-kill-actions
1585 @vindex message-postpone-actions
1586 @vindex message-exit-actions
1587 @vindex message-send-actions
1588 The user may exit from the message buffer in various ways. The most
1589 common is @kbd{C-c C-c}, which sends the message and exits. Other
1590 possibilities are @kbd{C-c C-s} which just sends the message, @kbd{C-c
1591 C-d} which postpones the message editing and buries the message buffer,
1592 and @kbd{C-c C-k} which kills the message buffer. Each of these actions
1593 have lists associated with them that contains actions to be executed:
1594 @code{message-send-actions}, @code{message-exit-actions},
1595 @code{message-postpone-actions}, and @code{message-kill-actions}.
1597 Message provides a function to interface with these lists:
1598 @code{message-add-action}. The first parameter is the action to be
1599 added, and the rest of the arguments are which lists to add this action
1600 to. Here's an example from Gnus:
1604 `(set-window-configuration ,(current-window-configuration))
1605 'exit 'postpone 'kill)
1608 This restores the Gnus window configuration when the message buffer is
1609 killed, postponed or exited.
1611 An @dfn{action} can be either: a normal function, or a list where the
1612 @code{car} is a function and the @code{cdr} is the list of arguments, or
1613 a form to be @code{eval}ed.
1617 @chapter Compatibility
1618 @cindex compatibility
1620 Message uses virtually only its own variables---older @code{mail-}
1621 variables aren't consulted. To force Message to take those variables
1622 into account, you can put the following in your @code{.emacs} file:
1625 (require 'messcompat)
1628 This will initialize many Message variables from the values in the
1629 corresponding mail variables.
1636 * Responses:: Standard rules for determining where responses go.
1643 To determine where a message is to go, the following algorithm is used
1648 A @dfn{reply} is when you want to respond @emph{just} to the person who
1649 sent the message via mail. There will only be one recipient. To
1650 determine who the recipient will be, the following headers are
1661 A @dfn{wide reply} is a mail response that includes @emph{all} entities
1662 mentioned in the message you are responded to. All mailboxes from the
1663 following headers will be concatenated to form the outgoing
1664 @code{To}/@code{Cc} headers:
1668 (unless there's a @code{Reply-To}, in which case that is used instead).
1675 If a @code{Mail-Copies-To} header is present, it will also be included
1676 in the list of mailboxes. If this header is @samp{never}, that means
1677 that the @code{From} (or @code{Reply-To}) mailbox will be suppressed.
1681 A @dfn{followup} is a response sent via news. The following headers
1682 (listed in order of precedence) determine where the response is to be
1693 If a @code{Mail-Copies-To} header is present, it will be used as the
1694 basis of the new @code{Cc} header, except if this header is